Following in the digital SAT's footsteps, major changes to the ACT will begin rolling out in the United States in 2025, starting with national online testing in the spring. On the Core ACT–the new version of the test–the online exam will shrink to two hours in length, and the Science section will become optional. When announcing these changes, CEO Janet Godwin emphasized the benefits the changes will bring to students: "With this flexibility, students can focus on their strengths and showcase their abilities in the best possible way."
Here's the timeline of the rollout of the new version of the Core ACT:
- April, June, July 2025: Students taking the test online on national test dates in the US will see the new Core ACT version of the exam.
- September 2025: The shorter, Science-optional Core ACT will roll out for paper and international test-takers.
- Spring 2026: The new Core ACT will roll out for school-day testing in the US. ACT believes many states and districts will still require Science.
What do we know so far?
The initial announcement was light on details, but here's what we know about the Core ACT.
- Science will be optional.
- The Science section will be offered as an optional add-on, like the essay, which is already optional. Currently, students can choose to take the ACT or the ACT Plus Writing. Students in the US will now have more options: the ACT, the ACT Plus Science, the ACT Plus Writing, or the ACT Plus Science and Writing.
- The test will last for two hours (shrinking by one hour).
- The remaining core sections of the ACT (English, Math, and Reading) will last for two hours in total—matching the length of the digital SAT.
- English and Reading passages will be shorter. This is another change that mirrors what we saw when the SAT unveiled its shorter digital exam.
- There will be fewer questions per section, 44 fewer questions in total.
- Students will have more time per question.
- On the English section, students will have 35 minutes to answer 50 questions, for an added 6 seconds per question.
- On the Math section, students will have 50 minutes to answer 45 questions, for an added 7 seconds per question.
- On the Reading section, students will have 40 minutes to answer 36 questions, for an added 14 seconds per question.
- On the optional Science section, students will have 40 minutes to answer 40 questions, for an added 7.5 seconds per question.
- Composite scores will still be out of 36.
- English, Math, and Reading will continue to be scored from 1-36. The composite score will be the average of those three core section scores.
- From April-July 2025, students taking the new Core ACT exam in the US will receive composite scores that reflect only English, Math, and Reading, while everyone else will still receive composite scores based on all four sections. When the changes go live for paper and international test-takers in 2025, all students' composite scores will come from English, Reading, and Math only, even if they opt to take Science.
- ACT will not recalculate older superscores that included Science. Students with a superscore that currently includes Science will not receive a recalculated superscore without Science unless they take the new version of the test.
- Both paper and online testing options will continue to be offered. The latest changes will go into effect for the online version of the exam in April and the paper exam in September. In a recent interview, Godwin said that when demand for paper testing dries up, ACT will go fully digital.
- The new online Core ACT will not be adaptive. The ACT will remain a linear exam.
- ACT will not allow students to test on their own devices—at least, not for earlier administrations of the digital exam. ACT has discussed a move toward allowing students to bring their own devices in the future, but has yet to make this possible. This may raise concerns as to whether test centers will have sufficient numbers of devices for all students registered for the digital exam.
- A built-in calculator application will be available on the new exam, though it appears that this may be simply a scientific calculator. You can view a preview here. Keep in mind that this preview may not be entirely up to date, as it doesn’t reflect the new styles of English questions, number of Math answer choices, and lower overall number of questions per section that ACT has indicated that students can expect to see. Students will still be able to bring their own graphing calculators to the test.
You can view sample Core ACT questions and a full, new digital practice test here. However, it's important to note that this test is not scored and was intended to provide students with a sample set of representative questions, but is not necessarily representative of what students will see on the full test. ACT officials have confirmed that they will release a new sample test between January 31st and February 14th, and that this test will be accompanied by a scoring scale.
What does this mean for students?One of the biggest concerns facing students is how to prepare for the new exam, especially since they have such limited information about it. The ACT has announced that it will release new test prep resources, including a full-length practice test, by early 2025, but that current ACT test prep materials will still be effective because the knowledge and skills tested on the exam will not significantly change. However, until ACT releases further details and practice materials, students testing in the 2024-2025 school year in the US should plan to stick to the familiar options: the digital SAT and the paper ACT.
While a shorter exam favors many students and digital testing isn't new—our experts have been preparing students to succeed on similar exams for years—it's tough to prep strategically for an exam when we don't know exactly how the shorter passages will look.
Furthermore, in the months since ACT began offering an online option, seats for the online exam in the US have been limited.
To discuss your options for the 2024-25 school year, reach out to us here. The ArborBridge team is ready to help.
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