Second, with each section timed your experience will more closely resemble that of an official test. Third, your test is graded instantly—no need to cross-reference your bubble sheet with an answer sheet. Students are timed during an official ACT administration — they must complete each of the four sections before the allotted time runs out. Altogether the ACT takes almost three hours to finish and test-takers have an average of just under 50 seconds to answer each question.
Thus students must sharpen an otherwise dull skill-set: test-taking endurance. And there is only one way to improve test-taking endurance: taking the test in a timed environment.
Following these directions will also help produce a score that most accurately predicts performance in an official test sitting. An accurate practice test score lets students put a stake in the ground where they stands today in relation to where they want to be. For the same reason you should take the test timed, you should find a quiet place to take it: recreating the official test environment is key. Taking a full-length ACT is not easy. You should be proud of setting aside three hours to improve at this particularly important part of getting into college.
Once you've downloaded a PDF practice test, I recommend printing it out and working through it on paper using official time limits more on this in a moment. Note that these tests are not a cure-all for your ACT problems. To use them effectively, you'll need to learn what they do and don't do. You'll also need to make sure you're using ACT practice tests at an optimal frequency In other words, don't take one too close to your ACT test date! When you set aside four hours for an ACT practice test, it's important to try to get the most out of your time and energy.
Using our six critical tips below as you take your ACT tests can help you prepare more effectively for test day. You're going to take the actual ACT on paper as opposed to a computer , so it's best to emulate this format by taking each practice test on paper, too. Do your scratch work directly in your "test book" in other words, not on separate pieces of scratch paper—remember, you won't get any extra paper on test day, though you are allowed to take notes directly on your test! If you're taking the Writing essay section, be sure to use the lined essay paper included in each PDF above to write out your essay by hand.
Many students struggle with time pressure on the ACT. Going over a section's time limit by just two minutes can make a noticeable difference in your score since you're essentially giving yourself the chance to answer two or three more questions. This is why it's so important to adhere to the official time limits.
Not only will this help you get used to the test structure, but it'll also let you learn how to identify your weaknesses. Here are the official time limits on the ACT as well as approximately how long you should aim to spend per question on each section:.
Last but not least, the ACT isn't without breaks , so make sure to rest during your test, too! The ACT is a marathon: it lasts about four hours , and you have to take it on a Saturday morning. Thousands of students have told me how difficult it is to stay focused during the whole exam and how easy it is to make careless mistakes at the end of the test.
Just like training for a marathon, you need to ensure you've got enough endurance to be able to succeed on the ACT. And the best way to do this is to take a practice test in one sitting—just as you will on test day. If there's no possible way for you to take an ACT test in one sitting for example, maybe you're an athlete and have practice every day that completely wears you out , it's OK to split up the test over multiple days—just as long as you're obeying each section's time limit exactly.
The main point of taking ACT practice tests isn't just getting to do a lot of questions—it's being able to learn from your mistakes. For every test you take, review all of your mistakes as well as every question you got right. If you don't know why you missed a question, don't gloss over it! Doing this means you won't learn from your mistakes and will keep making them over and over again, thereby lowering your score.
Ultimately, learn to prize study quality over quantity. It's better to take three ACT practice tests with detailed review instead of six practice tests with no review. Based on my experience with thousands of students, I've found that taking four practice tests makes you extremely comfortable with the ACT in all respects: timing, endurance, and even stress. While you can definitely take more than four tests if you want, you'll need to balance this practice with some focused prep on your weaknesses so that you can make faster progress.
Some students are great at using practice tests to study by themselves—they'll see a mistake they made, instantly realize why they made it, and then avoid making it in the future. That said, most students need additional help with pinpointing their weaknesses and getting down key test-taking skills and strategies.
Some of the best options for prep help include hiring a tutor, buying a comprehensive ACT prep book , and taking an online ACT prep course. Our dedicated guide can help you figure out which ACT prep method works best for you. Ready to get a perfect ACT score?
Read our famous guide on what it takes , written by an expert 36 scorer. Once you have all your ACT prep resources together, it's time to build a study plan. Our expert advice will help you build the ACT study plan that's best for you! Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes your prep program to your strengths and weaknesses.
We also have expert instructors who can grade every one of your practice ACT essays, giving feedback on how to improve your score. He's committed to providing the highest quality resources to help you succeed. Allen graduated from Harvard University summa cum laude and earned two perfect scores on the SAT in , and in and a perfect score on the ACT.
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