Test Day for the ACT

ACT Test Day Schedule

Students taking the ACT on one of the national test dates are required to arrive at the test center no later than 8:00 AM. The sign-in procedure typically takes about 30 minutes, meaning that testing itself begins at roughly 8:30. The sections are always administered in the same order. The three required sections come first: English (35 minutes), then Math (50 minutes), followed by a short break, and then Reading (40 minutes). Students who registered for the optional Science section take it next (40 minutes), and those who added the optional Writing test are given another brief break before the 40-minute essay. A test-taker sitting only for the three required sections is testing for about two hours and generally finishes late in the morning; adding Science and Writing extends the session accordingly. Test-takers at school-based ACT administrations follow the same overall sequence of events, but testing begins at the normal starting time for the school day.

Arriving Prepared on Test Day

Test-takers who are relaxed and comfortable are most likely to receive their highest possible test scores, and relaxation and comfort can be facilitated by advance preparation. Before the day of the exam, students should make sure that they are familiar with the route they will drive to the test center as well as the parking situation and early-morning traffic conditions. We advise students to make plans for early arrival on test day (about 7:30 AM or so) to account for any possible contingencies (e.g. traffic or long admission lines). Students who arrive at the test center late will be denied admission. It is also essential to pack all of the necessary supplies the night before the exam, because this is a task that will be much more stressful if it is completed the morning of the test.

Items Allowed at the Test Center

Students should bring their admission ticket, identification, No. 2 pencils with erasers, a watch, a calculator, and snacks (eating and drinking are allowed only during breaks). The admission ticket and acceptable identification are required, and students who do not have these items will not be allowed to test. Watches and calculators must be of the approved types (devices with internet access, data-storage capability, or alarms are not permitted). A calculator is allowed but not required in the Math section, and none may be used in Science; students who test on the online version have a built-in Desmos graphing calculator for Math, so a physical calculator is optional for them. All other items, including books, phones, and personal laptops or tablets, are prohibited at the test center. Possession of any banned item while taking the ACT will result in dismissal from the test center and cancellation of scores.

Test Center Rules and Regulations

While taking the ACT, students must work only on the designated section; they may not go back and change answers for sections completed earlier or move ahead to later sections. Test-takers who finish a section early must sit quietly in their seats and wait until time has expired and they have been instructed to begin a new section. Students may not look at or copy answers from another test-taker, and they may not give or receive assistance of any kind. Using any electronic devices (other than approved watches and calculators) is not allowed, and test-takers also must agree not to disclose test questions or answers to anyone, either verbally or electronically. All students entering the test center are subject to search, which is typically conducted with hand-held metal detectors. Banned items may be temporarily confiscated. Violators are punished by cancellation of scores, forfeiture of registration fees, and (if the violations are sufficiently severe) bans on future registration.

Use of Student Photographs for Test Security

Test-taker photographs help improve test security and prevent identity fraud (taking the test under someone else's name). Students are required to upload photographs at registration, and these photos appear on test center rosters and admission tickets. During the sign-in period, test center staff members check to make sure that the photos on rosters, admission tickets, and identification documents match.

Issues to Consider After the Test

After testing, a student may request that ACT cancel the scores from that test date; ACT then permanently removes the record and notifies any recipients that were already designated. The deadlines for this and related requests are posted on the ACT website, and because the cutoff generally falls before scores are released, students who are considering cancellation should check the current deadline promptly. Students may also order score reports for additional universities beyond those included with registration, although they will be charged for this service.