We will include the textbook, meals and other snacks with your registration. All that you need to bring are your own personal note-taking supplies and a calculator. Course materials include the Kaplan ACT Prep Plus book and ACT Official Guide.

• Personal note taking supplies: You will need to bring your own pencil and paper for taking notes.
• Calculator: You will need your own calculator for the math section.  We recommend bringing the calculator you will use on the test to the class. The ACT is very specific about the type of calculator you can use. Please see the ACT calculator policy to verify that your calculator is allowed. 
• Personal Water Bottle
• Backpack: Please bring your own backpack, as the two textbooks are large.

Meals and snacks will be included with the program. Four meals will be provided for the weekend schedules and three meals will be provided during the 3-day schedules. We strive to accommodate special dietary restrictions, but we cannot guarantee all restrictions can be accommodated. Please contact 801‑422‑3550 or testprep@byu.edu with any questions or concerns about meals.

BYU students commit to an Honor Code that requires them to wear clothing that is neat, clean, and modest in fabric, fit, style and length. Those attending or participating in BYU Continuing Education programs are also asked to wear modest clothing. However, the facial hair restrictions required of BYU students do not apply to program attendees. We also ask that our program attendees keep their language free of obscenities and other vulgarity while participating in BYU-sponsored programs. Use of alcohol, tobacco, coffee, or tea is prohibited. See University Policies for more information.

If you wish to withdraw, you MUST do so one week before the class begins. A $50 withdrawal fee will be charged for all withdrawals. Any withdrawals made within seven days before the program will not be eligible for a refund.

If you would like to transfer to a different session, please call BYU Test Prep at 801-422-3550. There will be no fee for transferring to a different section of the course you enrolled in.

1. BYU Test Preparation Course pricing does NOT include the cost of the official ACT test. If you have not registered for the official test via actstudent.org, you may go to that website to register for any upcoming tests. Late fees or standby options may be required if you do not register soon enough. Go to act.org for details.
2. Photo Release: The agreement that is part of the registration for BYU ACT Prep reads as follows, "By registering in this program, I agree that my youth's image may be used, with discretion, by Brigham Young University, or its assignees, for promotional purposes in print, web and video productions. I understand and agree that I have no expectation of compensation for this use."
3. Learning Accommodations: BYU Continuing Education is committed to providing a learning atmosphere that reasonably accommodates persons with disabilities who are otherwise qualified to attend. Prior to registration, all applicants with disabilities need to fill out the Accommodations Request Form and email it to testprep@byu.edu. If you have further questions, you may discuss the program requirements and available facilities with the program administrator Heather Patterson at heather.patterson@byu.edu or 801-422‑3550. Go to act.org to get more information on accommodations on the actual ACT.

Every high school has different courses and factors that affect GPA. Colleges can’t gather specific information on what an A means at one high school compared to an A at another school. Standardized tests allow them to evaluate all students by the same standard, so they can select students the admission committee feel would succeed at their school. The ACT is not an intelligence test or a test on high school content; instead, it is a problem-solving test. Many of the skills valued by colleges are tested such as reading and understanding conflicting viewpoints and complex texts, math problems, and scientific studies. There is research that supports that those do that well on standardized tests also do well in college, so colleges frequently require standardized test scores for those applying for admission. There are also problems with standardized tests and a test score doesn’t measure many important qualities, so most schools balance GPA and test scores with essays and other open-response formats in order to get a more wholistic view of potential students.

Taking the practice test will give you a baseline for where you are and help you set a realistic goal for your target score. In order for your score to reflect how you would do on the ACT, you need to take the practice test under testing conditions. This means you should have someone time you (or time yourself) and take the entire test in the amount of time allotted for each section without music or other distractions (put your phone away). You should only take a short break between the two middle sections. Taking a full-length practice test with the official time constraints will help improve your testing stamina. Once you have your baseline score, you can set goals for improvement in each area.

Taking a practice test before starting the course also gives you an overview to the test as a whole and the content of each section. You will be better prepared for the online class because you have familiarity with the types of questions you will be asked. You will also know areas that you want to improve in and will be more engaged with the content and teaching during class. In all of our in-person courses, the first thing we do is take a practice test. We recommend taking a practice test before your first class period for the online course.

Have both books nearby during class. In class, we will primarily use the Kaplan book for practice sets and homework. Some students write their answers to problems and passages on a sheet of paper so that they can go back through the passage again later. We won’t get to all of the practice sets in the Kaplan book, so you can go through any additional sets on your own. The Kaplan book also has one full-length test in the book and gives you access to four online tests that you can take on your own for additional practice. The Kaplan book also has chapters on each part of the test with additional tips and tricks to improve your score. It’s a good idea to read each chapter as you work to improve your score.

We don’t use the Official ACT Guide as much in class so you can use the full-length tests to use for practice tests. If you plan to attend one of our in-person ACT courses, then save tests 1 & 4 in the Official ACT Guide for that session.

If you want to improve in a sport, you can’t just watch others play the sport but need to actually practice the required skills over and over so you can perform them under pressure at the right time. To improve on the ACT, you need to practice on your own under test-like conditions such as limited time.

Remember that the skills you are developing during your ACT practice will also be skills that will help you succeed in college. In college, you will be required to read and understand complex texts, interpret charts and graphs, compose essays using appropriate rhetorical strategies, solve math problems in a variety of settings, and answer questions on tests in all of these areas. So the same skills that will help you improve your ACT score will also help prepare you to succeed in your college courses.

Research has shown that it can take many hours of practice to improve your ACT score. If you want to improve 2–4 points it may take 40 hours of study and for 4–6 points 80 hours. For example, if you want to improve your score 4 points during the eight weeks that you are enrolled in the course, you need to work with the instructor in class for 2 hours and study on your own for an additional 3 hours each week. Some students may see improvement faster or slower than others. Start early and practice often for best results.

The BYU ACT Prep course is designed to give you hands-on practice during class with your instructors and guided, individual practice on your own with assigned homework after each course. For best results, you should continue to practice on your own during and after the course. After you have done all of the practice sets in the Kaplan book (either in class or on your own) and in chapters 5–9 of the Official ACT Prep Pack, you should start to practice on full-length tests. In the Kaplan book you have one practice test in the book and access to four online tests. In the Official ACT Prep Pack, we are saving tests 1 and 4 for our in-person courses (if you don’t plan to take an in-person, use these as practice tests as well). 

To start with, you can break up some of the practice tests, just do a section or two a day as you are working to improve your score. For example, you might take an English and Reading Comprehension test one day and a Math and Science test the next. You should also plan on taking several full-length, timed practice tests as part of your preparation, so you can practice the timing and build up your testing stamina to get ready for the real test. After taking a practice test, you can score it with the book to see how you did. Try to figure out why you missed the problems you did and write 2–3 sentences about each missed problem, so you'll know how to answer a similar problem in the future. All of your practice should be done in a distraction-free environment, so you should put away your phone, turn off YouTube and video games, and practice focusing your attention on the test and building your testing stamina.