Colleges look at so many other things now a days. How do you spend your time? What is your G.P.A.? Have you held a job or been involved in clubs or sports or volunteering? Are your grades trending up? And your essays…the essays that you write certainly have more impact on your Scholarship opportunities than your ACT score. I’ve always seen the ACT as a “door opener” never a closer. And you know you can always take it again.
Just because you score well doesn’t insure success, if you don’t have a work ethic or the drive to find the right place for you after graduation – what good is a 28. And if you score poorly, that certainly doesn’t mean you are a failure. Your work ethic, your efforts and direction, can overwhelm a poor ACT score any day.
So what do you do about all this? You have a pleasant weekend. And on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday you get good night’s sleep, you eat breakfast before the test. Then you go out, do your best and let the chips fall where they fall.
The real pressure comes after the test. This is second semester Junior Year. You need to get your act together. This is when you need to make your move towards success in the Fall of 2013 – you need to visit colleges. You need to step up your game in the classroom. You need to think about next year as a stepping stone to the real challenge which is not the ACT test, but your landing place in the Fall of 2013.
College will be an adventure. It will open doors. You’ll meet new people. You will learn fascinating things and go in directions you never thought possible. You just need to get started on the journey today.
The ACT is merely a step on the way. Sleep well. Eat well. Watch Law and Order. And don’t fret over First World Problems.
Mr Wood
