I got a 20 on the act?

Question

for the very first time in my life i took the act. i thought it was okay..until i saw the science question. so is a 20 on the act good for a first timer. the only section i sucked at was science:(

Answer 1

Well it all depends on which colleges you want to go to. A 20 on the ACT is equated to a 1410 on the new SAT. This might help put it in perspective because most people are used to hearing SAT scores rather than ACT. In 2007 the average ACT score was 21.1. Since the average SAT score went up this year, i would imagine the average ACT score went up as well, although i would imagine its still probably about 21.1-21.3.

Its tough to say whats good for a particular student and whats not. If you're an average student, than you probably have the ability to score a little bit higher if you take them again. If you want to put your score in perspective, google the 2008 class profile of *insert the name of a college you want to apply to*. The profile should show you the average ACT score of those who were accepted. Do this for 3 colleges you think you want to apply to and compare the average ACT scores. If your score is higher than the average at these colleges, good job. If not, then you should try to raise them.

I am not sure about how each section is weighted on the ACT, but i cant see science s******g up your composite score that much unless you scored like a 10 or lower, everyone has a best section and a worst one. In any case, unlike the SAT where most colleges don't place importance on the writing portion of the exam, colleges pretty much look at your ACT composite score rather than section by section. Hope this helps.

Answer 2

A 20 on the ACT places you in the 48th percentile nationally.  Of all the people who took the test, 48% did worse than you, and 52% did better than you.  

I'm going to be blunt - a 20 is pretty bad.  I would work on all of your scores (especially science, since apparently that was the worst).  Go to a bookstore and buy an ACT prep book - I used Kaplan's ACT prep book, and it was extremely helpful.

Good luck, and I hope your score increases!

Answer 3

20 is a pretty good score. the highest u can get is  36. Many of people including myself had trouble with the science part. If your in your JR year of high school, study over the summer and re-take it again in the fall to see if u improve, thats what im doing.