ACT 'scoring issue' impacts students nationwide. What we know

A 'scoring issue' with a spring ACT has left high schoolers across the country with inaccurate test results.

ACT, Inc., parent organization of the standardized college admissions test, sent an email on May 13 to school district test coordinators that the organization found a need to remove or reissue scores for students who took the online test this spring during school-day testing, The Columbus Dispatch, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported. Student composite scores will either remain the same or go up slightly, according to the email.

"We recognize the anxiety; we regret it," Juan Elizondo, director of strategic communications for ACT, told The Dispatch. "We never want to be in this situation, but we are certainly grateful that we have these processes and the process worked."

The majority of students impacted by the issue are juniors or younger, Elizondo said. ACT estimates that less than 5% of high school seniors were impacted.

What happened with the ACT scores?

The issue stemmed from a problem with the scoring process, Elizondo told The Dispatch. The issue was not that one test was harder than the other, he added.

Elizondo shared specifics on how each section's score may change:

• Reading: 95% of scores will stay the same or increase by one point; 5% will go up by two points
• Science: 99% of scores will stay the same or increase by one point; 1% will go up by two points
• Math: 97% of scores will stay the same or increase by one point; 3% will go up by two points
• English: 98% of scores will stay the same or increase by one point; 2% will go up by two points

What do students who took the ACT need to do?

Students do not need to take any action. ACT will resend scores to high schools and any colleges, universities or scholarship organizations that students selected, the email said. The scores will also be updated on students' MyACT profiles.

When will the revised ACT scores be available?

The updated ACT scores will be available no later than June 2, the organization told test coordinators.

Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at [email protected].

Reporter Emma Wozniak can be reached at [email protected] or @emma_wozniak_ on X.