I remember it vividly: sitting in the testing room within rows and rows of sweaty, nervous 16 year olds, frantically trying to remember the calculator commands I had crammed the night before. At my school, they require all students to take the ACT at least once, and it has to be administered to everyone on the same day. So there I was, frantically trying to remember what a polysyndeton was as the person next to me was scribbling down math formulas onto their scratch paper, while another person two rows ahead of me was already falling asleep. I sat in that room for hours on end, and as I filled the test out, I couldn’t help but ask myself, is this test even worth it?

We’re beginning to live in a world that’s becoming increasingly focused on standardized metrics, whether it’s through the ACT, SAT or other quantitative assessment. After the 2023 Supreme Court decision of Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which hashed affirmative action efforts in schools, prestigious colleges such as Brown University and Columbia University have moved away from their test-optional policies, which allow students to omit their test scores, to signify a move away from a more holistic admissions process, asking applicants to submit at least one test score to be considered for admission. 

In 2025, after the current administration claimed that some universities are not following the precedent set by the Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard case, they required all universities to start submitting profiles of their incoming class sizes. Some data they must include are race, sex, grade point average and SAT or ACT scores. This way, the administration is able to review these documents and decide if admissions teams are considering factors other than standardized assessments in their admissions decisions. Even the federal government has pressured universities to prove that their admissions decisions rely on measurable, standardized criteria.

For students, that means that we can’t afford to ignore the ACT any longer. I think back to a conversation that, at this point, I’ve probably had with most of my friends. As seniors who are starting to apply to college, I’ve heard many of my classmates tell me that they’re not going to submit their test scores to colleges because they weren’t “good enough,” and that they’ll make up for it somehow through their essays or extracurricular activities. However, they don’t realize that in today’s academic climate, that’s an extremely dangerous mindset to have. Because standardized testing scores are no longer something that can be pushed off; they’re a make or break part of our applications, the barrier between an acceptance letter and cold, hard rejection. To find success in admissions these days, students have to take into account the increasing importance of standardized testing as an increasingly important component of future success. 

The word “standardized” proves to be the most important piece of the puzzle. In theory, it’s the most fair way to assess everyone. When everyone is tested on the same subjects, concepts, and questions, it’s easy to gauge how academically proficient a person may be, essentially leveling the playing field for everyone. While yes, testing still favors students with access to tutoring and resources, we can’t just throw up our hands and say that we’re gonna give up; we have to take the test seriously and use every free resource available. Even just a few points can decide scholarships, honors programs, or admissions itself.

Even students who may not want to attend university, and instead are looking to go to trade schools, military, or straight into the workforce, are facing barriers that can only be breached by attaining good test scores. The ACT tests four subjects: math, science, English, and reading. These more academic subjects are also conflated with soft skills that are not just applicable to scholastic settings, but everywhere. 

This is especially true when entering the workforce, where employers are looking for candidates who demonstrate strong reasoning, problem-solving, and quantitative skills, all traits that the ACT is designed to measure. The math section isn’t just testing your ability to solve systems of equations; it’s testing your ability to think critically. The reading section doesn’t have you read 18th century prose for nothing; it’s to ensure that you can communicate effectively with people, even if you don’t speak or write the same way as them. If a person excels in these areas, that signals to hiring managers that they possess the skills that would allow someone to succeed in any position.

Additionally, people looking to go into the military not only have to pass the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) exam, another standardized test, but if they seek to go to a specialized academy such as the U.S. Coast Guard Academy or West Point Academy, they’ll have to go through an admissions process that mirrors the one students go through for university admissions, putting equal weight on a student’s SAT or ACT scores. 

That doesn’t mean students should only be reduced to numbers, though. Just because some holistic elements of the admissions or job process have been scaled back doesn’t mean they’ve vanished entirely. A test score often serves as a prerequisite, acting as a key that unlocks the chance to show who you are beyond the numbers. Some people won’t even look at your essays, experiences, or personal story unless you meet a certain score threshold, a fact that only further emphasizes the sheer importance of these assessments. 

A few months after my testing date, I opened my laptop to check my newly released ACT scores. While yeah, this score didn’t define me, I knew that whatever laid after that loading screen would open doors for me that would’ve otherwise stayed close and give me opportunities that I wouldn’t otherwise have. The ACT may not seem fair or perfect, but in a world that’s becoming increasingly defined by numbers, it is one of the keys to getting your foot in the door. 

So open up that study book and get that perfect 36 (or more realistically, a 20). The numbers are in your hands. Make them count.