The SAT and ACT Guide for High Schools and Organizations
Your Go-To Place for Helpful Resources
Getting Started
About Test Innovators
Test Innovators provides high schools and community-based organizations with the tools and information that they need to support their students with the college admissions testing process. We help students succeed on the SAT and ACT by providing authentic practice materials with data-driven insights for a personalized learning experience.
Who This Guide is For
If you are a counselor or student advisor at a high school or organization, this guide is for you!
Here, we outline helpful information for any counselor or advisor who is helping students navigate the SAT and ACT testing process. Throughout this guide, we link to free resources such as blog posts, PDFs, videos, and additional content by Test Innovators and others that can help you and your students throughout the testing process.
Navigating Test-Optional Policies
Are the SAT and ACT Still Important?
While it’s true that most universities have maintained their pandemic-era test-optional (or, in some cases, test-blind) policies, that’s beginning to change. A number of top universities, including Dartmouth, Yale, and Harvard, have reinstated their testing requirements for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle.
In a study on the impact of test optional policies, Dartmouth concluded that “the use of SAT and ACT scores is an essential method by which Admissions can identify applicants who will succeed at Dartmouth. Importantly, these test scores better position Admissions to identify high-achieving less-advantaged applicants and high-achieving applicants who attend high schools for which Dartmouth has less information to interpret the transcripts.” Moreover, the study observed, “under an SAT/ACT optional policy, many high-achieving less-advantaged applicants choose not to submit scores even when doing so would allow Admissions to identify them as students likely to succeed at Dartmouth and in turn benefit their application.”
So what does this all mean? Test scores can benefit students, especially those who are less advantaged. As such, you should encourage students who may be interested in applying to a 4-year college to take the SAT or ACT. Test scores give your students the best chance to get into the school of their choice, and as an added bonus, scores open the door to more scholarship opportunities!
Scholarships
In a world of ever-increasing educational costs, scholarships are more important than ever. Strong SAT and ACT scores not only make a student a more competitive candidate for school merit scholarships, they can also open up the door to more private scholarships.
By advising your students to take the SAT or ACT, you give them a chance to compete for scholarships that can drastically reduce or even eliminate the need to take out loans.
Resources
Setting Your Students Up for Success on the SAT and ACT
Class Planning
Mastery of the content is critical on any test, and the SAT and ACT are no exception. As a counselor or student advisor, you can help your students build a strong foundation by advising them to take the right classes.
The typical Algebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry courses cover the content that students will encounter on the SAT and ACT Math. Students who complete these classes by 10th or 11th grade are in a great position for the SAT and ACT.
For the other sections (SAT Reading and Writing and ACT Reading, English, and Science), it’s important for students to have strong comprehension and composition skills, so classes with a focus on reading and writing are great. These classes can be in a variety of subject areas, such as history, literature, psychology, and economics. Essentially, any classes that require regular reading and writing are great for SAT and ACT preparation.
Additionally, students will need to be familiar with the rules of English grammar and punctuation for the SAT Reading & Writing Section and the ACT English Test, so you’ll want to encourage your students to take English and Language Arts classes alongside the reading-heavy classes suggested above.
Finally, the ACT Science Test is in many ways a reading comprehension test with a data literacy component. While basic knowledge of science and the scientific method is important, students do not need to follow a specific science curriculum in order to be successful. Advanced knowledge of biology, chemistry, or physics is not required. Every passage (and accompanying tables and graphs) will provide the information students need to answer the questions. However, taking science classes every year–especially those that require some reading–will help students develop the skills they need for this part of the ACT.
By encouraging students to enroll in rigorous classes starting Freshman year, you can help ensure that they have a strong foundation for the SAT and ACT.
Understanding Test Anxiety
Unfortunately, test anxiety is a challenge that many students face. Fortunately, there are things you can do to help students. For students experiencing test anxiety, it can be reassuring to know that they are not alone in feeling this way. Fear is a natural response to a high-stakes situation, like an important test, so it’s no surprise that the SAT and ACT can evoke anxiety.
It’s best to address test anxiety head-on by opening the discussion and providing resources and support. Here are some resources you can share with students and families:
Encouraging Test Practice
Practicing for the SAT and ACT is the best way to build confidence and reduce anxiety. Knowing what to expect makes a big difference on test day, and you can help by making sure that your students have access to quality practice resources.
Supporting SAT and ACT practice can be as simple as recommending resources for independent study. There are a lot of practice options out there so it can be very helpful to give families some guidance on which materials to use and how to use them. Schools and organizations that want to be more involved can offer a test prep class, which is a great way to ensure students are practicing.
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Financial Resources For Testing
Both College Board and ACT offer assistance to students with financial need.
Digital SAT Fee Waivers
College Board’s fee waiver program covers the cost of two SAT registrations for eligible students. Students are also able to send unlimited score reports for free and can waive application fees at some colleges.
College Board also supports students who do not have access to an approved device for testing through the device lending program. Students without an approved computer or tablet can borrow one from College Board on test day. This program is available for both U.S. and international students. If you have students who need to borrow a device, know that they need to request it during the registration process, and they need to register at least 30 days before the test to allow for shipping.
Additionally, College Board provides free SAT practice to all students through the Bluebook App and Khan Academy.
ACT Fee Waivers
ACT’s fee waiver program covers the registration fees for up to four ACT tests. Students also receive free practice resources and free scores reports. Additionally, students with ACT waivers may be eligible to waive college applications fees.
Support from Test Innovators
Test Innovators is committed to helping students from all backgrounds gain access to quality education and opportunities. Our SAT and ACT Practice Scholarship provides students with financial need full access to both of our SAT and ACT practice platforms. We encourage counselors to share this scholarship with their students.
We also support thousands of less-advantaged students every year through our organizational partnerships. If you are interested in learning more about how we support community-based organizations, please contact us by filling out this form.
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About the Tests
Digital SAT
The newly revamped SAT is now a digital test. It’s 2 hours and 14 minutes long with two sections: Reading & Writing and Math. The digital SAT is adaptive–each section is divided into two modules, and a student’s performance on Module 1 determines the level of difficulty of Module 2.
For each section, students receive a score between 200-800. The two sections are added together to give a total score between 400-1600.
The SAT is administered 7 times per year on a Saturday in March, May, June, August, October, November, and December. Schools and districts can also elect to offer the test during the school day.
ACT
The ACT has 4 sections (known as “Tests”): English, Math, Reading, and Science. There’s also an optional Writing Test that students can register for. The ACT is 2 hours and 55 minutes long (3 hours and 35 minutes with the optional Writing Test).
It’s administered 7 times per year on a Saturday in February, April, June, July, September, October, and December. Schools and districts can also offer the test during the school day.
The ACT is offered in two formats: paper and online. The online ACT is the same test as the paper ACT—it’s just taken on a computer. The online ACT is currently offered for international testing and in-school testing. It’s also available at select testing centers for standard Saturday test dates.
ACT recently announced some big changes to the test. The new version will be shorter and the science section will be optional. Students will still be able to choose to take the test on paper or on the computer. The new ACT will begin to roll out in the spring of 2025. Students taking the online ACT on standard national test dates will be the first group to see the new version. Students taking the ACT during school-day testing will see the new version in the spring of 2026.
Resources
Testing is Just One Part of the Application Process
The SAT and ACT are important, but test scores are just one part of the application process. Other elements include a student’s academic record, extracurricular activities, letters of recommendation, and admissions essays.
Our partners at Scoir have an excellent College and Career Planning Guide for Counselors and Advisors that covers the rest of the admissions journey. Be sure to check it out!