The Tennessee Department of Education highlighted the free ACT retake opportunity for public high school seniors in Tennessee to boost their scores on the ACT college entrance exam.  

Tennessee was the first state in the nation to offer public high school seniors the opportunity to take the ACT two times for free during normal school hours. Public school students test once in the spring of their junior year, and then have an opportunity to retake the ACT in the fall of their senior year during normal school hours. In fall 2023, 51,745 students participated in the retake opportunity and 77% of those students increased their superscore, the average of the highest sub scores from each subject of all test attempts.

“The free fall ACT senior retake opportunity helps Tennessee students improve their scores, potentially qualifying them for additional scholarship funds and increasing their chances to pursue postsecondary education,” said Lizzette Reynolds, Commissioner of Education. “We hope to see all seniors participate in the retake to advance their educational aspirations and set themselves up for success in college and career.” 

Districts across the state will be able to offer the free fall ACT retake opportunities during one of the following windows: 

• October 7-11, 2024
• October 15-18, 2024
• October 21-25, 2024
• October 29-November 1, 2024
• November 4-8, 2024

Since 2018, the General Assembly has provided funding for the ACT Senior Retake in every budget, with over 88,000 students having earned the necessary score to qualify for the Tennessee HOPE Scholarship.

In 2022, the department earned the inaugural ACT State Equity and Access Champion Award, which celebrates and honors the state’s commitment to postsecondary access by enabling more students to achieve their goals and dreams.

The ACT provides essential data and context for state and district leaders on student readiness for postsecondary opportunities. Students who score a 21 or higher on the ACT also meet criteria for Ready Graduate, the state’s indicator to reward schools and districts whose high school graduates demonstrate postsecondary readiness.  

To learn more about the state’s college readiness testing program, including the ACT and SAT, visit the department’s College Readiness Testing webpage. For Tennessee Department of Education media inquiries, email edu.mediainquiries@tn.gov.

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