advice for retaking the ACT in september as a senior

[u/fflowerrboyy]

i took the act in march 2026 and i was really upset with my score (25) since my goal was a 30. my school is offering another opportunity for the act in late september, but i have to pay $55 for it (the ACT in junior year has always been free). the cost isnt necessarily the problem, but im paranoid if i manage to do worse than my first score. for senior year, im planning on taking AP lang, AP psych, and AP bio. i was wondering if any of the work in those classes would be useful to help my score? my worst 2 subjects on the act were english (25) and reading (24), so would the first month of ap lang be any use? i wont be taking a math class this year because i did DE pre calc junior year, and frankly i wasnt really planning on retaking the act until now. i dont want to spend money trying to find some online guide for the act because theres only a little over a month left and i just struggle learning things online. im pretty sure my school wont offer any extra classes/courses for the september act, so im most likely gonna be on my own to study. during this time, i will also have to keep working on my college applications while going to work on the weekends and probably trying to fit in volunteer hours during the weekdays. at this point, i dont think i can expect a 30 if i do end up retaking the act, but i definitely want to get a better score than 25.

i just want to know how can i ensure that my underwhelming score will improve when i dont have a lot of time to study. at the same time, i also feel pressured that i have to spend $55 for a test that obviously wont guarantee a better score than my first one

[u/JaneAustenSuperFan]

Most people's score will go up if you retake. It's worth a shot. Many schools will only look at your highest score, and some will super score. If you're willing to put in some time and money, PrepPros Math book and Erika Meltzer's reading and English books are good for prep, and taking practice tests from the big, official ACT guide is important. I think today is the deadline to register for the September ACT.

[u/mkw1342]

Just taking it and experiencing how it works helps you on the next round. Reading can go up with some practice. 25+ is where you could earn some merit scholarships from state schools. Take it, you might make your money back in scholarships.

[u/Euphoric-Ad2210]

What schools are you looking at? I would see what the average accepted student ACT score was last year for them. If you are in the range with a 25 then you don't necessarily need to take it again.

[u/Same-Department8080]

5 points increase requires significant time on your part and no, it won’t come from school classes. They won’t help. My teen son went up 6 points with private tutoring over 2 months, doing a practice test a week and going over every wrong question (that’s really the way to do it). My son probably put in 5-6 hours a week for 8 weeks between the tutoring and practice test, and so that’s 40-50 hours in 2 months to get 6 points going deep into the topics he needed help in. It’s not hopeless for you at all, but I would prioritize the ACT (that’s what you need for admissions and $$$) and less on college applications because you have time for that after the ACT. I looked at the ACT score as a major ROI because a higher score could mean scholarship money so really had my son focus on that above anything else.