As a high school sophomore, I didn’t even know where to begin to approach ACT prep. The ACT is 100% over-hyped as the “ticket to college” and an “impossible test.” Many big companies use the ACT as a money-making scheme, branding it as if the only way to receive a high score is using their tutoring programs, which can cost hundreds of dollars. Looking back, I spent more time worrying about how hard the ACT was going to be than using my time to study.
As a high schooler, it doesn’t always seem like there is enough time in the day for everything we are supposed to be doing, so I pushed the ACT far down my list of priorities, never really getting started (partly because I didn’t know where to even begin preparing).
After hearing that my classmates were also confused about how to prepare for the ACT, I turned to my parents for help. My parents wanted me to get a high score, but they also did not want to spend hundreds of dollars for test prep programs if they didn’t see me taking the initiative to prepare on my own first. When I started researching ways to prepare, I realized that I could probably make more progress on my own, as I know my own strengths and weaknesses.
After eight weeks of self-studying that cost around $60, I was able to raise my score by 5 points in the spring of my sophomore year.