College Testing Optional

College testing will go on next week as planned despite COVID19 cases on Townview campus and many colleges making test scores optional for college admissions.

COVID19 cases forced County Judge Clay Jenkins to raise the threat level to Red this week and Dallas ISD COVID19 cases tripled in one week and are currently at more than six times the original number after less than two weeks.

College Testing

College tests such as the ACT or SAT have been used for years to assist with admissions decisions, but this year, numerous colleges and universities are making tests optional for admission due to COVID19.

The ACT and SAT entrance exams are the proverbial Coke and Pepsi of college admissions. Both exams are widely accepted by U.S. colleges, which often prompts the question: Which test should I take?

The answer to that question lies in understanding the differences between the two tests.

Both college admissions exams are wildly popular. In the class of 2019, a reported 2.2 million test-takers completed the SAT while 1.8 million students took the ACT. It is unclear how many students took both, but some experts say it has become more common for test-takers to complete both college testing batteries.

The SAT takes three hours, though with an optional 50-minute essay, the time adds up to almost four hours total. The ACT lasts two hours and 55 minutes, though a 40-minute optional writing test stretches it to a little more than three-and-a-half hours.

The SAT features 154 questions vs. 215 for the ACT. Broken down by test components, the SAT has a reading test that takes 65 minutes, a 35-minute writing and language test and an 80-minute math section. The ACT is comprised of a 35-minute reading test, 45-minute English test, 60-minute math section and 35-minute science test.

The SAT does not include an independent science section but incorporates science questions throughout the exam.

The scoring for each test also differs. For the SAT, total scores range from 400-1600; for the ACT, the composite score runs from 1-36. Those ranges do not include the optional essays, which are scored separately from each exam