Key Takeaways:

• In response to an increasingly challenging landscape, the ACT launched the “enhanced” ACT in April of this year.  The new exam aims to modernize the test and better complete with the all-digital SAT  
• The new test is shorter in length, has fewer questions, makes science an optional section, and is also available in a digital format (which is NOT widely available) 
• Content and question styles remain largely unchanged, but fewer questions mean more weight per question 
• Data from the ACT indicates that scoring between the “legacy” ACT and the “enhanced” ACT should be consistent, meaning that a student scoring a 26 on the legacy ACT will likely score a 26 on the new test.

Over the past month, Flying Colors’ instructors were able to test drive the ACT’s recently released practice tests for the enhanced exam and were pleased to find that the ACT’s content and question style was largely unchanged. Though there were fewer questions overall, the questions themselves, their primary focus, and the material they covered were all very similar to what is currently found on the ACT. 

The biggest differences between the current ACT and the new ACT were more related to proportions of question types. Within the English section, the ACT now has fewer questions focused on rules of grammar and proportionately more “rhetorical skills” questions, which typically deal with the expression of ideas and clarity of language. Math seemed to include more questions focused on algebra I and II, geometry, and statistics and probability. The reading test seemed to be the least changed, as that test continues to offer four passages, though each passage now has only nine related questions versus the traditional ten.  Similarly, science remained largely unchanged, though students now have 40 minutes to answer 40 questions. 

For Flying Colors, all of this suggests that students preparing for the current version of the ACT should be well versed in the types of questions and content observed on the new exam.

Interestingly, it will likely be what test-takers cannot observe that may shape up to be the biggest difference between the two tests.  Unlike the traditional, legacy ACT, which featured a fifth section in which the ACT “tested” questions for future exams, the enhanced ACT will now include up to 10 “experimental” or “field test” questions in a given section that will NOT count, but will be used by the ACT to test question “reliability and validity”. The English test will include 10 such questions, the math section four such questions, reading will have nine and science six.

Given this, students will be able to make far fewer mistakes in order to earn the same score.  The most glaring example of this is in English, where the student’s performance will be measured by just 40 questions (versus the current 75) due to the combination of a reduced number of questions AND the introduction of ten experimental questions.  

Students who have practiced on the legacy ACT should expect to see fewer easier questions on the enhanced ACT, particularly in English and math.  In math, which is the only section of the test  presented in a loose order of difficulty, i.e., from relatively easy to challenging, students should expect to see more challenging questions much sooner, though the loose order of difficulty remains.  

In terms of timing and pace, though the ACT has made a big deal about offering students more time per question, most students will feel much of a difference.  On average, across the test, students will be afforded about 6-7 seconds more per problem (six seconds more per problem in English and math, 14 seconds more per problem in reading, and seven seconds more in science), but most students are not likely to feel any less time constrained when taking the new ACT.

In summary, the ACT’s new enhanced exam has been introduced in an effort to keep pace with the changing world of standardized testing.  The move to add digital testing coupled with making its exam shorter can be seen as the ACT’s effort to evolve its test and to keep up with the SAT. It remains to be seen how students will respond to these changes, how similarly they will score between legacy tests and the new enhanced tests, and if the SAT continues to attract increasing numbers of students to its exam.

Flying Colors will continue to monitor developments in the standardized testing space, and will use this newsletter to keep you apprised.  To subscribe to our newsletter, please click here.

Have you heard the buzz about April’s ACT test?  Students are saying it was the most difficult ACT ever given:  “The math questions were impossible”, “…there was not enough time to complete all of the reading passages”, and even “…the smartest kid in our class thinks she bombed the science section”. These concerns will be repeated by students until the June ACT becomes the “hardest test ever.”

Test anxiety starts because many high school students believe their ACT or SAT scores can make or break their college dreams, and that can be a legitimate fear if a student is applying to competitive schools or hoping for a merit scholarship. Combine the pressure of getting into your dream college with rumors about how hard the latest ACT test was, and you get one result:  intense test anxiety. At Flying Colors, we understand the pressure students feel. That’s why a core part of our comprehensive test prep includes anxiety management–a key feature that sets us apart from other test prep companies.

Test anxiety is a common barrier for students that can keep them from achieving their true potential. When you have an important game, theater performance, or exam, your body kicks into overdrive. The brain sends signals to indicate that the stakes are high—your heart beats faster, your palms start to sweat, and you feel butterflies in your stomach. Your body is responding to your brain’s signals and doing its part to rise up to the challenge. If you walk into a test or step onto the field and your body treats it like just another random Tuesday morning, you’re not going to perform your best. Performance enhancing anxiety works to your advantage by improving concentration and focusing the brain on the task at hand. That is your body’s way of saying “OK, let’s go!” Neuroscience studies show that heightened awareness IMPROVES performance. 

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The Yerkes-Dodson Law Bell curve (below) illustrates that as arousal increases, so does performance, but only up to a certain point. When taking the ACT or SAT, students get into trouble when their arousal becomes too high, thereby inhibiting performance. By reframing the body’s physiological responses as positive through relaxation techniques such as breathing and visualization, students can keep performance anxiety at an optimal level and increase their chances of optimal performance. 

A student’s goal should be to maintain a healthy level of motivation and drive while taking the ACT or SAT without slipping into higher levels of stress. Flying Colors’ instructors use evidence-based strategies and draw upon more than 14 years of experience to empower students to minimize anxiety and achieve success. Students learn skills that are not only applicable to standardized tests, but that can also improve performance on academic tests or in sports, theater, public speaking, or any other performance-driven endeavor. 

Anxiety reducing strategies include:

• Familiarization with the content of the ACT and the SAT so students know what the tests can throw at them

• Strategic study plans and pacing strategies tailored to each student

• Regular practice tests that simulate test conditions to build confidence and test-taking stamina

• Coping strategies to calm the body’s natural stress reaction

Flying Colors’ goal is two-fold: prepare students for the ACT or SAT’s content and mentally equip them for the challenges of taking the tests. Our instructors help students create a game plan and execute it with confidence, so they can walk out of the test knowing they’ve achieved their target scores. 

KARE 11 News’ Gordon Severson spoke with Ron Michalak, president and founder of Flying Colors Prep, about the move to digital testing.  Click here to see the news segment.

Beginning on April 5th, the ACT will debut an enhanced version of its test, initially available ONLY online and only available at two test centers in Minnesota, both of which are full.  The new ACT will be shorter in length and will make science an optional section.  While most Minnesota students will NOT be able to access the new ACT until September, when it becomes available on paper, the changes to the test represent the most profound modifications to the ACT since it was launched more than 60 years ago.  Click here to view a webinar, led by Ron Michalak, the founder of Flying Colors Prep, on these changes.

Each year, the Common Application releases data about the students who use the app to apply four-year colleges in the U.S.  Among the highlights, which are explored more fully at our website, are the following:

• First-year applications to colleges were up 5% over last year; approximately 1.2 million applicants submitted the forms for the latest application cycle; on average, students apply to between 5-6 schools each
• The report found that the number of first-year students who included standardized test scores in their applications grew 10% last year, while the number of applicants who left them out remained unchanged, narrowing the gap between the two groups.

Since the 2020-2021 application cycle, applications from prospective first-year students have steadily increased, despite the debacle of the rollout of FAFSA last year and the US Supreme Court’s decision to ban race-conscious admissions.  Roughly 960,000 students used the Common App portal to submit over 4.8 million applications during the 2020-21 cycle. In the 2024-25 cycle, over 1.2 million users submitted just under 6.7 million applications.

The Common App’s report also found more first-year students including standardized test scores in their applications, up 10% since last year. The number of applicants leaving them out remained unchanged year-over-year.

“This marks the first time since the 2021–22 season that the growth rate of test score reporters has surpassed that of non-reporters, narrowing the gap between the two groups,” the report said.

That’s despite slowing interest in highly selective colleges, the type of institution that has historically used standardized test scores most frequently in the admissions process.

Applications to colleges with acceptance rates below 25% (the nation’s most selective colleges) grew just 2% in 2024-25, Common App found. That’s compared to the between 8% and 9% increases seen at institutions of all other selectivity levels.

PSAT Results To Be Delivered By Mid-November

With the conclusion of PSAT testing for 2024, it’s a good time to reflect upon the PSAT exam.  In September, the College Board announced National Merit Semifinalists for the class of 2025.  Now, the class of 2026 is stepping up, and results have come out quickly.  If your student took the PSAT by October 11th, scores became available on October 24th.  For students who completed testing by October 26th, scores will be available by November 7th.  Any additional scores will be released on November 14th.

As we’ve noted before, the PSAT is a single purpose test whose objective is to identify the nation’s National Merit Scholars.  Each year, approximately 17,000 students are named semifinalists.  That number is winnowed down to about 15,000 students who are named finalists.  From there, some 7,500 students will be eligible to receive a National Merit scholarship.

The College Board determines scores based on a selection index number which is easily calculated.  To determine your student’s National Merit Scholarship Index, you take their reading/writing score and double it.  To that number, you add their math score and then divide by ten.  For example, if your student scored a 700 on reading/writing and a 750 on math, you would multiply 700 x 2 = 1400.  To that, you would add 750 and then divide the sum by ten, arriving at their NMSI of 215.

Minnesota Numbers

Cutoffs for the National Merit Semifinalist level vary from year to year and from state to state.  For the class of 2025, the cutoff for Minnesota’s National Merit Semifinalists was 217.  For the classes of 2024 and 2023, the cutoff was 2016.

There is another level of recognition called the Commended Scholar.  That number is determined on a national basis and also varies from year to year.  For 2025, the cutoff for the Commended Scholar level was 208.  Approximately 36,000 students are named a Commended Scholar nationwide.

When Will I Find Out If My Student “Made the Cut”?

Formal notification of Semifinalist status isn’t announced until September of the student’s senior year.  Flying Colors will keep you posted if any new information comes to light before then.

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