Following in the digital SAT's footsteps, the ACT is rolling out major changes in the United States in 2025. The rollout began with national online testing in the spring. On the new ACT, 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 new ACT:
- April 2025: Students taking the test online on national test dates in the US saw the first administration of the new ACT version of the exam.
- June, July 2025: Students taking the test online on national test dates in the US will take the new ACT version of the exam.
- September 2025: The shorter, Science-optional ACT will roll out for paper and international test-takers.
- Spring 2026: The new 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 about the new ACT?
The first administration of the new ACT occurred in April in the United States. Here's a rundown of the details of the new exam.
- Science on the new ACT is optional.
- The Science section will now be offered as an optional add-on, like the essay, which is already optional. On the classic ACT, 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 new test lasts for two hours (one hour less than the classic ACT).
- The remaining core sections of the ACT (English, Math, and Reading) last for two hours in total—matching the length of the digital SAT.
- English and Reading passages are shorter. This is another change that mirrors what we saw when the SAT unveiled its shorter digital exam.
- There are fewer questions per section, 44 fewer questions in total.
- Students have more time per question.
- On the English section, students have 35 minutes to answer 50 questions, for an added 6 seconds per question.
- On the Math section, students have 50 minutes to answer 45 questions, for an added 7 seconds per question.
- On the Reading section, students have 40 minutes to answer 36 questions, for an added 14 seconds per question.
- On the optional Science section, students have 40 minutes to answer 40 questions, for an added 7.5 seconds per question.
- Composite scores are still out of 36.
- English, Math, and Reading continue to be scored from 1-36. The composite score is the average of those three core section scores.
- From April-July 2025, students taking the new 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 went into effect for the online version of the exam in April and will go into effect for 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 ACT is not adaptive. The ACT will remain a linear exam.
- ACT does not allow students to test on their own devices—at least, not for the moment. 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 is available on the new exam, though it is 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 can still bring their own graphing calculators to the test.
You can view sample new 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 soon, 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, in 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.
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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