One of the biggest offenders in the ACT is time. It can creep up on us, facilitate confusion, and make even the best of us lose focus in critical moments. When short on time, many of us feel inclined to abandon reason and madly guess, so success in this environment comes down to two main elements.
1. Practice.
The more you experience pushing through the test under pressure, the more comfortable you will become encountering difficult questions in that setting. At a certain point, there are few lessons on material that beat practice. Each test will lend perspective, help you strategize for the next round, and allow you to trust your ability. We want you to walk into the real test knowing that you can tackle anything it throws at you, whether you’re short on time or not.
2. Staying Practical.
Practicality and keeping a cool head can feel antithetical to the ACT, but it can make a colossal difference. If you’re concerned about time, take a deep breath, keep your head down, and focus on the questions you have the best shot at getting right. Every minute you’re in there is about efficiency, so making live judgments on where you can get those final crucial points has to be a question of informed practicality.
Every person has a different strategy when it comes to time management. Some people bounce around the test, some move chronologically through it, and others divide and conquer by topic. The key to confidently hitting back when time comes knocking is to have a plan. Going in and knowing how you’re going to execute will serve you every time you take the ACT. Stick to your strategy, knock 'em dead.