The enhanced ACT: what changed, and whether to take Science
The ACT rebuilt itself across 2025 and 2026. It is shorter, there is more time per question, and the Science section that used to define the test is now optional and no longer part of your composite. That last change is the one families keep getting wrong.
3 min read - Grades 10-11 - Updated August 2026
In short
- The enhanced ACT is shorter: 171 questions, or 131 without Science, with roughly 22% more time per question.
- Your composite, still 1 to 36, is the average of English, Math and Reading only; Science is optional and reported separately.
- Take Science if you are applying to science, engineering or medicine, if a university asks for it, or if you genuinely do not know yet.
What actually changed
The rollout was staged: digital tests first in spring 2025, paper tests from autumn 2025, and school-day testing in spring 2026. If you are reading older prep material, check which version it describes.
- The test dropped from 215 questions to 171. If you skip Science it is 131.
- Students get meaningfully more time per question - roughly 22% more - which was the single biggest complaint about the old ACT.
- Reading and English passages are shorter.
- Math answer choices went from five options to four.
- Science is optional, and does not count towards the composite.
The composite is now three sections, not four
Your composite score - still 1 to 36 - is the average of English, Math and Reading only.
If you take Science you get a separate Science score out of 36, plus a STEM score averaging Math and Science. These sit alongside the composite rather than inside it.
This is where families get confused: a strong Science score no longer lifts your headline number, and a weak one no longer drags it down.
So should you take Science?
- Take it if you are applying to science, engineering, medicine or any programme that may look at a STEM score.
- Take it if a university you want explicitly asks for it. Some do; most do not.
- Take it if data interpretation is a strength, because it is a separate visible score you can gain from.
- Skip it if you are applying to humanities, business or social science programmes and want a shorter test day.
- If you genuinely do not know yet, take it. An extra score you can choose not to emphasise is a smaller problem than a missing one you needed.
What Science actually tests
Despite the name, it is not a test of what you learned in Physics or Chemistry class. It is a data-interpretation test: charts, experimental summaries, and conflicting viewpoints, under time pressure.
Students who are strong at reading graphs quickly do well regardless of how much science they have studied. Students who try to reason from subject knowledge tend to run out of time.
Common questions
Does skipping Science hurt my application?
For most programmes, no - it is not part of the composite and most universities do not require it. For science and engineering programmes it is worth having. Check the specific programmes on your list rather than applying one rule to all of them.
Is the enhanced ACT easier?
It is shorter and less rushed, which most students experience as easier. The content difficulty did not drop, so a weak area is still a weak area - you just have more time to work through it.
My tutor's material still has five answer choices in Math. Is it outdated?
Yes, on that point. Math now has four options per question. The underlying maths is unchanged, so the material is still usable for content practice, but the timing and guessing odds are different.
Do universities prefer the SAT over the enhanced ACT?
No. US universities accept both equally and have no preference between them. Choose on fit, not on any imagined admissions advantage.