SAT vs. ACT

Many high school students wonder whether they should take either the SAT or ACT, or both. I personally recommend taking a practice test of each, and see which one you score higher on.
You can take a free SAT practice test made by the collegeboard here: free SAT practice test

You can also take a free ACT practice test here

In actuality, it is very likely that your SAT or ACT score will be about the same when converted. If you take the ACT, and want to convert your score to the new SAT, simply use this ACT to SAT score converter.

The other consideration when deciding between taking the SAT or ACT is that some colleges do not accept both (namely the ACT). There are many "elite" colleges which only accept the new SAT, so it is safer to only take the SAT in this case. In the midwest US, it is best to take the ACT however. For westcoast (california and washington) and eastcoast (all ivy league schools) colleges prefer the SAT, since more students applying to those schools submit solely SAT scores.

ALL in all, it is safer to take the New SAT, however the choice depends on the college you wish to apply to, as well as whichever you score higher in a practice test.

Tests you need to take to go to college

I thought I would start off my first post with one of the most common question asked by 11th and 12th grade high school students: What standardized tests do I need to take in high school in order to get into college?

The answer depends upon which college you want to attend. If you wish to attend a community college, you do not have to take any tests, but it certainly helps if you have passed the high school exit exam. For most colleges, including UC (University of California college system) including UCLA, UCB, and UCSD, and the most coveted Ivy League schools, you will need to take at least 2 SAT subject tests, and either the New SAT 1 Reasoning test or the ACT. 

Now the question is which test should you take, the SAT I, or the ACT? Once again it depends on the college you want to go to. In general, colleges prefer the SAT since more people apply with SAT scores, thus the SAT is a more reliable standard of measurement for colleges. The ACT has a larger prevalence in colleges in the midwest, but SAT is more popular among east coast colleges (including ivy league schools), and the UC system.