• About This Report
• College Readiness Benchmark Attainment
• Participation
• Student Migration and Academic Achievement
• Time of First Testing
• EOS Participation
• Score-Sending Behavior
• Enrollment by College Preference
• Interest-Major Fit
• Predictors of Success
• Key Findings and Recommendations
• Recent ACT Research

Participation

Although both ACT and SAT^® scores are accepted at virtually all postsecondary institutions that require an admissions test, there remain state and regional differences in the share of high school graduates who take each test.

• In 26 states, at least 60% of the high school graduating class of 2011 took the ACT. In 12 of these states, at least 80% of their graduates took the ACT.
• Comparatively, in 18 states and in DC, at least 60% of all 2011 high school graduates took the SAT. In 4 of these states, at least 80% of their graduates took the SAT.

ACT research shows that ACT-tested students differ both in terms of their background characteristics and their college selection behaviors depending on the ACT and SAT participation rates in the state. To illustrate some of these differences in this report, we have classified states into 5 categories based on their ratio of ACT- and SAT-tested high school graduates. The table below lists for each of these state categories the ratio of ACT- and SAT-tested students that defines the category, the number of states in the category, and the number of ACT-tested students across those states. The table also provides for each state category the average ACT Composite score and the percentage of students whose family income is greater than $60,000.

As you will see throughout this report, ACT-tested students from “ACT+” and “ACT” states often exhibit the student testing and enrollment behaviors of the typical college-bound population in those states. ACT-tested students from “SAT” and “SAT+” states, however, frequently exhibit different testing and enrollment behaviors.

Classification of States by ACT and SAT Participation

• Chart
• Table

State	Classification
Alabama	ACT+
Alaska	ACT/SAT
Arizona	ACT/SAT
Arkansas	ACT+
California	SAT
Colorado	ACT+
Connecticut	SAT
Delaware	SAT+
District of Columbia	SAT
Florida	ACT/SAT
Georgia	SAT
Hawaii	SAT
Idaho	ACT
Illinois	ACT+
Indiana	SAT
Iowa	ACT+
Kansas	ACT+
Kentucky	ACT+
Louisiana	ACT+
Maine	SAT+
Maryland	SAT
Massachusetts	SAT
Michigan	ACT+
Minnesota	ACT+
Mississippi	ACT+
Missouri	ACT+
Montana	ACT
Nebraska	ACT+
Nevada	ACT/SAT
New Hampshire	SAT+
New Jersey	SAT+
New Mexico	ACT+
New York	SAT
North Carolina	SAT
North Dakota	ACT+
Ohio	ACT
Oklahoma	ACT+
Oregon	SAT
Pennsylvania	SAT+
Rhode Island	SAT+
South Carolina	ACT/SAT
South Dakota	ACT+
Tennessee	ACT+
Texas	SAT
Utah	ACT+
Vermont	SAT
Virginia	SAT
Washington	SAT
West Virginia	ACT
Wisconsin	ACT+
Wyoming	ACT+

Map reads: For the high school graduating class of 2011, Michigan is categorized as an “ACT+” state.

Note: State categories were determined by calculating a ratio of ACT-tested and SAT-tested students in each state. Washington, DC, not shown, is categorized as an “SAT” state.

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