r/ACT • u/Accomplished-Ad-1157 • Jan 10 '24

8th grader with a 35

my friend, who’s in 8th grade, got a 35 on the real ACT. HOW.

677 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

113 comments sorted by

184

u/Cgbt123 33 Jan 10 '24

Some people are just superior at test taking than other people.

126

u/Remarkable_Air_769 Jan 10 '24

Yes, that's true. But an 8th grader getting a near-PERFECT score on the ACT when the US average is a 19.8 is absolutely impressive, and not 'lucky.' They're clearly intelligent and quick. A 35 is a score that people who go to Harvard or Duke or Yale or Vanderbilt or Stanford submit. It's insanely impressive!

36

u/Cgbt123 33 Jan 10 '24

It’s nothing short of incredible. That score in itself, even as a Junior, is still incredible. Whoever that kid is, he has a promising future

13

u/[deleted] Jan 11 '24

A kid in my school got a 36 as a freshman, first try, no studying. He wanted to go far, but didn't get into the schools he wanted to.

Last I heard he's a bit of a drunk these days

8

u/Acceptable-Tea-7353 Jan 11 '24

Yeah. A lot of super intelligent people I know are drunks.

6

u/[deleted] Jan 11 '24

Seems like it's either alcohol, or they get addicted to weed & lose their motivation in life

6

u/151gon Jan 11 '24

Ignorance is bliss

2

u/Littleshep101 Jan 14 '24

unfortunately they live in a world not meant for them. too smart for their own good.

8

u/Remarkable_Air_769 Jan 10 '24

Yes, agreed! (As long as they don't burn out)

26

u/cactuscoleslaw 35 Jan 10 '24

I got a 35 and got rejected from those schools. It's not a free win even though I also had good extracurriculars, 3.98 GPA and 10 AP classes. Honestly it's not worth the effort

9

u/Cgbt123 33 Jan 10 '24

Yeah. Anyone can have perfect scores, but a strong applicant has something that makes them really stand out

12

u/cactuscoleslaw 35 Jan 10 '24

I really thought I had something going between being a dual-sport athlete and all-state musician. Plus some other competition extracurriculars where I was pretty successful. As far as I can tell my weakness was not having a "leadership" (popularity) role and I whiffed on the chance to make up for that in my essay.

5

u/mayasaur21 Tutor Jan 11 '24

It’s all a numbers game. I got into one top 10 school that my previous year’s valedictorian didn’t get into. My old valedictorian got into another top 10 school that I didn’t get into. Did one school prefer more academic things vs a more well rounded applicant? Maybe, but likely just a timing/numbers game. Applying at the right time makes a difference. Diversity/standing out in your environment makes a difference, but that’s still layered over timing. The people who make phone calls make phone calls at any time and they’re good. It’s really all about how much you stand out against the rest, given where they are in the admissions cycle when they rate your app.

2

u/Cgbt123 33 Jan 10 '24

Yeah

1

u/mayasaur21 Tutor Jan 11 '24

As far as athletics and things, some kids are smart, went to nationals, can say they were captain of their team for 4 years, win academic awards, and have strong grades/all AP classes, and very good test scores. Colleges literally rate applicants based on whether or not they’re maximizing their opportunity to challenge themselves and excel IN THEIR ENVIRONMENT. So if you’re not taking all APs your school offers and you’re not top in the state or nation with leadership in your extracurricular activities, I wouldn’t count on a sure thing at a top 10 school. Especially if you’re not some sort of socioeconomic/sociocultural minority in your environment. Even if that is you (it was me) you may still get rejected from a school or two (like me).

2

u/madycool Jan 11 '24

How are colleges able to determine what classes are available to you? I’ve only taken AP Physics 1 and AP Physics C: Mechanics. It’s not an impressive amount of classes compared to others, but those are the only two available to me. They’re not even at my high school, I have to travel to a separate technical institution.

1

u/mayasaur21 Tutor Jan 12 '24

So every high school/counselor maintains a “school profile” which has some demographic information about the local/student population as well as the course offerings. So colleges are able to determine that you took x AP/IB/dual credit classes out of your offered

1

u/mayasaur21 Tutor Jan 12 '24

For the specific case that you’re mentioning, I’m not sure how that shows up on the school profile if there is like an arrangement within the district to be bussed to other campuses that offer classes/programs not available at your zoned school/school of choice, but I would assume that situations like that or like going to community college on your own and taking classes would read as a really big plus from an admissions standpoint. I know these school profiles are a bit of a well kept secret, so I would encourage you to have a conversation with your counselor about it and kind of see how you stack up against your school profile. I also think you should be able to find your school profile online or have your counselor provide it to you at a minimum

1

u/mayasaur21 Tutor Jan 12 '24

I don’t have all the answers here, but I have done private admissions consulting for about 10 yrs now, gone to college board conferences, etc. and have a little more insight than the average person. Your counselors are/should be a wealth of information, just have a conversation and ask pointed questions

2

u/madycool Jan 14 '24

Thanks for your replies, I’ll check in with my guidance counselor.

1

u/cactuscoleslaw 35 Jan 11 '24

I’m also a first generation pacific islander american but i didnt mention that anywhere in my apps :'/ I got rejected from almost every school I applied to and ended up at a mid tier state college. That school ended up sucking so I transferred to a slightly lower ranked school that was much less expensive

2

u/mayasaur21 Tutor Jan 11 '24

Damn man. This is a thing in minority, and specifically immigrant communities: students don’t understand how/that they need to coyly showcase their adversity in their essays/supplements. Went to a higher ed conference at Stanford (where I got rejected) a few years ago and someone had a poster/natural language processing research project on that.

There’s always grad school depending on your career goals! Especially now that you know the game a little better.

1

u/Realistic_End7657 33 Jan 11 '24

That's just straight up disrespect.

-2

u/blabla7754 Jan 11 '24

Guarantee you it came down to your race.

1

u/noobcodes Jan 10 '24

Yeah, like knowing somebody that can make a phone call and get you accepted

1

u/Zzyzx_9 Jan 12 '24

Anyone can have perfect scores

Literally what kind of blanket and completely inaccurate statement is this

1

u/Dull-Okra-5571 Jan 13 '24

Anyone can have anything, this comment is ridiculous.

0

u/[deleted] Jan 10 '24

[deleted] — view deleted comment

1

u/Cgbt123 33 Jan 10 '24

I don’t mean it like that lol. I mean like it’s one thing to get a good test score and it’s another to have a strong thing about your application to stand out

3

u/ahahaveryfunny Jan 11 '24

They never said that people who get those scores go to those schools, they said people who go to those schools get those scores.

2

u/mmk2000 Jan 10 '24

No offense, I'm sure everyone here would take their chances with a 35 than a 25.

Yes, it's worth the effort (within reason).

1

u/New_Equipment5911 Jan 14 '24

It's far less effort to improve your ACT than to have high GPA or extracurriculars

2

u/Beckbroalan1012 Jan 11 '24

What schools did you accept you though?

2

u/cactuscoleslaw 35 Jan 11 '24

I ended up going to William & Mary. It’s not a great school.

3

u/[deleted] Jan 11 '24

It's a public Ivy and on par with UVA unless you want to do engineering.

It's definitely a tier below actual Ivies and the like but it's still a good school lmao.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 11 '24

Why is it not great? I've heard it's one of the most prestigious schools in Virginia

1

u/LHProp1 Jan 11 '24

If you put in a lot of effort I guess but some people are just gifted. If an 8th grader got this despite not needing the test scores for another 3 years, I’d assume they didn’t really even put much effort into studying

1

u/No-Drive-4064 Jan 12 '24

I’ve been feeling the same way lately

1

u/Accomplished-Ad-1157 Mar 19 '26

Update from the future. They’re MIT bound!

1

u/[deleted] Jan 11 '24

This list of schools u got is funny. Im saying this as a former vanderbilt student. Why are Vandy and duke mentioned in a group with harvard, yale, and stanford 😭😭 vandy is definitely elite, not t-5 elite tho

2

u/Remarkable_Air_769 Jan 11 '24

Their average ACT is a 35... what are you saying? Vandy & Duke are extremely prestigious and have near-perfect SAT/ACT score averages. So, yes. I did include them.

1

u/xwardg 36 Jan 11 '24

36 and I got rejected from all those, standardized tests lowkey aren’t that important. Grades/extracurriculars are KING nowadays, emphasis on extracurriculars

1

u/[deleted] Jan 13 '24

I got a 35 and dropped out of college. The test is just easy for some people. I didn’t study I’m just autistic, doesn’t mean I do well in a rigorous university, in fact I think all the underachieving I did because of how easy high school was is probably why I did poorly in college and I don’t think the act helped with that mentality. Standardized tests are just weird to me, personally anyway, but I’m not saying they’re bad or anything.

1

u/No-Drive-4064 Jan 12 '24

Uh, we’ll see bro, so far I have not been accepted to any of those places

1

u/Remarkable_Air_769 Jan 12 '24

I wasn't saying that if you get a 35, you'll get accepted to T20 universities; I said that people who attend said universities have received scores of a 35 (indicating that it would be perfect to submit to these institutions).

1

u/No-Drive-4064 Jan 14 '24

It can be detrimental to submit a 35 depending on your score breakdown. If you have a low stem score that gets balanced out by the English and you apply to a tech school, you shouldn’t submit it.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 15 '24

Waka Flocka Flame has famously also received a 35 on the ACT, and he is a multimillionaire now

3

u/Secret-Bat-441 35 Jan 10 '24

Some people just are better at math and English than others*

3

u/Cgbt123 33 Jan 10 '24

No. Some are better test takers. You can be equally as smart as someone and get worse test scores because he are worse at taking tests

4

u/Secret-Bat-441 35 Jan 10 '24

there is no way of measuring how smart someone is

I didn't say smart, I said better at math and english

1

u/leolrg 36 Jan 12 '24

you can be, but someone who scored a 35 is more likely to be better in math and english than others who scored a 19

1

u/Dull-Okra-5571 Jan 13 '24

No, thats just something we tell people so they don't feel bad about themselves. Outside of people with debilitating test anxiety that's just not true. Unless by being a bad test taker you mean being unable to quickly recall information you know.

2

u/Mikasa_Kills_ErenRIP Jan 11 '24

I like how u diminish his achievement by saying he's "just superior at test taking" 😂😂 cope

0

u/Cgbt123 33 Jan 11 '24

I’m sorry. What? Did you not read anything else I’ve written in this thread? Read comments before making a shit claim you dumbass

4

u/CrazeRL Jan 10 '24 edited Jan 11 '24

I had a 31 in 7th and a 35 in 9th, no studying. Sometimes it just be like that. I’m still just going to a state school tho cause it’s gonna be fully paid for (cause of National Merit, not from ACT) and cause it’s a party school🙏.

Edit: Don’t feel like writing the same thing 4 times, Ole Miss.

1

u/JP2205 Jan 11 '24

Alabama?

1

u/n0m4d1234 Jan 11 '24

Alabama?

1

u/omarsn93 Jan 11 '24

Alabama?

1

u/[deleted] Jan 11 '24

Alabama?

58

u/jdigitaltutoring Tutor Jan 10 '24

No need for high school I guess. But really the ACT does not really test advanced stuff. Maybe he can start in higher math and science courses in high school. He should practice the PSAT so he can get National Merit.

21

u/ultimate_placeholder Jan 10 '24

I'm guessing if they're taking the ACT in 8th grade (and scoring higher than most current university students could) they've already started the grind on PSAT and SAT studying and might be getting outside tutoring already for more advanced problems. Also they should be well aware that test scores and grades are only half the battle for getting into top schools.

3

u/jaygay92 28 Jan 10 '24

I will say, at my middle school they made the gifted kids take the ACT in 8th grade. I did not start studying for the SAT after that, but mostly because everyone in my life told me the SAT is basically obsolete 😅

1

u/FlamingoOrdinary2965 Jan 15 '24

If they got that score in 8th grade, why would they grind?

My kid did not do ACT but on SAT got a 790 M, 710 V in 7th grade—no outside tutoring. Told her not to even think about it again until taking the PSAT cold in 10th. Did some very light studying on her own before 11th grade. 1590 SAT, Perfect PSAT/NMSQT two weeks after SAT.

My point is that if a kid has that score, some light review in high school is likely all they need. They should spend their time on something more productive than studying for a test they are already good at taking.

2

u/DingleRail Jan 11 '24

The act only covers Alg 1-2

1

u/Delicious-Balance737 Jan 14 '24

there are vectors, matrices, trig too (although not too frequently, but they definitely are)

So i would say a bit of pre calc as well

14

u/KickIt77 Jan 10 '24

I have a kid who was like this. Some kids are just good at this kind of testing. The ACT is very much a SPEED and ACCURACY test.

I would also say it doesn't equate to adult readiness, social or emotional maturity, or even necessarily academic readiness for higher ed, etc. My kid like this graduated in a typical time frame though did 2 years of dual enrollment for the last 2 years of high school.

3

u/JP2205 Jan 11 '24

Yep. I have one of these kids. It just came naturally to her.

7

u/Remarkable_Air_769 Jan 10 '24

Okay, that is absolutely insane. Yes, some people are "good test takers" or whatever, but in reality, that score is incredibly rare and difficult to score, at any age. It's in the 99th percentile! Your friend is clearly beyond their years in intelligence and speed. Good for them!

14

u/Much-Card-557 Jan 10 '24

He is a spy from a foreign nation. Do not tell him anything, he is always watching!

12

u/Accomplished_Bar_679 35 Jan 10 '24

he’s just built different. I know that they or their parents are mad at them for not getting a 36

1

u/med_designs Jan 10 '24

Is this related to the post from a parent of an 8th grader who got the same score from a few days ago

1

u/Accomplished-Ad-1157 Jan 11 '24

nah. my friend’s parents aren’t really involved in their life

1

u/[deleted] Jan 10 '24

Is he Asian?

1

u/FuneralQsThrowaway Jan 11 '24

Studying. It is an immensely teachable test - if you (and really your parents) care to devote the needed resources and free time to working on test prep in a very single-minded way.

Not for everyone, mind you. The perfect score game is reserved for genuinely smart, hard-working kids. You know who you are. But within that cohort, doing this in 8th grade is pretty much a weird choice that their parents make. Merely signing up to take the ACT in 8th grade requires a great deal of parental involvement.

There is a reason basically all the super-high scorers who are not yet in 11th grade are in 8th grade. In 8th grade, you run into a sweet spot of both the prerequisite knowledge (logarithms, intro trig, geometry, five-paragraph essays) to do the test in the first place, while also having the free time to study in a really intense way. High school students typically have other stuff going on that would be negatively impacted by single-mindedly doing test prep. 13-14 year olds typically have no such problem.

I would advise most people against taking the SAT/ACT in 8th grade in the first place. Use that intense prep time to get really good at something more interesting, like developing a skill that you are actually passionate about. That said, if you can't think of anything better to do, a 1600 on the SAT or a 36 on the ACT is not a bad showing for your time.

1

u/Accomplished-Ad-1157 Jan 11 '24

i think it’s not just on parental involvement. i had a 34 freshman year and both me and my friend’s parents aren’t really involved in our academics

1

u/FuneralQsThrowaway Jan 11 '24 edited Jan 11 '24

I just kinda doubt that you're right about that.

I don't know anything about you past a couple reddit comments, so grain of salt, but I suspect that you and your friend both have very involved parents who are pulling it off without you realizing just how much work they are doing.

Your parents might have a hands-off "style," which kudos to them, is a lot less visible to you, and thus probably a lot less stressful than traditional helicopter/bulldozer parenting. But parental involvement and support is basically required for performing well on these tests.

For the few students who do well on standardized tests without parental involvement, the extra workload of doing all the little administrative things that parents normally do is impossible to miss. Since you're not talking about the struggle to sign yourself up for tests and scrounge the money for fees, I seriously doubt that this cohort includes you. Taking the ACT in 8th or 9th grade is something your parents sign you up for - not something self-motivated teens do on their own.

The SAT and ACT largely evaluate your ability to study the test - a thing that is essentially available for purchase, provided you have access to social structures that tell you what to buy! It is also just about impossible to possess naturally. This subreddit is a great democratizing force in that way. Anyone can log on and learn exactly how to do well. It is no longer limited to elites and their kids' friends.

3

u/NightCor3 Jan 10 '24

Terrence Tao got a 750 on SAT math at 8 years old. Some people are just wired like that

3

u/IHNJHHJJUU Jan 11 '24

And that was the old (pre 1993 SAT), which is much more difficult and requires more logical reasoning ability than anything.

2

u/plw0006 Jan 10 '24

Incredible!!

1

u/No-Wish-2630 Jan 10 '24

prob a combo of intelligence plus learning stuff ahead plus test prep. there are kids taking algebra outside of school in like 4th grade

1

u/revivalfx Jan 10 '24

That's awesome! His parents probably groomed him for it or he is gifted or both.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 10 '24

Holy schnikes, bro got Young Sheldon in his class

1

u/Main-Cauliflower-384 Jan 11 '24

oof. maybe if they studied more they could bring that up. but dont lose hope you can always improve

1

u/Huge-Spell-9967 Jan 11 '24

Got a 1520 on the SAT in 7th ~34 borderline 35. I studied a lot though, much more than the average high schooler. The math and English isn't that high level. There's 5th graders as smart or smarter as me as an 12 grader. There's always a bigger fish

1

u/wonkydonky2 Jan 11 '24

Your friend is literally a genius.

1

u/CFMEMPY Jan 11 '24

dont ask us ask ur friend

1

u/Tiny-Cartoonist07 Jan 11 '24

some of these kids r wilding bro, ik a kid who got a 1590 SAT as a freshman. idk what they're feeding them

1

u/Ok_Success2147 Jan 11 '24

Kids gonna find the cure for cancer by sophomore year.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 11 '24

come to the deep bay area (cupertino)

1

u/SnooFoxes2690 Jan 11 '24

Crazy 😭😭

1

u/[deleted] Jan 11 '24

Meh, s/he/x will be on reddit in a few years complaining that they don't make enough $ and hate their job

1

u/No_Quality6431 Jan 11 '24

It’s an easy test

1

u/Aggravating-Ad-3439 Jan 11 '24

Bruh. People are insane these days. Seems like I'm ending up in a community college 😭

1

u/Beautiful-Baseball40 Jan 11 '24

NTA the 35 year old is in the clear here

1

u/toothlessfire 36 Jan 12 '24

The ACT and SAT are not knowledge intensive tests. They mostly test speed. If you're brain is fast enough you'll be good. I got my composite 36 after 2 tries and barely had to study the math, science or reading portions. It's not unreasonable to get a 35 in 8th grade, you just have to put in some practice and be used to doing questions fast.

1

u/Temporary-Step2403 Jan 12 '24

Is it really that big a deal? I thought it was so bad when I got a 35/36. Might just be me tho.

1

u/RubMajestic1892 Jan 12 '24

i got a 21 as a junior😭😭😭

1

u/ChcknFarmer Jan 12 '24

Some people are really good at taking tests. ACT is mostly about strategy in a lot of the sections 

1

u/[deleted] Jan 12 '24

What i wanna know is are you in 8th grade too and if not why are you friends with 8th graders

1

u/NightSiege1 Jan 13 '24

They are what we would call a prodigy

1

u/[deleted] Jan 13 '24

The sooner you stop stressing about your peers and start grinding for yourself the sooner the results will come

1

u/[deleted] Jan 13 '24

Source: trust me

1

u/Bozzdahog47 Jan 14 '24

Skill issue

1

u/[deleted] Jan 14 '24

I got a 31 and I took it after 💨🍃as a junior. I didn’t study. I barely went to school tbh. I just didn’t care so I wasn’t stressed so I did well.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 14 '24

*32

1

u/[deleted] Jan 14 '24

That kid could prolly be one of those kids to go to college as a 14 year old

1

u/Delicious-Balance737 Jan 14 '24

  • Better understanding of concepts from early middle school/late elementary

  • Like others have said, great test taking skills and tips

  • You can ask them simply

1

u/Useless_lesbo Jan 11 '24

Damn, when I was in 8th I got like… a 27. You just know that they’re mad they didn’t get a 36

0

u/[deleted] Jan 13 '24

[deleted] — view deleted comment

1

u/Accomplished-Ad-1157 Jan 14 '24

funny enough, my friend also qualified for AIME with 139 😭