If you favor the ACT over the SAT, then like all other students out there, you want to know what is a good ACT score. If you want to know what a good SAT score is, then read What is a Good SAT Score for a breakdown of scores at top universities. But for everyone else who likes the ACT, then the question remains "is my score good enough?" Is a 22 good? Is a 26 good? How about a 29? A 31 must be good right?
Just like with SAT scores, each of these scores has the potential to be very good, or just OK, but it all depends on where you want to go. (Although generally speaking, anything
above a 30 is a potential candidate for any top university.) If you want to go to Yale, then a 22 just isn't going to cut it. If you want to go to Ohio State, on the other hand, then a 22 is a good score. It is all relative. The important thing to remember, is that just like SAT scores, ACT scores are not the only thing that colleges look at when deciding who to admit. Class rank, rigor of classes, grades, GPA, extra curricular activities outside of school, and sports all affect your chances of admission.
These things are in fact more important than pure test scores. They show your interests and success over a long period of time, not just one Saturday morning. Colleges realize that you could be a bad test taker, or have a bad day and bomb a test, which is why standardized tests do not mean everything. Good grades and such can easily make up for a not so good test score. Do not lose hope just because your ACT scores are a little low. You never know who a college will accept. You might have something extraordinary that all of the brainiacs with 34 's don't. There is a college for everyone, so don't fret. Here is a list of some colleges and their average ACT scores, so that you can see the type of schools within your range.
