How your grade level can affect when you take the ACT

Over the past few weeks, we have been talking on the blog about some considerations that students should have before picking an ACT test date. The test is offered nationally at least 7 times in a calendar year.  In today’s post, we are going to discuss the considerations relevant to the student’s academic grade level. For the grade level consideration, we will look at both the earlier grade levels for how soon one should take the ACT and the later grade levels for how late one can take the ACT.  

A popular question I get is when should my student start taking the ACT.  In future posts, we are going to talk about some additional things that weigh into the answer I give to this question, but as far as how I answer based on grade level, here are a few things to consider.  ACT test scores are available basically forever from ACT itself.  But, some colleges and universities want to see scores that are earned within 5 years from the application period.  Students will want to make sure of this requirement from any schools or organizations in which they plan to apply. 

The other aspect that goes along with considerations that we will discuss in the future is that I do not recommend a student take the ACT too early for no other reason than to just take the test.  The ACT is a challenging test both in content and timing, which includes prep time and actual test time.  If a student is not academically ready for the test because of grade level, I do not recommend taking the test too early.  Students that are not ready can easily become overwhelmed from the test and this could have a negative affect on their future performance.  If a student finds the test so challenging that they feel they will “never” do well on it, their attitude will need to be worked on before attempting again.  Give the student a little more time and take the test when ready. 

On the other side of the coin is the question of when is it too late for my student to test.  Like we discussed with post-high school plans, the answer to this question is based on deadlines for college and scholarship applications.  With scores being available within approximately 2-4 weeks after testing, a student must test before scores are due to organizations.  

Some states provide state-funded offerings to their 11th and/or 12th graders, but it varies from state to state which ones offer this and when.  A recent count showed 20 states that provide this testing at specified grade levels, so it is best to check with your school district and/or your state’s Department of Education for these offerings.

My recommendation as to what grade level to start testing is to start soon enough that a student is ready academically to do reasonably well with handling prep work and the test itself AND have future test opportunities available to re-test as desired.  Knowing test dates, application deadlines, and planning ahead will help set the student in the right direction of meeting their test goals.