ACT vs SAT

A couple of parents have been asking what test they should their children should take if they can only study for one. This is a very good question. In all honesty, students should take both the ACT and SAT and just see which one they naturally do better on before they begin to focus on one. The two tests are different in what subjects they test. But if you only want to take one from the beginning, I'll split up each test into their pros and cons so it will help you decide which one sounds best for your student.

ACT:

• The essay is much easier than the SAT. Scoring high on the essay section is easier on the ACT because if you can write a good argumentative essay and include a counterargument then you'll get around a 10-12 (12 being the highest)
• The science section is very, very hard and you'll not find this on the SAT. The science section can, however, be prepared for by taking numerous practice tests because the reason why it's hard is that people often run out of time. They give you a lot of graphs and tell you analyze the information and a lot of kids read all of the graphs when it is much easier to read the questions and then look at the graphs. I, myself, found this to be quite a challenge, so to correct this I did a bunch of practice tests on the science section so I would know exactly what questions to anticipate.
• The math section is also harder than the SAT because they expect you to know pre-calc and trignometry while the SAT only tests basic algebra and logic based problems. If your son is good at math, then I would actually think the ACT would be better because a lot of kids get stuck on the pre-calc and trig questions at the end.
• The reading section is about the same as the SAT but it doesn't include vocabulary (and even it does, the words are much easier) so you don't have to memorize a 1000 vocabulary words. However, the reading comprehension questions are trickier than the SAT.
• The writing section is about the same as the SAT. Just memorize the different types of sentence error questions they can ask and your son can do well on the SAT or the ACT.

SAT:

• The SAT essay is much harder to get a high score. I never got a perfect on the SAT essay, but I got a perfect every time for the ACT.
• SAT doesn't have a science section - which is a relief.
• SAT's math is much easier. The only problem is the time constraint, but if you get really good at taking practice exams this is an easy problem to fix.
• SAT's reading is easier in the sense that a third of the questions are vocabulary based so if you just memorize the vocab lists you'll be fine. However, memorizing the vocab lists can be time consuming.
• SAT's writing section is about the same as ACT

My recommendation: The SAT can be more "studied" for than the ACT. If your child has the time to study, memorize, and take a bunch of practice tests, go for the SAT. Also, studying for the SAT will help for the PSAT, which is really important for the National Merit Scholarship competition.