College entrance exams are part of life for most every Chicagoland high school student. The two most common tests are the SAT and the ACT — and, for many students and their families, these tests are entirely mysterious. What are they? And why are there two of them? Is there a difference between SAT and ACT?
“On the surface, both tests cover the same material, which is reading, writing, math and problem solving. But there are a lot of differences between the SAT and ACT, from the timing and level of material, to how high they raise the bar on certain sections,” explains Andrew Ferguson, Director of Client Services at Academic Approach, a Chicago-based tutoring and test-prep company.
These differences matter because students have choices about which test they take and, more importantly, which test scores they send to prospective colleges and universities when they apply. It makes sense that a student who performs better on one test than the other would spend more time preparing for that preferred test.
Of course, it’s more complicated than that. Along with their peers across the state, Chicago area public high school juniors take the SAT as a requirement for graduation. But that doesn’t mean the SAT is their only choice, says Ferguson and his colleague, Carla Pedersen, Regional Director at Academic Approach. Students are able to also take the ACT and students at private or independent schools can take one, the other, or both tests.
Leveraging individual test-taking skills
Students who work with Academic Approach specifically for test prep start out by taking a practice exam to learn their strengths and areas of improvement. “We always recommend they try both SAT and ACT to see where they have a comfort level and where they’re performing better — and then we figure out why. Is it because they ran out of time? Had to do math they haven’t learned yet? We parse it out,” Pedersen says. “But we also see if a certain test resonates with a student more or less. When possible, it’s nice to focus on one test because colleges don’t care which test scores you send. They just want you to put your best foot forward.”
Driven by data and diagnostics, the directors at Academic Approach help students recognize their strengths and where to focus their efforts for their best individual results, no matter which test they opt to take.
For the current school year, both the SAT and ACT will continue to be pencil-and-paper tests, but that will eventually change as College Board — the organization behind the SAT — has announced its intention to move the SAT to an adaptive online format in 2024. “This won’t alter what we are teaching our students, but will change how we teach students how to take the test,” Ferguson says.
As students and families face this eventual change, they’ll benefit from Academic Approach’s in-depth understanding of each exam. “Many parents who grew up on the East Coast or in the Midwest may only know the one test they took when they were students, so we help families get to the truth and talk about the future,” Ferguson says. “Right now, students who know they will be the first group taking a digital SAT are asking a lot of questions.”
What is the difference between SAT and ACT?
To highlight the similarities and differences between the two tests, Ferguson and Pedersen share the nuts and bolts of each test, section by section.
The ACT
In broad strokes, the two-hour, 55-minute ACT is more rapid and direct, says Pedersen. “It’s not easier, but it gets to the point faster. There are four sections: English, math, reading comprehension and science. At face value, that’s very similar to the SAT,” she says.
English is the ACT’s first section. With 75 questions, it’s long but moves quickly, Pedersen says. “There are two buckets. Half is grammar, punctuation and fundamentals of writing and the other half is principles of editing for tone, clarity and conciseness and how to best articulate the topic at hand,” she explains.
Next up on the ACT is math. There are 60 questions to answer in 60 minutes and the material gets progressively more difficult as you go, so “it’s technically more time-generous, but there’s more to accomplish than on the SAT,” says Pedersen. The breadth of material covers what the typical student would have learned from seventh grade or pre-algebra level, to algebra, geometry, advanced algebra and trigonometry.
Section three of the ACT is reading comprehension. Here’s where students read four passages of about 800 words each, then answer 10 associated questions for each in just 35 minutes. “There may be prose, humanities, natural science or fiction,” says Pedersen. “Compared to the SAT, where you might be reading an excerpt from the Federalist Papers, for example, on the ACT, you’re more likely to be reading about the Federalist Papers and because of that, the language is more direct.”
The final section of the ACT is science. But, Pedersen says, it’s probably not what your student expects.“The name science sends students down the path of chemistry, physics, biology — and causes worry that they haven’t learned it yet! But this section is designed to look at a student’s ability to look at data and gauge skills at interpretation, analysis and inferring,” she explains.
“I find it more similar to reading comprehension. It’s testing analytical skills with charts, tables and graphs. What relationships can you draw, what information can you parse out to find. This section adapts well at the college level, where you’re getting a lot of information and figuring out what you need and what you don’t need.”
The SAT
With one fewer section and five additional minutes, the SAT may seem like an “easier” test, but that’s not necessarily the case, says Ferguson.
And, if students opt for the SAT solely because it has no additional section labeled “science,” they’ll be disappointed to learn that all of that data analysis is actually incorporated into the other three sections of the SAT. “You’ll be working on grammar, for instance, and then suddenly there’s a pie chart. In reading comprehension, a section may be devoted to science or social science with a chart about political data,” Ferguson says. “That science is distributed throughout the sections on the SAT, but on the ACT, it’s one-quarter of your score, so that may feel more intimidating.”
Section one of the SAT is reading comprehension. “The SAT allows for more time to complete more advanced material, especially on reading comprehension. It’s five sections, with five passages or stories to read and 52 total questions,” Ferguson says. “The level of reading, vocabulary and language is more mature than on the ACT, and because of that they have given you 13 minutes per story, which allows you to feel like you have more time.” Some of the stories, however, are written in “uncomfortable 19th-century” style, which requires the student to use context clues to get a correct answer.
The second section of the SAT is grammar, writing and language. “This section has the most similarity to the ACT. It’s grammar, punctuation, rhetoric and language usage,” Ferguson says. With just 44 questions compared to the ACT’s 75, the section is shorter, but the difficulty factor of the writing and vocabulary used is higher. “When preparing for this section, if you cover the skills required to achieve on one of the tests, you have also achieved the other,” he says.
Math is section three of the SAT and there are two portions: calculator allowed and calculator not allowed and, like the ACT, the difficulty is progressive. “The part where you can’t use a calculator requires a lot of skills and it’s where you wish you had a calculator,” Ferguson says.
For this non-calculator section, there are 20 questions. Fifteen are multiple choice and five require the student to produce their own answer. On the calculator allowed portion, there are 30 multiple choice questions and eight where the student produces their own answer.
“Math is the last section of the SAT, and for some, it’s a good thing because it keeps your brain going. There’s lots of continuous interaction and, in my opinion, an interesting way to finish an exam,” Ferguson says. “Yes, you are tired, but this section keeps the blood pumping in the brain. There are 58 questions and you get 80 minutes total, so more minutes for fewer questions and the window of question types is narrower than on the ACT, but can also be more difficult.”
Get to know each test
To increase your student’s chances of the best outcome, it makes sense to get to know each test by taking a practice exam and really learning what each test covers — and how they each approach the material. Then work with a test prep organization that can advise your student on how to best prepare, no matter which test they plan to take.
As for test prep timing, Ferguson suggests letting math exposure be one guide. “Of all the skill sets, the one that is set chronologically is the math portion of both tests. When you have seen the appropriate math can often dictate when you should get started,” he says. “Often the end of sophomore year or beginning of junior year, when schools have had parent nights, students will begin the process.”
The ideal time to begin preparing for the SAT and ACT is when it’s most comfortable for the student, says Pedersen — and there are a lot of factors that go into that decision. “Academic Approach helps students figure that out.”
Learn more about Academic Approach and lean into their expertise on college entrance exams. Visit academicapproach.com.
