The ACT, administered by ACT, Inc., is an alternative college admission test more commonly used in the Mid-west, parts of the South and the West, but with increased frequency on the East coast. Some state universities in those parts of the country actually require the ACT and will not accept the SAT in its place.  The ACT is a four-part exam that includes four multiple-choice tests. The sections on the test measure your knowledge in English, mathematics, reading, and science reasoning. The total testing time is three hours, and scores are reported on a range of 1 to 36. Because the ACT is curriculum-based (unlike the SAT), some students tend to score a little higher on it. If you are interested in the ACT (click here to register), and if you are not in an area where the ACT is commonly taken, you should discuss the possibility of taking it with your counselor. Some students will find that they can prepare better for the ACT, and actually perform better on it.  Most students, however, will score at roughly the same level when they compare their scores from the two scales (assuming they prepared adequately for each test).  More and more juniors are taking both the ACT and the SAT in the spring to determine which might be better to retake.

ACT TEST DATES 2003-2004
September 27, 2003 (certain states only)
October 25, 2003
December 13, 2003
February 7, 2004 (not in New York)
April 3, 2004
June 12, 2004