Table 226.60. | Average ACT scores and percentage of graduates taking the ACT, by state: 2012 and 2016 |
State | 2012 | 2016 | Percent taking ACT1 | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Subject-area scores | Subject-area scores | |||||||||||
Composite score | English score | Mathematics score | Reading score | Science score | Composite score | English score | Mathematics score | Reading score | Science score | 2012 | 2016 | |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
United States | 21.1 | 20.5 | 21.1 | 21.3 | 20.9 | 20.8 | 20.1 | 20.6 | 21.3 | 20.8 | 48 | 59 |
Alabama | 20.3 | 20.3 | 19.6 | 20.7 | 20.1 | 19.1 | 18.7 | 18.3 | 19.7 | 19.1 | 86 | 100 |
Alaska | 21.2 | 20.3 | 21.3 | 21.8 | 20.8 | 20.0 | 18.9 | 20.0 | 20.6 | 19.8 | 35 | 53 |
Arizona | 19.7 | 18.6 | 20.3 | 19.7 | 19.5 | 20.1 | 19.1 | 20.2 | 20.5 | 20.0 | 35 | 58 |
Arkansas | 20.3 | 20.0 | 20.0 | 20.6 | 20.1 | 20.2 | 19.8 | 19.6 | 20.7 | 20.2 | 88 | 96 |
California | 22.1 | 21.6 | 22.8 | 22.1 | 21.5 | 22.6 | 22.1 | 22.7 | 22.9 | 22.1 | 25 | 33 |
Colorado | 20.6 | 19.9 | 20.5 | 20.7 | 20.8 | 20.6 | 20.0 | 20.3 | 20.9 | 20.9 | 100 | 100 |
Connecticut | 23.8 | 23.9 | 23.8 | 23.9 | 23.2 | 24.5 | 24.4 | 24.1 | 25.0 | 24.1 | 27 | 34 |
Delaware | 22.6 | 22.3 | 22.4 | 23.0 | 22.1 | 23.6 | 23.3 | 23.2 | 24.3 | 23.2 | 14 | 21 |
District of Columbia | 19.7 | 19.0 | 20.0 | 20.0 | 19.2 | 22.2 | 21.8 | 21.8 | 22.8 | 21.7 | 32 | 44 |
Florida | 19.8 | 18.9 | 20.0 | 20.5 | 19.3 | 19.9 | 18.9 | 19.5 | 21.1 | 19.5 | 70 | 81 |
Georgia | 20.7 | 20.1 | 20.6 | 21.0 | 20.5 | 21.1 | 20.7 | 20.6 | 21.8 | 21.0 | 52 | 60 |
Hawaii | 21.3 | 20.5 | 21.9 | 21.2 | 21.1 | 18.7 | 17.6 | 19.1 | 19.0 | 18.6 | 27 | 94 |
Idaho | 21.6 | 21.0 | 21.3 | 22.1 | 21.4 | 22.7 | 22.3 | 22.1 | 23.5 | 22.4 | 67 | 39 |
Illinois | 20.9 | 20.5 | 21.0 | 20.7 | 20.8 | 20.8 | 20.5 | 20.6 | 21.0 | 20.6 | 100 | 100 |
Indiana | 22.3 | 21.7 | 22.5 | 22.6 | 21.9 | 22.3 | 21.6 | 22.1 | 22.9 | 22.0 | 32 | 41 |
Iowa | 22.1 | 21.6 | 21.7 | 22.5 | 22.2 | 22.1 | 21.4 | 21.4 | 22.7 | 22.3 | 63 | 68 |
Kansas | 21.9 | 21.3 | 21.8 | 22.3 | 21.7 | 21.9 | 21.3 | 21.5 | 22.5 | 21.8 | 81 | 74 |
Kentucky | 19.8 | 19.5 | 19.4 | 20.2 | 19.8 | 20.0 | 19.7 | 19.3 | 20.6 | 19.9 | 100 | 100 |
Louisiana | 20.3 | 20.4 | 19.9 | 20.4 | 20.1 | 19.5 | 19.3 | 18.8 | 19.9 | 19.6 | 100 | 100 |
Maine | 23.4 | 23.5 | 23.3 | 23.7 | 22.7 | 23.6 | 23.3 | 23.8 | 23.9 | 23.1 | 9 | 10 |
Maryland | 22.1 | 21.6 | 22.2 | 22.3 | 21.7 | 23.0 | 22.6 | 22.7 | 23.6 | 22.8 | 21 | 27 |
Massachusetts | 24.1 | 23.9 | 24.5 | 24.2 | 23.2 | 24.8 | 24.4 | 24.9 | 25.3 | 24.1 | 23 | 28 |
Michigan | 20.1 | 19.3 | 20.1 | 20.0 | 20.4 | 20.3 | 19.9 | 19.9 | 20.7 | 20.5 | 100 | 100 |
Minnesota | 22.8 | 22.1 | 23.0 | 22.9 | 22.7 | 21.1 | 20.0 | 21.2 | 21.3 | 21.3 | 74 | 100 |
Mississippi | 18.7 | 18.6 | 18.3 | 18.9 | 18.7 | 18.4 | 17.9 | 18.0 | 18.7 | 18.5 | 100 | 100 |
Missouri | 21.6 | 21.4 | 21.1 | 21.9 | 21.5 | 20.2 | 19.7 | 19.8 | 20.6 | 20.4 | 75 | 100 |
Montana | 22.0 | 21.1 | 21.9 | 22.6 | 22.0 | 20.3 | 19.0 | 20.2 | 20.8 | 20.5 | 61 | 100 |
Nebraska | 22.0 | 21.8 | 21.7 | 22.3 | 21.9 | 21.4 | 20.9 | 20.8 | 21.8 | 21.5 | 78 | 88 |
Nevada | 21.3 | 20.5 | 21.4 | 21.6 | 21.1 | 17.7 | 16.2 | 18.0 | 18.1 | 18.1 | 34 | 100 |
New Hampshire | 23.8 | 23.6 | 23.7 | 24.2 | 23.3 | 24.5 | 24.0 | 24.4 | 25.1 | 24.1 | 19 | 23 |
New Jersey | 23.4 | 23.1 | 23.9 | 23.4 | 22.6 | 23.1 | 22.7 | 23.3 | 23.5 | 22.5 | 20 | 32 |
New Mexico | 19.9 | 19.0 | 19.6 | 20.3 | 20.0 | 19.9 | 18.9 | 19.5 | 20.5 | 20.1 | 75 | 70 |
New York | 23.3 | 22.7 | 23.7 | 23.4 | 23.1 | 23.9 | 23.2 | 23.9 | 24.4 | 23.7 | 29 | 29 |
North Carolina | 21.9 | 21.0 | 22.3 | 22.2 | 21.4 | 19.1 | 17.8 | 19.4 | 19.5 | 19.2 | 20 | 100 |
North Dakota | 20.7 | 19.6 | 21.0 | 20.7 | 20.9 | 20.3 | 19.1 | 20.3 | 20.7 | 20.7 | 100 | 100 |
Ohio | 21.8 | 21.1 | 21.5 | 22.1 | 21.8 | 22.0 | 21.2 | 21.6 | 22.5 | 22.0 | 71 | 73 |
Oklahoma | 20.7 | 20.4 | 20.1 | 21.3 | 20.6 | 20.4 | 19.8 | 19.5 | 21.3 | 20.5 | 80 | 82 |
Oregon | 21.4 | 20.6 | 21.6 | 21.8 | 21.3 | 21.7 | 21.0 | 21.4 | 22.3 | 21.6 | 38 | 39 |
Pennsylvania | 22.4 | 22.0 | 22.7 | 22.7 | 21.9 | 23.1 | 22.6 | 23.0 | 23.6 | 22.8 | 18 | 23 |
Rhode Island | 22.9 | 22.9 | 22.7 | 23.5 | 22.3 | 23.3 | 23.1 | 22.9 | 24.0 | 22.8 | 13 | 20 |
South Carolina | 20.2 | 19.5 | 20.2 | 20.4 | 20.1 | 18.5 | 17.3 | 18.5 | 19.0 | 18.6 | 57 | 100 |
South Dakota | 21.8 | 21.0 | 21.8 | 22.1 | 22.0 | 21.9 | 20.9 | 21.7 | 22.4 | 22.2 | 81 | 76 |
Tennessee | 19.7 | 19.6 | 19.1 | 19.9 | 19.6 | 19.9 | 19.6 | 19.2 | 20.3 | 19.9 | 100 | 100 |
Texas | 20.8 | 19.6 | 21.4 | 20.8 | 20.8 | 20.6 | 19.4 | 20.7 | 21.0 | 20.7 | 39 | 46 |
Utah | 20.7 | 20.0 | 20.3 | 21.3 | 20.8 | 20.2 | 19.5 | 19.7 | 20.9 | 20.3 | 97 | 100 |
Vermont | 23.0 | 22.6 | 22.9 | 23.3 | 22.6 | 23.4 | 22.9 | 22.9 | 24.1 | 23.2 | 28 | 29 |
Virginia | 22.4 | 22.1 | 22.3 | 22.7 | 21.9 | 23.3 | 22.9 | 22.9 | 24.0 | 23.1 | 25 | 31 |
Washington | 22.9 | 22.3 | 23.1 | 23.3 | 22.4 | 23.1 | 22.3 | 23.2 | 23.6 | 22.9 | 21 | 25 |
West Virginia | 20.6 | 20.6 | 19.6 | 21.3 | 20.5 | 20.7 | 20.5 | 19.6 | 21.5 | 20.7 | 68 | 67 |
Wisconsin | 22.1 | 21.5 | 22.0 | 22.1 | 22.1 | 20.5 | 19.7 | 20.4 | 20.7 | 20.7 | 71 | 100 |
Wyoming | 20.3 | 19.2 | 20.2 | 20.5 | 20.6 | 20.0 | 19.2 | 19.6 | 20.4 | 20.4 | 100 | 100 |
1 Members of the graduating class who had taken the ACT test as a percentage of the total number of high school graduates. For example, the 2016 column shows test-taking members of the class of 2016 as a percentage of all 2015-16 high school graduates. State percentages were calculated by ACT based on the number of high school graduates in each state as projected by the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE). Total percentages for the United States were calculated by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) based on the total number of U.S. high school graduates as reported by NCES (for 2016, the number of public and private graduates is projected; for 2012, only the number of private school graduates is projected). | ||||||||||||
NOTE: The minimum score on the ACT is 1 and maximum score is 36. Data are for high school graduates who took the ACT test during their sophomore, junior, or senior year. If a student took the ACT test more than once, the composite and subject-area scores from the most recent test were used. | ||||||||||||
SOURCE: ACT, The Condition of College and Career Readiness 2016 state reports, 2016. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), "State Dropout and Completion Data File," 2011-12; Private School Universe Survey (PSS), 2013; and National High School Graduates Projection Model, 1972-73 through 2026-27. (This table was prepared May 2017.) |