As the Marist testing season looms closer, juniors are gearing up for one of the most critical exams of their academic careers: the ACT.
The ACT (The American College Test) is a standardized test used for college admissions and a gateway to future career opportunities for students.
Marist High School has partnered with the ACT to administer all junior students the test and all underclassmen with an alternative test. College counselors hope that this will give students the chance to be rewarded scholarships or to aid students in their colleges applications.
“A student’s ACT score is often used to determine merit-based scholarships,” said College and Career Counselor Mr. Ronald Dawczak. “Submitting an ACT score is optional when filling out an application [to some] colleges… however, there are colleges that require students to submit an official ACT score as part of their application.”
The ACT takes a total of 3 hours and 35 minutes to complete. The exam is comprised of four timed sections: English, Math, Reading, and Science. Beginning this spring, however, the science portion of the exam will be optional. Additionally, the ACT offers an optional writing section for students.
Marist High School has designated Tuesday, April 8, as an all-school testing day. On this day, all freshmen, sophomores, and juniors will be given some variation of the ACT. Freshmen will take the PreACT 8/9, while sophomores will take the PreACT.
“These standardized assessments provide students with early exposure to ACT test items and offer a prediction for future ACT scores,” said Dawczak.
Juniors will take the official ACT, with some modifications. Junior students will be taking the science section on the ACT, and Marist will not test the optional writing section of the exam.
Marist is also offering additional ACT testing days for students, including Saturday, February 8. However, upcoming testing dates have caused many students to worry about about the exam.
A paper poll was conducted by the MHS Media Team amongst 40 junior students during their lunch period to find out how students felt in anticipation of the test. Over 72% of polled students felt “stressed” or “anxious” about the the exam, with only 10% not feeling worried at all (the rest were in the middle).
“I am a little bit nervous about [the ACT], but I hope that I can get a good enough score to send to colleges,” said junior Kevin Maher.
Recognizing the ACT’s importance, the Marist administration has been taking steps to ensure students are well-prepared. They have partnered with Breakthrough ACT Prep which host classes afterschool once a week. Another prep class that is being offered is by the company Academic Approach, which hosts in-person and virtual prep classes for students.
The administration has also employed the help of teachers to prepare students for the ACT.
“Teachers will start to utilize a test prep tool called Albert.io in class to expose students to ACT-style questions and incorporate these types of questions into their daily lessons,” said Dawczak.
Students are grateful.
“I’m really nervous about how I’ll perform, but I feel like the school’s been doing a good job helping us,” said Andrew Hollinger, a junior. “The prep sessions after school have been very useful.”
Students have also employed the use of external prep classes, tutors, and studying materials from companies such as the Princeton Review, Kaplan, Barron’s, and the ACT website.
“I’m going online to find some free practice tests that I can use to study,” said junior Alfredo Ibarra. “Hopefully with those and a prep book I can get a decent score.”
While there is still some time before the ACT, students are hopeful that their efforts will pay off.
“I am going to try and study as much as possible for the ACT, and the plan is to get a good enough score where I can take it once and be done,” said Maher.
