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One of the most common questions I am asked is which colleges superscore the ACT. For those of you not familiar with superscoring, it is when a college takes the highest subscores from various test dates to get a new higher superscore. For example, assume that a student takes the April ACT and gets a 29 reading, 27 math, 28 English and 31 science subscores. This give a composite score of 29. That same student then takes the June ACT and gets a 32 reading, 25 math, 29 English and 29 science. Again, the student has a composite score of 29. However, if a college superscores the tests they combine the best scores from each test giving a 32 reading, 27 math, 29 English and a 31 science. This combined superscore gives a new composite of 30.
Most colleges in the past have superscored the SAT but not the ACT. Recently, however, some colleges are starting to superscore the ACT. I first reported on superscoring the ACT in December, 2007. Here is a list of the colleges that I believe currently do superscore the ACT. As I become aware of additional colleges I will add them to the list.
California Institute of Technology
California State University System
Catholic University of America
MIT *
North Carolina State University
Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
University of Arkansas – Fayetteville
University of Colorado – Boulder
University of Louisiana – Lafayette
University of Tennessee – Knoxville
Washington University – St. Louis
*MIT uses the best subscores from each section of the ACT but does not use a composite score. So effect is same benefit as superscoring.
If you would like help finding the best college for you or your student, I offer a FREE 1/2 hour consultation to discuss your needs for college admissions counseling. Give me a call now at 952-449-5245 or drop me an email.
I was under the impression most colleges superscore, but don’t make it an official policy. Do you find this to be true?
Comment by Mark Truman — October 7, 2008 @ 5:24 pm
Mark,
Most colleges do superscore the SAT but until recently almost none superscored the ACT. Since the ACT is becoming more popular around the country, more people have been questioning if the ACT is being superscored. That is why I posted this entry.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 7, 2008 @ 7:04 pm
What is that conclusion based on? Most colleges aren’t officially publishing anything in regards to this issue…
Comment by Mark Truman — October 7, 2008 @ 7:06 pm
Most colleges have been open about their refusal to superscore the ACT in the past. I have contacted a number of colleges in the last month or so asking about whether they have had a change in policy. Amherst and Washington University made news last December when they both announced that they were going to superscore the ACT. Because of the announcement of those two well known colleges, there has been some movement toward ACT superscoring. The colleges listed are by no means the only colleges I have discussed this issue with. They are merely those that said that they are superscoring the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 7, 2008 @ 8:02 pm
So some of these schools have publicly announced and some have privately confirmed with you?
Comment by Mark Truman — October 7, 2008 @ 8:12 pm
Correct.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 7, 2008 @ 8:15 pm
We visited Duke this summer. They said to send both ACTs for superscore purposes. Have you had an official or unofficial word from Duke?
Comment by Catherine — November 16, 2008 @ 3:35 pm
Catherine,
There have been suggestions about Duke for about a year but nothing I have been able to confirm. I will check with them again to see if they are superscoring the ACT. Thanks for the note.
Comment by Todd Johnson — November 16, 2008 @ 6:17 pm
How does the NCAA Clearing House work with the ACT superscore? Does the Clearing House send out a superscore to the colleges?
Comment by KillaTrey — November 19, 2008 @ 1:29 pm
Killa,
The student sends the scores to the NCAA Clearing House directly from the ACT. The NCAA would then determine a super score to see if you qualify for Division I or II. The only concern of the Clearing House is to make sure the student athlete is academically qualified. It is my understanding that the Clearing House does not send any test scores to the colleges.
Comment by Todd Johnson — November 19, 2008 @ 3:03 pm
Does ohio university superscore?
Comment by Jessica — November 29, 2008 @ 1:18 pm
Jessica,
According to their website it appears that Ohio University does not superscore the ACT but will superscore the SAT.
Todd
Comment by Todd Johnson — November 29, 2008 @ 2:35 pm
[...] Colleges that super score ACT : College Admissions Counseling This says 2007. Apparently a lot of colleges don’t take it htough. [...]
Pingback by ACT or SAT?? - VolNation — December 16, 2008 @ 4:33 pm
hendrix college in arkansas superscores
Comment by paul — January 27, 2009 @ 2:57 pm
Paul,
Thanks for the note regarding Hendrix. I have a policy of trying to confirm with the colleges before listing them. I have contacted Hendrix and as soon as they confirm I will add them to the list.
Todd
Comment by Todd Johnson — January 28, 2009 @ 2:27 pm
I emailed illinois and they say they don’t superscore the ACT. They said that they do however consider the best subscores from multiple tests. This seems like a contridiction and i had trouble getting a straight answer from the people answering the admissions e-mails.
Comment by Mike — June 24, 2009 @ 1:15 am
Mike,
I will try to clarify with Illinois but you are right, their description of what they do is superscoring. It may be that there is a misunderstanding of the definition by the people you were talking to.
Comment by Todd Johnson — June 24, 2009 @ 8:33 am
This is extremely helpful. Thank you for doing this!
Comment by Terry Wright — June 24, 2009 @ 10:18 am
Daughter took both SAT and ACT test in past few months.
ACT was higher than SAT scores. She was quite surprised. We sent all scores to four colleges.
Will they then take the best,in this case her ACT score for admission purposes?
This is our first time around with all of this.
Thanks!
Comment by Cindy — June 25, 2009 @ 8:49 am
Cindy,
Virtually all colleges will take the highest score regardless of whether it is the ACT or SAT. So in your daughters case they will use the higher ACT score for admissions decisions.
If you have more questions feel free to give me a call or send me an email. My contact information can be found at the Free Consultation page.
Comment by Todd Johnson — June 25, 2009 @ 9:03 am
Are the composite (superscores) scores used for admissions purposes only? Do all of these colleges use the composite scores in evaluating scholarship offers?
Thanks
Comment by David — July 7, 2009 @ 4:04 pm
David,
It of course varies from college to college but most of the colleges that superscore will use that higher score for determining admissions and scholarships.
Comment by Todd Johnson — July 7, 2009 @ 4:18 pm
Purdue does not super score the ACT only the SAT
Comment by bob — July 26, 2009 @ 12:24 pm
Bob,
Thanks for the note. I checked with Purdue and you are correct that they superscore the SAT but not the ACT. I have removed them from the list.
Comment by Todd Johnson — July 27, 2009 @ 8:44 am
Are you absolutely sure about Amherst and Cornell? I can’t find any mention of superscoring the ACT on their websites. Thanks!
Comment by Terry — July 30, 2009 @ 7:36 am
Terry,
Amherst made an announcement back in late 2007 that they were going to super score the ACT. This is now addressed, although not clearly if you didn’t hear their announcement, on their FAQ page for admission applicants. They state “Amherst’s policy is to focus on your strongest test results.”
I had previously discussed with Cornell admissions but will double check. Unfortunately, transparency is not a hallmark of most aspects of college admissions. Thus, you will not find confirmation of this policy without checking with the college. I will let you know when I hear back from Cornell.
I just received confirmation from Cornell admissions that they do use the highest scores even from different exam dates for both SAT and ACT. Cornell is one of the schools that do not allow score choice and requires that every SAT or ACT test taken be submitted to the college.
Comment by Todd Johnson — July 30, 2009 @ 8:25 am
Hey I was wondering how you were sure about florida state accepting act subscores. I can’t find anything about it on their website anywhere. Thanks!
Comment by michelle — August 17, 2009 @ 3:38 pm
Michelle,
Most colleges do not have information about superscoring on their web site. I had Florida State down based on a reliable source but to be sure I will contact them directly to see if they will confirm.
Comment by Todd Johnson — August 17, 2009 @ 3:54 pm
“ACT scores are interchangeable” at all of the Florida public universities EXCEPT UF, UCF, and UNF. (Quotes are from their official admissions matrix.)
Comment by Jim — August 18, 2009 @ 9:48 am
I would have to send both score reports into the college for them to super score correct? Also, if they do super score, do they recalculate the composite with the highest subs-scores? Finally, when calculating the regular composite or calculating the super score, what is the policy on decimals? For example, 32.75
Comment by Rahul — September 28, 2009 @ 10:31 am
Rahul,
Yes, the college can only superscore if they have more than one test date for a particular test. Superscoring is by definition the recalculation of the composite using the highest subscores from various tests. Each college can handle rounding issues as they see fit but most of the colleges I am aware of round up if the decimal is .5 or greater. If the decimal is .25 they round down.
Comment by Todd Johnson — September 28, 2009 @ 11:40 am
Any word on Harvard, Princeton, or Yale
Comment by Stephen — September 28, 2009 @ 3:50 pm
Stephen,
It is my understanding that Harvard, Yale and Princeton do not superscore the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — September 28, 2009 @ 3:59 pm
Hi. Does Clemson superscore the ACT? I can’t find anything on the Web. Thanks.
Comment by Kelly — September 28, 2009 @ 7:55 pm
Kelly,
To my knowledge Clemson does not superscore. If I hear differently, I will post on the comments.
Comment by Todd Johnson — September 29, 2009 @ 10:25 am
University of Illinois DOES NOT SUPERSCORE THE ACT. I just talked with admissions on this.
Comment by Adam — October 2, 2009 @ 2:39 pm
Adam,
Thanks for the note. You are correct that the University of Illinois says that they do not superscore the ACT. But see comments 15 and 16 above. I have been told, and at least one other person has been told, that while Illinois does not superscore the ACT they do take the highest sub section score from multiple tests. This is by definition superscoring. So, whether they call it superscoring or not, I have left them on the list.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 2, 2009 @ 2:56 pm
i don’t want to sound repetitive of questions already asked, but i want to make sure i get the facts straight. U of I (Urbana)says they do not superscore the ACT, but you know that they do look at the highest subscores you send them.
Comment by Christopher — October 4, 2009 @ 8:42 pm
Christopher,
That is my understanding from talking with admissions at UIUC.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 5, 2009 @ 8:51 am
I just heard that Tufts superscores the ACT. Any idea? Thanks so much for your help with this!
Comment by Terry — October 7, 2009 @ 7:40 am
Terry,
Last I knew Tufts did not superscore the ACT. I will double check with them and let you know if there has been a change in policy.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 7, 2009 @ 9:40 am
Terry,
I just heard from Tufts and they confirmed that they do not superscore the ACT. However, Tufts will look at the subscores for each of the ACT tests submitted so it would generally be to your benefit to submit all ACT scores.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 8, 2009 @ 8:59 pm
Wow! You’re good. Thanks!
Comment by Terry — October 9, 2009 @ 4:01 pm
any word on georgetown
Comment by John — October 14, 2009 @ 9:12 am
John,
To my knowledge, Georgetown does not superscore the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 14, 2009 @ 9:36 am
How about Bucknell?
Comment by John — October 16, 2009 @ 1:40 pm
Do you generally suggest that people send only the best score, or should they send them all and let the school decide which they want to take. We have an identical composite, but the subs are different; on the first they are more consistent, but on the second we have one low score (22) in one area and a super high score (35) in another. Thank You!
Comment by Brett — October 16, 2009 @ 1:42 pm
Brett,
There is not one answer that works for everyone. It can depend to some extent on the college you are applying to. That being said, most colleges want to give the student the greatest advantage they can so I will often suggest that a student send in all of the scores.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 16, 2009 @ 1:50 pm
John,
To my knowledge, Bucknell does not superscore the ACT, only the SAT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 16, 2009 @ 1:55 pm
I went to a Tufts information session with the Dean of Undergraduate Admissions, Lee Coffin, and he said that they DO superscore the ACT. It’s very interesting that we are hearing two different stories, with one coming from the Dean.
Also, Carnegie Mellon’s admissions representative said that they superscore the ACT, and Boston College’s Assistant Dean said that they superscore the ACT as well.
Comment by Emily — October 18, 2009 @ 11:01 am
Emily,
Thanks for the note. Transparency is not the hallmark of college admissions and a college’s acceptance or not of ACT super scoring is a good example.
Tufts is an interesting issue. The person I spoke with was clear that they do not super score the ACT. However, by saying that they look at each of the subscores they are in essence doing just that. I will check with Carnegie Mellon and Boston College.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 18, 2009 @ 5:27 pm
any word on Denison, Truman State, or Denver U? Thx
Comment by Sam — October 19, 2009 @ 11:06 pm
Sam,
To my knowledge Denison does not superscore the ACT, only the SAT. I have no information about Truman State or University of Denver. I will check with them.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 20, 2009 @ 8:20 am
Sam,
I just reviewed the websites of Truman State and University of Denver. Truman State says that they do not superscore the ACT. Denver says they will superscore SAT and ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 20, 2009 @ 8:26 am
When a college superscores, if the average of the new score is, for instance, 29.5, would they round up to a 30 or consider it a 29? Thanks!
Comment by Connie Maneyson — October 20, 2009 @ 11:55 am
Connie,
The answer depends on the particular college but in my experience most colleges will round up .5 scores so that a 29.5 would be rounded to a 30. On the other hand, a 29.25 would be viewed as a 29.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 20, 2009 @ 11:58 am
Thank you for answering my question so quickly—also are you aware if Seton Hall does superscoring?
Comment by Connie Maneyson — October 20, 2009 @ 12:21 pm
Hey Todd,
I noticed Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, and Caltech aren’t on your list. Do you know if any of them have changed their minds recently? If not, do you know whether they primarily focus on the composite score or do they put an emphasis on the subscores as well? In essence, if I have a 34 composite score twice but have earned 35’s/36’s on all the sections at least once of the two times, then should I send in both scores or will they not notice?
Comment by Nicole — October 23, 2009 @ 9:15 pm
Nicole,
To my knowledge Harvard, Princeton, Stanford and Caltech do not superscore the ACT. Their primary focus is on the composite but they also have the discretion to look at subscores. Given your situation I would definitely send in both scores even though they have the same composite score.
Comment by Todd Johnson — October 23, 2009 @ 9:22 pm
Just to confirm, the California State System does superscore the ACT? Also, do the University of California School superscore?
Comment by David — November 10, 2009 @ 7:07 pm
David,
It is my understanding that the California State System does superscore the ACT. The University of California system does not superscore the ACT or the SAT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — November 10, 2009 @ 7:54 pm
Have you confirmed whether the CSU’s do? Because I cannot seem to find anything about that on the website
Comment by David — November 10, 2009 @ 8:00 pm
Also, does USC superscore?
Comment by David — November 10, 2009 @ 8:12 pm
David,
I have not independently confirmed that CSU superscores. I am trying to do so and will let you know if I find anything out.
USC only super scores the SAT, not the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — November 11, 2009 @ 10:38 am
Thank you Todd
Comment by David — November 13, 2009 @ 1:19 am
Does Brown, Wesleyan and Middlebury? PS great site and nice job.
Comment by spike — November 14, 2009 @ 2:22 pm
Spike,
I believe Brown, Wesleyan and Middlebury all do superscore the ACT.
Todd
Comment by Todd Johnson — November 14, 2009 @ 3:30 pm
On my first ACT test I recieved a 28 composite, 26 English, 32 Math, 24 Reading, 29 Science, 25 Combined English/Writing, 8 Writing.
On my second ACT test I recieved a 27 composite, 25 English, 33 Math, 21 Reading, 27 Science, 23 Combined English/Writing, 7 Writing.
I did worse on my second test in everything except Math; I went from a 32 to 33. I am going into engineering. I was wondering if i should send this second score to all schools im applying to or just ones that superscore. Also, even if they do superscore, do you think it would look bad to send the second one since I did so much worse on the ones beside Math.
The schools I am applying to thats on your list are: Carnegie Mellon University, Georgia Tech, MIT, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, and University of Illinois.
I am wanting to send out my scores as soon as possible so please answer. Thank You.
Comment by Jordan Zile — November 23, 2009 @ 7:20 pm
Jordan,
I can’t tell you what to do regarding which scores to submit since I don’t know your whole profile. I can tell you in my opinion that generally in the vast majority of cases, it doesn’t really hurt to submit more than one score because at the very least, the college will take the higher score. So most colleges will just look at your 28 and give you that score. For those colleges that superscore you might get a very small benefit from the higher math score, particularly since you are looking at engineering.
I can tell you that even with the schools that superscore your composite score is a 28 even if they take your higher math score since it is not that much higher than what you already had.
I hope that helps somewhat.
Comment by Todd Johnson — November 23, 2009 @ 8:16 pm
Does Johns Hopkins University superscore either the ACT or the SAT? Thank you for your help!
Comment by Landon — December 16, 2009 @ 10:16 am
Landon,
It is my understanding that Johns Hopkins superscores the SAT but not the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — December 16, 2009 @ 10:28 am
Any update on Williams and superscoring the ACT??I’m tempted to submit both scores I got just in case
Comment by dave — December 23, 2009 @ 10:25 pm
Best I know, Williams is not superscoring the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — December 23, 2009 @ 10:37 pm
As you have listed for Ivy League schools,
all of them require to you send all your scores, but…
Cornell does superscore both the SAT/ACT
H/Y/P do not
Any word on Dartmouth, Brown, Columbia and UPenn?
Comment by Kent — December 28, 2009 @ 3:57 am
Does University of Missouri superscore the act test?
Comment by Pat George — December 28, 2009 @ 7:37 am
At an Application Workshop session in Stamford, CT on Oct 6, 2009, the Dean of Admissions was quite explicit that Tufts DOES superscore the ACT and will recalculate the composite score based on highest segment scores.
Comment by Peter Goldberger — December 28, 2009 @ 11:48 am
From the Tufts Website-Dean Coffin’s blog:
Myth #4: “The college said it will use my highest test scores but they asked for all my scores so those will secretly be used against me.”
Truth: Everybody wins when we use your highest scores. Our computer picks the best individual score on the critical reading, math and writing sections of the SAT, or the respective subjects on the ACT, and those become the scores we see when we read your file. End of story.
Comment by Peter Goldberger — December 29, 2009 @ 10:11 pm
Kent,
I do not believe Dartmouth, Columbia or Penn superscore the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — January 1, 2010 @ 11:42 am
Pat,
I do not believe the University of Missouri superscores the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — January 1, 2010 @ 11:43 am
Peter,
Thanks for the information about Tufts. As I have said here before, trying to determine which colleges superscore and which don’t is often difficult because different admissions officers will give different responses.
Based on Dean Coffin’s comments I am putting Tufts back on the list that superscores the ACT.
Thanks again.
Comment by Todd Johnson — January 1, 2010 @ 11:49 am
Hi Todd,
I control F searched for the word BROWN and i found that in Nov you said that brown superscores and Jan 1st you said it does not..
so whats up?
Comment by Sandy — January 2, 2010 @ 11:43 pm
Sandy,
That was a mistake on my part. To my current knowledge, Brown University DOES superscore the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — January 3, 2010 @ 10:44 am
Does University of Central Florida superscore?
Comment by Logan — January 10, 2010 @ 4:54 pm
Logan,
To the best of my knowledge UCF does not superscore.
Comment by Todd Johnson — January 10, 2010 @ 5:04 pm
Does Syracuse University Superscore the ACT?
Comment by Dave G — January 16, 2010 @ 9:03 am
Dave,
To my knowledge Syracuse does not superscore the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — January 16, 2010 @ 10:42 am
Do you think more colleges will superscore ACT for 2010-2011 admissions next year?
Comment by Jenny — January 24, 2010 @ 1:53 pm
Jenny,
Colleges tend to move slowly on anything that is a change but I would be surprised if more colleges didn’t start super scoring the ACT in the next few years. Most super score the SAT and I think eventually, most will do the same with the ACT.
Comment by Todd Johnson — January 24, 2010 @ 3:03 pm
Hello;
I got an ACT score of 23 and a SAT score of 1640! So shall I send the ACT score or the SAT score to improve my chances in Yale, Duke and Johns Hopkins? But in school, which is considered the hardest school in where I live, am an A* student with an average of 95-96! Do you think I have a chance to get accepted in those universities for Medicine?
Comment by Marwa — March 12, 2010 @ 3:59 am
Marwa,
Grades are very important for college admissions but so are test scores for the colleges you mention. While these colleges do not have minimum test scoes it is very unlikely that you will be admitted with the ACT and SAT scores mentioned.
You should also be aware that in US colleges there is no undergraduate medical program. Instead there are 4 years of college followed by 4 years of medical school. You need to apply to medical school before acceptance and only about 50 % of students are admitted.
I would suggest that in addition to the colleges you mention that you also consider some other colleges that are easier for admissions purposes.
Comment by Todd Johnson — March 12, 2010 @ 11:02 am