The ACT could help you save thousands on tuition. The more you study and prepare, the more likely you are to improve your scores. With the next ACT just around the corner here are some tips and tricks to get the most out of your score.

One of the best tips is to work the questions out of order. If a question is going to take some more time to do, then come back to it. Do all the easy questions that you can zoom through first. Don’t waste time on questions you don’t know how to do. Use your time to work on the questions you can do now and later.

“Taking as may practice tests as possible is my best tip. The ACT isn’t hard because of the questions, its hard because of the endurance.” Said Ian Kerr who received a 34 on the ACT.

Just because you don’t know how to answer a question, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t answer it. Unlike the SAT the ACT does not penalize you for wrong answers. When guessing on questions that you have no idea on, pick a letter of the day. Pick one guessing letter to use that day and answer all your guesses with that letter. If you are consistent, you are more likely to get some right.

“Don’t doubt the option “no change” because it’s the answer 25% of the time,” said Kerr.

One great advantage to the ACT being multiple choice is the right answer is always on the page. One tip to help you out would be to not find the right answer, but to look for the wrong answers to cross out. When you eliminate answers you know are wrong, the correct answer becomes more obvious.

“If the answer is making you choose between a semicolon and a period then it’s neither because the ACT views the semi colon and period as the same thing.” Said Kerr.

Because of Covid, some colleges aren’t requiring you to send an ACT score for admissions. This does not mean you shouldn’t take the test or not care about your score. If anything, these tips and tricks should motivate you to do better on your next ACT. You will be saving yourself thousands of dollars just by trying.