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ACT superscoring is a means for improving your standardized test results on the ACT As opposed to taking a single composite score from one test, it combines your best results from multiple ACTs.

How is the ACT scored?

Each time you take the ACT, you will get several scores:

• A scaled score (out of 36) for each of the four multiple-choice tests on the ACT—English, Math, Reading, and Science. This is based on the number of raw points earned.
• An average, rounded to the nearest whole number, of those four scaled scores. This is your composite score.
• A writing (essay) score, but only if you take this optional section. It is not calculated as part of the composite score, as only some schools require it as part of a college application.

What is ACT superscoring?

If you’ve taken the ACT more than once, you will also get:

• A superscore, which is a score report (including a new composite score) that takes the best results in every multiple-choice section over any number of test dates. In other words, if you did better on Reading and Science in February, but better on English and Math in April, a superscore will take your February Reading and Science scores and combine them with your April English and Math scores for a new, higher superscore.

For example:

How does ACT superscoring work?

Your superscore will be calculated and posted in your MyACT account as soon as the second ACT is scored. You don’t need to do anything else to calculate it or to generate that report. Each time you retake the ACT, as long as there’s at least one improved section, a new superscore will be calculated.

In addition, many schools (and the Common Application) will ask you to list the scores and test dates of your English, Math, Reading, and Science and then calculate a superscore based on these scores, separate from ACT.

What are the benefits of superscoring?

Superscoring can be beneficial to both the students applying to college and to the schools to which those students apply.

• If you have uneven test scores from test to test, superscoring will help you put their best score forward, even if it took you more than one test date to achieve that goal. Instead of worrying that some scores will rise as others fall when you take the ACT again , the superscore will reflect only your best results. This result makes you more competitive in the college admissions process and for merit-based scholarships and aid.

Superscoring helps the colleges as well. Most colleges, especially those that accept superscores, take a holistic view of the student applicant. Using superscores shows the admissions officials how well the student can perform overall, as opposed to how well the student did on one single test day. In fact, according to , superscores better predict student success than other methods such as using the most recent test score or the highest test score.

How can I send an ACT superscore to schools?

Through your MyACT account, you can request that reports of various kinds are sent to the schools of your choice. ACT will never send a report without your request, and you must pay a small fee for each report you ask ACT to send.

• Check the website of each school you are applying to; look for a test-score use policy in the admissions requirement section.
• If a school does not accept ACT superscores send the results from your highest composite score.
• If a school requires that you submit test scores from every administration, do so.

ACT superscoring removes the risk from retaking an exam, because you don’t have to worry about improving every section across the board. If you know that your schools will accept a superscore, be sure to give yourself time to take the test at least twice. You can also use this to help you prep by studying and improving upon your lowest-scoring sections. In short, ACT superscoring can help supercharge your academic efforts: there’s nothing to lose and everything to gain.