When Should Students Take the ACT Exam?

An ACT test may be your gateway to college education in the USA and several more major countries like the UK. The ACT test assesses your readiness for college to help universities and other educational institutions in the USA make a decision on your profile. Since the test dates are available only 7 times are year, it is crucial to know when you should take the ACT test.

ACT exam is a standardised test, which is required as part of undergraduate admissions to US universities and colleges along with those of Canada and a few (around 200) universities in the UK too. ACT’s full form is American College Testing and is mostly taken by high school students. Since many international students aim to study in the US and Canada it is mandatory for them to decide between SAT or ACT, and based on the choice of their college and course of study apply for the selected standardised exam.  

Both SAT and ACT are treated equally while admission applications are assessed. Since the ACT test is widely opted for by international students willing to study in the USA, it is likely that they get stuck on common queries like when can they take the ACT test or when should they take the ACT for the first time, and so on. This article aims to focus on the timelines of when should students appear for the ACT exam so that they are able to apply to the respective universities within the stipulated time. 

When Should Students take the ACT Exam? 

Students must first decide which intake season to choose to study abroad - either Fall or Spring and when they wish to apply for admission and consequently begin preparing for the ACT and decide on when to sit for the ACT exam. The following are the country-wise timelines for each of the seasons and ideally, when should students take the ACT exam: 

ACT Exam for USA Fall Intake 

International students thinking of applying to US universities in the Fall intake can follow the given timeline: 

• Begin preparing for ACT in December of the year before you wish to sit for ACT. 
• You’ll have 4-6 months to prepare for ACT if applying for Fall intake for the USA. 
• Decide when you want to sit for the ACT exam - either in April or June and apply accordingly. 
• You’ll get your results within 2 days to 8 weeks of taking the test, in case you are dissatisfied you can appear for the ACT again in July. 
• Apply for Fall intake to USA universities between September to December with your ACT scores in the same year of preparation. 

ACT Exam for USA Spring Intake 

Check the timeline below as to when students should sit for the ACT exam if they are willing to apply for US university admissions for Spring intake: 

• Indian students can begin preparing for the ACT exam in May, immediately after their board exams get over in April. 
• Since you’ll have ample time to prepare for the ACT exam, you can solve as many ACT sample papers as possible. 
• Once you get a hold of your ACT exam syllabus, decide when to sit for ACT and apply for the exam. 
• Upon registering for ACT you’ll have your exam in a week’s time from the last date of late fee submission. 
• Apply for the US universities for Spring intake with your ACT scores between November and December.  
• Apply for ACT well in time if you are not satisfied with your performance in one go before applying to the universities in the USA. 

ACT Exam for Canada Fall Intake 

Canada’s Fall intake begins November onwards, hence it's important that students decide well in time when they wish to appear for ACT for the first time. Check out the timeline for preparing and appearing for ACT for Canada fall intake admissions: 

• Begin your ACT preparation ideally from June or July if applying for Canada’s Fall intake of the same year. 
• Apply for ACT well in advance before November starts.  
• Keep some buffer time in case you wish to appear for ACT again before filing applications to Canadian universities for Fall intake. 
• Once you have your ACT scores and are satisfied with them, begin submitting your admission applications from November onwards. 

ACT Exam for Canada Winter Intake 

The winter intake in Canada begins in the month of January and wraps up by May. Undergraduate international students who have made up their minds to sit for the ACT exam should follow the given timeline: 

• International students can start their preparation for the ACT exam in July or August of the previous year. 
• Register for the ACT in November or December, and avoid applying at the last slot of the ACT right before applying for Canadian university admissions. 
• You’ll have your ACT scores within two weeks of the test, hence if you are not quite confident with the ACT scores, you can sit for the exam again. 
• Ensure that you begin applying to Canadian universities in the month of January of the next year once you have your ACT scores or are confident. 

ACT Exam Acceptability & Attempts

ACT exam is not just restricted to US and Canada admissions, there may be cases where other countries in Asia and Europe accept the ACT scores for undergraduate admissions. Students may or may not be confident to sit for the ACT exam in the first go, hence, they have the option to appear for it again in case time and bandwidth allow.  

While booking the ACT exam date, make sure you have good 4-6 months for preparation of the exam at hand. Students are allowed to sit for the ACT exam 12 times a year, but that doesn’t mean students can try their luck at all times. International students must aim to crack the exam in the first or maximum second go. Also, they must be very vigilant with the new changes and recent updates in ACT so that they don’t miss out on important details. 

This was all about when you should take the ACT exam. If you wish to study abroad, get assistance from Shiksha's Counselling Services for free. 

When to Take ACT Exam FAQs