Imagine you are bored on a Saturday night. You don’t want to go to sleep, but you are avoiding homework. You turn on your phone and open up the Netflix to find something to occupy your time. You scan through the pictures, looking briefly for something interesting. You take in the images and the titles, recognizing some of them. You don’t look through every movie description, but focus your search on movies that look and sound interesting. After some searching, you find what you want to watch and get lost in cinematic bliss.

Looking through Netflix for an entertaining movie is a lot like taking the ACT® Science test. As you look through the test, you discriminate between relevant information that will help you make your decision and irrelevant information that isn’t essential to choosing an answer. You don’t have unlimited time, so you only read information based on what you need to know. Conquering the ACT® Science is similar to finding a movie, so why not try to get a perfect score?

This guide exists to prepare you for the rigors of the ACT® Science test and help answer the question “How to get a 36 on ACT® Science?” Dive in for an in-depth overview of the test and key components that you will need to grasp to score the perfect 36.

What do They Test?

The ACT® Science section is designed to test four areas of science reading skills. The specific skills tested are interpretation, analysis, evaluation, reasoning, and problem-solving. Each of these skills is core to the study and understanding of science in college, and the ACT® is designed to show just how prepared you are for the challenges of freshman year.

Interpretation focuses on interpreting scientific data. Your practice of interpretation will include looking at paragraphs, charts, and graphs of data. You will then be asked to explain the significance of the data and interpret the meaning of the data as it is displayed. Understanding data will require skills for reading graphs, or tables – as well as a basic understanding of scientific concepts.

The test works to understand your Analysis skills. They want to know that you can take apart information and comprehend each of the individual parts. You might be asked to analyze things like systems or processes. Analyzing the systems will require you to look at the whole and break down the significance of each part.

Another skill that you will be asked to focus on is Evaluation. You will evaluate the conclusions and ideas presented in passages and data. Evaluation will involve reviewing the findings of the studies and determining if the data present supports them. It is a difficult skill to accurately evaluate information, so the test will focus on your ability to do that.

Logical thinking processes are important for understanding how to proceed with problem-solving. Reasoning will emphasize on your ability to think through scientific problems and processes logically. For example, you might be asked to clarify where a discrepancy occurs between two reports about the same phenomena. You will have to use reason and logic to think critically about the two reports and determine where the difference occurs.

The last skill you will use is Problem Solving. Using data and information to solve problems is putting your knowledge to work. You don’t just understand the information and data given, but you are determining how to use it or what it means in a particular situation. You might be asked to explain the right temperature to measure the volume of gas based on the information provided in a graph. Using the information given to find an answer is the key to problem solving.

Are you afraid? You shouldn’t be. Students keep hearing terrifying things about the contents of the ACT® Science, but we are going to put the biggest myth to rest.

The ACT® Science Myth

If you noticed, not one of the skills mentioned of the five tested has anything to do with your knowledge of science. A myth told about the ACT® Science goes something like this, “If you didn’t do well in your science classes, you are going to do poorly on the ACT® Science.” This myth is untrue.

The myth is just, a myth. The test doesn’t focus on what you know from your science classes. It is true that basic understanding of scientific concepts will be helpful on the exam, but for the most part, the ACT® Science section tests your reading and thinking skills

It is more accurate to say that the test is a combination of the ACT® Reading and ACT® Math sections. You will be reading numerous passages and interpreting information from graphs and charts. The test focuses on your reading skills, so if you are not great at science, don’t worry.

Despite the myth being false, it doesn’t mean the test will be easy. Getting 36 will require you to be present and involved in studying. Let’s take a look at an overview tests structures and the categories of questions that will be on the exam.

Test Structure

Knowledge of the skills that you need to possess is essential, but you will need to understand the structure of the test to gauge the value of each skill. The test mirrors the rest of the ACT® in having a tight time frame. The time limit will determine the best course of study, as well as the best strategies for scoring 36.

The test has 40 multiple choice questions with a limit of 35 minutes. Without even considering the time needed to view the passages, graphs, and charts it means you will have less than a minute to answer every question. That type of time constraint can seem daunting, but some strategies can help you cope with the structural limits.

There are three distinct sections of the test. Two of the sections have three passages each, and one section has a single passage. Reading the seven passages needs to figure into the time limit, which means you will be pushed to finish within the limit.

Not every section is considered equal. Some sections have a larger percentage of the questions than others. The parts break down like this:

Each of the sections contains a set range of questions. Not every part is equal, but if you are working to get 36 on the test, you will need to master them all. You might find that you struggle with one section more than the others. That will give you direction on how to tackle the test. Understanding the tests creation can help you to adjust to give the sections as much time as possible.

The test is laid out clearly for us, but maybe the value of a perfect score isn’t. Let’s talk about why it’s worth it to work hard and score well on the test. You can do it, and it could mean the difference for you in the long run.

The Value of 36

It might seem impossible, but earning 36 on ACT® Science is a realistic goal. You can achieve a 36. Thousands of students score 36 every year, and with some hard work you can join their ranks. The focus of this guide is setting you up to become one of those students.

For many students, it might seem like a too much work, and you might be wondering, “How important is a 36 in admissions?” For most students taking the ACT®, it isn’t necessary to get 36 for admission to their school of choice. The average score on the test is 20, and most schools won’t expect applicants to get above a 32. As a result, many students won’t ever worry about scoring 36.

You are different, though, aren’t you? You don’t want to get into a second or third tier school. You are reading this article, which shows your determination to become exemplary. For a student of high caliber, reality dictates that a 36 is not just a good score, but a necessity to stay competitive.

Depending on your goals, there is a very real possibility that a 36 on the Science portion of the ACT® could mean the difference between an acceptance letter and a rejection letter in the spring of your senior year. Every part of the test contributes to your composite score, and you might find yourself in need of any extra points you can muster to get that golden ticket into your school of choice.

For top tier universities, a 36 is a competitive score. Princeton University, currently ranked as the best school in the world for undergraduate studies, is an excellent example of how ACT® scores figure into the admissions process.

At Princeton the average ACT® score is 33, the 25th percentile score is 31, and the 75th percentile score is 35.

What does this mean?

The majority of students at Princeton, about 75%, score a 35 or below on the ACT®. The average student scores a 33 on the test. Half of the students score below 33 and half score above. You do not want to be average. Average means the struggle for admissions is harder. A 36 will set you apart. It will place you in the top 25 percent of students that are applying to the school. A 36 will make you competitive.

As you can see, scoring a 36 is possible. For any of the top 10 school, the curve is going to be similar to the percentages at Princeton. When you apply, a 36 shows you mean business. It demonstrates your skills, knowledge, and preparation for college. Most importantly, it can help make up for other weaknesses in your application.

The Challenge of Perfection

To earn a 36, you must get a raw score of 40. “Raw score” translates to the number of actual questions you need to answer correctly. A 40 means that you must get every question right. Take a look at the chart below for the translation from raw to scaled score:

Take note of the swift decline from 36 to 35. If you miss one question, you will drop from a 36. That leaves no room for error.

The test is strict. There are no second chances. This is different than most tests you are used to, when there is no grace it can seem hopeless, but it isn’t. A 36 is possible because every question has a correct answer. The ACT® extinguishes the inconsistency that often plagues high-level thinking tests. The test works to be a fair assessment of science skills, creating a level playing field through a distinctly right answer that is supported by evidence from the passage.

The Right Answer

Each question has only one correct response. Each item has three incorrect answers. Don’t be fooled. The ACT® Science section might seem tricky, but there is only one correct answer to each question.

You might come across an item that confuses you into thinking it has two possible answers, but don’t fall into the trap of guessing. Realizing that there is only one right answer to every question will provide a way to overcome the uncertainty.

We’ve been taught, in high school classes, that most questions have many valid answers. The texts that we read in science classes are often complicated, dealing with topics like the theory of evolution or global climate change. When writing a research report or participating in discussions in a science class, teachers are not usually going to tell you that your ideas are wrong. The ACT® is different.

In those classes, we often compare possible solutions, because no single answer can apply in all situations. Complex issues and ideas require dialogue, and that dialogue can allow for competing ideas which are all possible. The ACT® doesn’t follow the same rules.

The ACT® is designed to level the ground so that all students have the ability to do well. Therefore, the answers are not subjective, and the questions all have a single correct response.

They key to scoring a 36 on the ACT® English section is to find the right answer every time. Let’s go over a few strategies that can help for finding the right answer.

8 Strategies for “How to get a 36 on ACT® Science.”

Strategy 1: Understand the Test

An important step in getting 36 on ACT® Science is knowing what will be on the test. Think of this guide like the road map to your success. It will give you an excellent overview of the test, the path to get to your destination and mark out any hurdles along the way. Understanding the test is the overview that you need to navigate the exam efficiently.

The first step in navigation is to understand what the ACT® Science test is, and what it is not. The ACT® Science test is a reading test about science. The ACT® Science is not a test of your ability to perform or remember scientific concepts. It is important to note the importance of reading skills as you prepare for the test. It will do you no good to focus all your time and energy on re-learning science that you’ve forgotten or didn’t learn in school.

Instead, we will concentrate on understanding how the test will assess your reading knowledge. While the test doesn’t require you to have very much scientific knowledge, it will focus on reading about scientific information.

The distinct sections deal with your ability to comprehend data representation, research summaries, and conflicting viewpoints from within the scientific disciplines. Each category deals with a particular reading skill. Let’s break down the sections and understanding what will be required to earn 36.

Sections Breakdown

Data Representation (3 Passages)

The data representation section focuses on your ability to read and interpret data. You will be asked to view various data representations like graphs and tables, and then explain what the data means.

The example below is a question from the Albert.io website that demonstrates what data-representation looks like:

Question: Based on study 1, there is a significant difference between the amount of DNA damage in the wild type of fungus and in the transgenic type after _____ hours of sun exposure.

A. 1

B. 2

C. 4

D. 6

After reviewing the graph, you can read the question and determine the answer. This question tests our ability to understand data representation, specifically a line graph. As we read the graph, we can determine where the largest amount of DNA damage occurs, between 16 and 17 hours on the chart.

The correct answer is, therefore, D or 6 hours. We get to this answer by reading from hour 11 to hour 17, which is a total of 6 hours. It would be easy to rule out the other choices because there is no significant change in the DNA damage after four hours.

The most important point to understand from this sample question is that you didn’t need to have any specialized knowledge of fungi or DNA to answer the question. You need to be able to read the graph correctly. If you have had some training in graph reading, that will not be difficult.

That give a good overview of the types of questions you will answer about data representation. Study the process of interpreting graphs and charts to ensure that your practice on the ACT® Science doesn’t go to waste.

Research Summaries (3 Passages)

Research Summaries are simple to understand. They are a summary of some scientific study or research. You will be asked to review and assess the methods and results of scientific studies. You will need some knowledge of the scientific method and data collection for this section of the test. Let’s get right into an example question from the albert.io website:

Passage: “A student is running an experiment to determine how light influences the rate of photosynthesis in aquatic plants. The students set up a shallow dish with carbonated water and some bromothymol blue (BTB) indicator. The carbon dioxide in the water will make the solution acidic.

As the aquatic plants undergo photosynthesis, they will absorb carbon dioxide from the solution and the solution will become more alkaline, or basic. The BTB indicator is yellow in acidic solutions and will change color to blue as the solution becomes more basic.

The student places a sample of healthy water star grass in each of several containers and then covers the different containers with various light filters. The containers are placed under a solar spectrum light source which is turned on for 12 hours, then turned off for 12 hours, with this light cycle repeated for three days.

Trial 1 shows the change in water color for the samples with different light intensities, based on the use of different neutral density filters. These filters did not correct the color of the light, only how bright the light was.”

Trial 2 shows the change in water color for the samples with different colored filters. In these samples, the light for each of the samples had the same brightness but had different colored filters.

Question: Which of the following best describes the difference in the experimental set up in trial one compared to trial 2?

A. Trial 1 varies the color of the solution, while Trial 2 varies the color of the light.

B. Trial 1 measures the intensity of the light, while Trial 2 measures the color of the solution.

C. Trial 1 varies the intensity of the light, while Trial 2 varies the color.

D. Trial 1 measures the color of the solution, while Trial 2 measures the color of the light.

This passage presents a summary of the research conducted on the effects of light on a liquid solution. Notice that all the information needed to answer the question is in the last two paragraphs. All of the other information in the study didn’t pertain to this issue.

After examining the question and the information present, it is easy to whittle down the answer choices. Options B and C, at first glance, look to be almost identical. However, if we examine the descriptions of the trials again, we can see that we are not measuring but altering the variables of intensity and color of light. Choice C is the correct answer because it identifies the variables adjusted in each trial.

Notice that once again you didn’t have to understand the science behind BTB or any of the other information given in the paragraph. You simply had to read and understand the methods and outcomes of an experiment. If you practice your ability to read information and research studies closely, you will have no problem with the questions from this section of the test.

Conflicting Viewpoints (1 Passage)

The conflicting viewpoints section focuses on identifying when there is a conflict between the perspectives of two scientists or studies. You will be asked to evaluate the differences between two competing theories or hypotheses about the information presented in a single passage. Let’s review a passage from the Albert.io website:

Here is a screenshot of the passage (it is relatively long):

Question: Which of the following statements would both researchers agree with?

A: The Grand Canyon began forming about 6 million years ago.

B: The Grand Canyon began forming about 65 million years ago.

C: About 6 million years ago, the Colorado River began carving the eastern part of the Grand Canyon.

D: About 60 million years ago, a river changed course and began forming the western part of the Grand Canyon, then 6 million years ago it shifted again and formed the eastern part.

This question focuses heavily on your ability to read. You don’t need to understand thermo-chronometry or even geological time scales to approach this item. To find the correct answer, you just need to be able to read and evaluate which of the answers best fits the hypotheses posed by both scientists.

Answer B is the correct answer. Both texts explain that some part or most of the Canyon began forming 65 million years ago. Though, the scientists disagree about the scope of the formation that happened 65 million years ago.

You don’t need to understand the science behind the question to find the right answer. You must simply be able to read for the correct information to determine the right answer. It is that simple.

Read, Don’t Fret

As you approach each of the sections, just keep in mind that you will need to focus much more on your ability to read a text closely than your scientific knowledge. As you go forward, continue to focus on your reading skills. Pay attention to the relevant information presented in each question, and don’t stress about your science knowledge – it won’t make or break you on this test.

Reading is the first step to understanding “how to get a 36 on ACT® Science.” As you practice, work continually on your reading. Now let’s cover some strategies to maximize the gains you’ll make from practice.

Strategy 2: Practice, Practice, Practice

A successful strategy focuses on practice. We practice for just about every activity. We spend many hours dribbling a basketball or attempting to get the shading on an apple just right to perfect our abilities. There is never a limit to the amount of good practice can do, which is why even the best practice to become perfect. That is why “practice makes perfect” makes so much sense; it’s true.

If you want to know “how to get a 36 on ACT® Science”, the first part is to realize you have to practice your reading skills to perfection. Earning a 36 will mean many hours of commitment to studying, reading, and taking tests.

As a culture, we don’t value the act of studying before a test. We prefer to treat exams and tests as a means to check the natural ability of a person. The exam ends up becoming a measure of your natural talent not what you have been able to learn through active practice and study. The way that our culture treats test taking skills is foolish. You can and should practice for a test. You can improve your skills and knowledge through repetition and practice.

When you practice for the ACT® Science, you should use every strategy, tip, and resource provided by this guide. However, using those strategies, tips, and resources by themselves will not be enough. You must commit your time and energy to practicing for the test.

Time

When you commit your time, you will have to decide how much time you are willing to devote to getting 36. You are attempting perfection on the ACT® Science section, and that is no easy feat. It will require a significant chunk of dedicated time to increase your scores. You will need to study approximately 40 hours in total to raise your scores from a 32 to a 36.

40 hours divided over five weeks works out to 8 hours a week. That is a massive commitment, but it doesn’t seem quite as large when you consider the impact the test will have on your chances of college admissions. You will get out what you put in, so use the time you need to earn 36 on the test.

When you set time aside to study, you must study fruitfully. It is easy to waste the time you’ve set aside. When you practice for the exam, make sure you unplug: turn off your phone, don’t listen to distracting music, shut down the T.V., and don’t be on social media. If you spend just one hour a day entirely focused on conquering the ACT® Science, you will be much closer to scoring 36.

Energy

Along with your time, you will need to channel energy into your practice. That means full focus every time you get to work. Many students fail to effectively prepare because they don’t put energy into their practice. It is easy to be distracted, or fail to do your best if you don’t treat a practice exam like the real deal. It isn’t useful to practice like it doesn’t matter. You can’t go into your practice situations halfheartedly.

When you take your practice tests, treat them as if they are the actual ACT®. Give yourself the right amount of time for the test, and put in the energy necessary to finish in that time-frame. If you don’t put the energy of a real testing situation into your practice, you will never reach your full potential.

Finding Real Study Materials

Practice is only as helpful as it is realistic. You will want your practice materials to mirror the test as closely as possible. ACT® keeps a tight lock on the tests, so there are not many free sample tests. The five officially released tests are here:

2015-2016, 2014-2015, 2011-2012 2008-2009 2005-2006

There is also a digital test that you can take here.

Those tests will be your best bet to figure out your score on the ACT® accurately. They should be used as benchmarks to assess your progress over time. You should carefully consider the amount of time you have left until your testing date, and space the practice exams out evenly from now until then. If you have six weeks until the test, you should take a practice test every week. That way you can keep track of a realistic score and chart your progress.

Those practice tests are not going to cut it for improvement. You will need something else to make up the bulk of your study materials. Use supplemental training materials to improve your skills in between the tests. Some excellent materials for the test are on the Albert.io website. You should also compare practice books or articles online to find quality materials.

Don’t think of your practice materials as unimportant. It is crucial that you find the best materials possible to prepare for the rigors of the exam. Read reviews before you purchase any books, and find websites that are highly rated by online communities.

Just Keep Practicing

Above all, keep practicing. Whatever schedule you set for yourself, stick to it. Whatever way you decide to practice, use it. You will not improve if you sit around waiting for the test to arrive. If you want to score 36, you will need to practice to perfection.

Strategy 3: Plug the Leaks

A practice schedule is important, but all the practice in the world won’t make any difference without focus. It is vital that you learn what areas of the test are your greatest weakness, and compensate with practice.

If you imagine your testing ability as a boat, every weakness you possess has the potential to spring a leak. Too many leaks and your boat will capsize. That is why you need to work on plugging the holes. You must practice to correct and compensate for your weaknesses to have any chance of scoring 36.

Diagnosing your weaknesses won’t be easy. It will require you to begin to think seriously about the way you tackle problems. If you find a particular skill that you lack or fundamental knowledge you haven’t learned, you can fix it before the test.

Ask the Right Questions

As you go through the released ACT® tests, you should continually note the items that you struggled to answer. Marking all of the items you couldn’t answer with 100% certainty will allow you to review and ascertain the cause of your confusion. Once you know why you couldn’t narrow down the answer choices, you can make a change to fix that in the future.

Knowing what questions you struggled to answer is important because it should lead to some deep thinking. You should ask questions like:

• Why was this choice right?
• Why were the other choices incorrect?
• What about the options I couldn’t rule out confused me?
• Why did I think those wrong answers could be correct?
• What rule or reasoning exists to prove the right answer?

Asking these deeper thinking questions will help you to figure out your weaknesses and create new strategies to overcome them before the test. As you practice, always delve deeper into the “why” of the answers, stopping at “what is the right answer” will never be fruitful.

Determine the Explanation Yourself

Beyond the questioning strategy, you will need to refrain from reading the explanations for the answer choices as you drill the test skills. Instead, seek to figure out and explain the options yourself. Nearly every test and every program will provide detailed explanations for why certain a choice is correct and why other choices are not, don’t read those until after you have formulated your reasons.

Growing stronger in your test taking skills requires struggle with difficult concepts. Reading the explanations doesn’t challenge you to learn, and it will not force you to learn the reasoning behind why one choice is correct and another is not. If you take the time to explain why one choice is correct and the others are not, you will learn much more about the test’s construction, and the specific skills tested.

So, don’t read the explanations until after you have already explained the choices yourself. Then read the answers provided to ensure that they give similar responses to the ones you created. The logic should be similar in each, and as your explanations get closer to the ones provided, you can keep track to see if your scores improve.

Drill and Kill Your Weaknesses

If you find that you are missing specific questions – you need to drill and kill those deficiencies. Identify the specific skill or focus of the questions you are struggling with – you can do this by going through the different types of questions and identifying any patterns that exist.

The best thing you can do to counter any weakness patterns you find is practice working on right over and over until you get the hang of them. It is important to fix your weaknesses, so make sure you are meticulous in the way that you note any weakness you discover.

Strategy 4: Tackling the Questions (Don’t Get Caught Up in the Figures)

One quick and precise plan is not to get bogged down in the data and graphs. Most questions will only ask you to focus on one graph or one figure, so you shouldn’t work yourself up if the passage is full of strange graphs and charts. If the question asks you to focus on chart 1, then only focus on chart 1. Don’t stress yourself out!

It is much easier to tackle the questions if you focus on the specific information that you need to answer the question. Sometimes, you can respond to the questions without even looking at the passages or graphs. If every question focuses on a particular graph or chart, there isn’t much need to understand the other information mentioned in the passage.

It would serve you well to simplify your reading and work on the skill of only finding information that you need to answer questions.

Strategy 5: Read Carefully!

One of the most common mistakes that students make on the ACT® Science test is misreading the questions. Students get caught up in the speed of the entire test, and that leads to them failing to get the question right.

If you read a question, understand the content, know the answer, but you choose an answer based on a misreading you will miss your 36! Think about it, if there is a question that asks about graph 1, but you misread it and choose based off of graph 2 – you’ve blown your chance at a 36 over a very simple mistake.

The best way to remedy this is to be intentional in the way that you read throughout the test. Don’t let your guard down because a question seems easy, but always make sure you have read the question correctly. It might seem tedious, but the possibility of your 36 rests on always getting the answer correct, and that means you can’t make any careless mistakes.

Always read carefully and closely.

Strategy 6: Understand the Graphs

Sometimes during the ACT® Science you will come across graphs that look like this:

You will notice that this graph is somewhat complicated. It doesn’t seem that complicated by the look of it, but you’ll notice that it has three axes. The graph, when under the time pressure from the test, could look daunting as you struggle to finish the section in time.

Notice that the variables listed are going to sound foreign: solar radiation intensity and concentration of CH4 in Earth’s atmosphere are not topics of common knowledge. The ACT® selected the graph in an attempt to fluster and confuse you during the test.

Let’s go over a few strategies to help you handle graphs like this in a quick and easy manner.

Strategies for Graph Reading

There are some steps you can take to make sure that the graphs don’t get the better of you. For this guide, we are going to focus on three easy tricks and tips to help deal with graphs.

Tip 1: You Don’t Need Most of the Information

One of the most important tips to understand how to deal with graphs on the ACT® Science is that you will not need most of the information contained in the graph. Most questions will ask you to focus on a particular part of the graph, and you can ignore the other information in the passage.

Find the information that the question focuses on, and ignore the rest. It becomes much easier to navigate the graphs when you realize that you don’t have to understand the whole thing. If a question asks you about an acid solutions rate of temperature change over time, you should pay attention to that line on the graph. Don’t worry about the other rates of change listed, instead, pull the information you need to answer the question and ignore the rest. This tip will streamline your test taking.

Tip 2: Keep Track of the label on Each Axis

The second tip is to keep track and understand how to read a graph. If you are unaware of how graphs work, you need to keep track of the information listed along the axes. If there are two or three axes listed, keep track of what those are measuring. If you know how to track the measurements on the graph, it will go a long way towards answering any questions focused on the graph.

Tip 3: Don’t Worry about Units or Definitions

It is very easy to get caught up in the facts, figures, and definitions given around the graphs. Most of the time you can answer the questions without ever understanding the scientific terms used or the units provided. It doesn’t matter what a quark is or if there is a measurement of 1500 ohms – as long as you can explain how the graph communicates distinct phenomena, the background information is unnecessary.

Keep Learning

Those tips for navigating the treacherous terrain of graphs in the ACT® Science will go a long way towards helping you learn “how to get a 36 on ACT® Science”. Your score on the test will not depend on the depth of your knowledge about scientific topics, but it won’t hurt to have basic knowledge of scientific terms and processes.

Strategy 7: Scientific Fluency

You may have taken some basic science in high school, and that will come in handy. The test will hit on the traditional disciplines like biology, physics, and chemistry. It will also get into some lesser known subjects like geology, astronomy, environmental science, and zoology.

It is a good idea to have a grasp of basic scientific concepts. A great place to start when looking for information on the basics of a scientific discipline would be Crashcourse on YouTube or the study program at Khan Academy. Remember that you don’t need to be an expert on those topics, but a good refresh of the scientific foundations of biology or physics will help you navigate the test.

It is a good idea to get some flashcards drawn up with basic definitions of terms or processes in science. Focus on learning about things like definitions (learning about what a word means, e.g. macromolecules), processes (what are the steps of the Krebs cycle?), scientific tools (like the scientific method or a microscope), and theories (like evolution or gravity).

Keep in mind that you don’t need to understand everything about science, but it will streamline the process if you know the basics. You don’t want to be caught up on something because it is completely foreign and you don’t know anything about the topic.

If all the other strategies fail, you can always use the process of elimination. There is always a single right answer, so sometimes you just need to learn to get rid of the wrong ones.

Strategy 8: One Answer to Rule Them All

The key to strategy eight is remembering that there is only one correct answer for each question. No matter the appeal of the other choices, there will always be an error in the answers they suggest. If you rule out the three wrong choices, it will give you the ability to get the right answer every time. That is the key to 36 on the test.

Here is a sample question from the Albert.io website. Let’s find the issues present in three of the four choices:

Chart 1:

Question: Based on Chart 1, how much tension was needed to stretch the silk with PEDOT-PSS and glycerol 10% when it was wet?

A – 490 cN

B – 600 cN

C – 810 cN

D – 1000 cN

This question presents the student with a chart focused on the use of chemicals to stretch a type of silk fiber. It is unnecessary to know the background information given to answer the question. All the information necessary to respond to the question is in the chart. Let’s analyze each answer and find the right one.

Answer A – Correct

Answer A is correct. Looking at the chart, we can pick out a few important details. The x-axis is the percentage the fabric stretches and the y-axis measure the tension placed on the material. We are looking for the wet silk with a PEDOT-PSS and glycol solution, which is line 3′ (dark purple on the chart). If we trace that line out to 10% on the x-axis, we find that the purple line crosses 10% just shy of 500 cN on the y-axis. The process of elimination leaves the only possible answer of the choices as A – 490 cN.

Answer B – Misread the Legend

Answer B is incorrect. Choice B is the easiest mistake to make on this question because it is a PEDOT-PSS and glycol solution, but the dark blue line that hits 600 cN at 10% comes from one sample of silk that was dry.

If the student misread the legend and was looking at the dry samples, instead of the wet samples, the test tricks them into picking choice B.

Answer C – Misread the Question

In the case of answer C, there is nothing even remotely correct about it. If a student was moving quickly through the question and selected an incorrect line to focus on, say a PEDOT-PSS but a non-glycol solution, they would be tricked into picking this choice. To counter this problem, ensure that you read the questions carefully to find the right information to answer.

Answer D – Misread the Chart

Students who select choice D are suffering from an inability to read the chart. They are either moving too quickly or become bogged down by the colors/axes. The only line that goes near 1000 cN is sample 1 (light blue), and that is at 14%. This answer is way off but could be chosen if a student was moving too quickly or becomes stressed about reading the chart.

Narrow it Down

When you work through every question, you need to work on narrowing down the possible choices. Every question has just one correct answer. You are looking for what is wrong with the other three choices as much as you are looking for what is right about the correct one.

Bonus Strategy: Bubbling for Time

One last helpful strategy for the test revolves around bubbling. The traditional way to bubble a test is very time-consuming. Students will move back and forth between the test booklet and answer sheet after every item.

The physical act of moving, first your eyes and then your hand, from the test booklet to the answer sheet takes a lot of available time. If it takes you 3 seconds to move from the test booklet to the answer sheet and bubble in the answer, and you do that for 40 questions, it will take you a total of 2 minutes just for bubbling.

You will need all the time you can get on the exam. To save time on bubbling the best advice is to change your strategy. Instead of moving back and forth between the booklet and the test, only mark the correct answers on the test booklet. After about ten answers you should bubble in on the answer sheet. If you memorize a series of solutions like ABDCBBADCA you can save yourself time in the way that you bubble and cut down on making mistakes.

Find out what type of bubbling strategy works best for you and go with it. The time you save in bubbling the best way will be invaluable towards getting a perfect score on the ACT® Science.

Get Your 36!

Go forth and embrace your destiny. With these strategies in hand, you can conquer the ACT® Science and get your 36.

Keep calm, follow this guide, and keep practicing. Check out the albert.io website for even more in test prep guides and practice questions.

Do you have another strategy that you are using to study for the ACT® Science exam? Share them with us in the comments.

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