What ACT® Score Does Your Child Actually Need?

Read time: 3 min  ·  Last updated: June 21, 2026

Before studying a single concept, your son or daughter should have a number. Not "as high as possible." Definitely not a 36 just because (not that I don't love high scores, I do. But as a statistical fact, only a small subset of the student population can achieve high scores. Otherwise, they'd just be scores.)

Your son or daughter needs a specific number tied to a specific goal. Students who study toward a target make faster progress than students studying into the void — because every practice test, every topic, every session has a purpose.

Here is how to find that number in about twenty minutes.

Look Up the Middle 50% for Each School

Every college publishes the ACT® score range for its admitted students — the 25th through 75th percentile. This is called the middle 50%. You can find it by searching: "[College name] Common Data Set" and looking at Section C, or by checking the college's admissions page directly under something like "Class Profile."

The number you want is the 75th percentile. That is the score that puts your child in the top quarter of admitted students by test score — where the ACT® is working clearly in their favor rather than just clearing a bar.

If the middle 50% at a school is 26–31, the target is 31.

Set One Working Target for the Whole List

Most students apply to eight to twelve schools across a range of selectivity. There's usually one dream school, and a number of other options. Rather than tracking a different target for each one, find the highest 75th percentile score among all the schools on the list and use that as the single working target.

Hit that number and your child's application is in good shape at the most selective school on the list and comfortably above range everywhere else.

Don't Forget Scholarships

Admission and scholarship eligibility are separate thresholds, and the scholarship threshold is often the more important one. A school might admit students with a 24 but reserve meaningful merit aid for students at 28 and above — with larger awards at 31 and above.

Look up the merit scholarship page for each school on the list separately. If cost is a factor in the college decision, the scholarship threshold may become the real target, not the admissions range.

To find this information, try searching for "[College name] merit scholarships" or, to surface guaranteed awards, "[College name] automatic merit scholarship requirements".

Once You Have the Number

Take a timed, full-length practice test and find out where your child is starting from. The gap between the baseline score and the target score is what the preparation plan needs to close.

Please do not start studying if you don't have a baseline. This is the #1 reason students become unmotivated. Give them a baseline, build a plan, and have them study to reach that plan in specific. Does your busy teen really have time to study into the void?

If the gap between baseline score and desired score is small — two or three points — focused self-study on specific weak topics can often get there. Everything on this site is organized by topic so that studying is targeted rather than scattered.

If the gap is larger, or if self-study has plateaued, that's typically when working with a tutor becomes the most efficient path. A student who already knows their baseline and their target comes into tutoring ready to move fast — there's no time spent diagnosing what's needed because the data already shows it.

Either way, the target score is where everything starts. Find the number first, then build the plan around it.