Since fall 2026, the PreACT uses a new blueprint: new question counts and section times, shorter passages, 4-choice math, unscored field-test questions, and a composite built from English, Math, and Reading. Science is now optional, and your school or district decides whether to give it.
The PreACT has one job: preview the ACT accurately. ACT redesigned the ACT in 2025. The Enhanced ACT has fewer questions, more time per question, optional Science, and a composite built from English, Math, and Reading, so the PreACT had to follow. The state and district PreACT Secure tests switched in spring 2026, and the school-ordered PreACT switched in fall 2026. This guide covers what changed, why, what stayed the same, and how students and families should adjust. For a section-by-section breakdown of the current test, see the PreACT format guide.
The redesign is more than a scoring tweak. The composite now comes from English, Math, and Reading only, and Science is optional. Your school or district decides whether to give it; it isn't a student-by-student choice. The test form changed too: every section has a new question count and time limit, and some questions are unscored field-test items. Here is the PreACT (grades 9–10) side by side with the format it replaced:
| Section | Previous format (through 2025–26) | Current format (since fall 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| English | 45 questions / 30 min · in composite | 48 questions (36 scored) / 35 min · in composite |
| Math | 36 questions / 40 min · 5 answer choices · in composite | 36 questions (32 scored) / 45 min · 4 answer choices · in composite |
| Reading | 25 questions / 30 min · in composite | 33 questions (25 scored) / 40 min · in composite |
| Science | 30 questions / 30 min · required · in composite | 36 questions (30 scored) / 40 min · optional (school or district decides) · not in composite |
| Total | 136 questions / about 130 min | 117 questions (93 scored) / 120 min without Science · 153 (123 scored) / 160 min with Science |
| Composite | Rounded average of all 4 sections | English, Math, and Reading only |
The PreACT is catching up to its parent test. ACT redesigned the ACT in 2025 as the Enhanced ACT, online from April 2025 and on paper from September 2025. It has fewer questions with more time per question: English 50 questions in 35 minutes, Math 45 in 50, Reading 36 in 40, and optional Science 40 in 40. The ACT composite is built from English, Math, and Reading. We cover that redesign in full in our guide to the Enhanced ACT changes.
Once the real ACT worked that way, a PreACT that still used long passages, 5-choice math, and a mandatory four-section composite would have been previewing a test that no longer exists. The whole value of the PreACT rests on full content alignment with the ACT: the sections mirror the ACT's sections, the score report predicts ACT score ranges, and ACT prep materials double as PreACT prep. Keeping that mirror accurate is the reason for the new blueprint.
On the PreACT, your school or district decides whether Science is given. On the Enhanced ACT, Science is optional too, and there the choice is yours. If your school gives Science on the PreACT, your Science score and STEM score are useful evidence when you later decide whether to add Science to your ACT registration.
The test form changed a lot, but the basics of how the PreACT works carried over.
The scales didn't change. The PreACT (grades 9–10) is scored 1–35, the PreACT 8/9 (grades 8–9) 1–30, PreACT Secure (grade 10) 1–35, and PreACT 9 Secure (grade 9) 1–32. The ACT stays on 1–36, and all PreACT scales are aligned to it. How those scales work is covered in PreACT scoring explained.
The PreACT is still given at school. Schools order the PreACT and PreACT 8/9 and pick their own test day; for 2026–27, the window runs from early September 2026 through late May 2027. The Secure versions are ordered by states and districts and use fixed windows instead (see the timeline below). There are no national test dates, so ask your school counselor about your date. Online results are available as soon as testing is complete; paper answer sheets have to be scored first, so paper results take longer.
The reporting mission didn't change. Reports show predicted ACT score ranges, ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, a STEM score, and a WorkKeys NCRC progress indicator. The PreACT and PreACT 8/9 also include an interest inventory for career exploration. Colleges don't use PreACT scores for admission. Students who test on paper can choose to share their profile information with colleges and scholarship agencies, but that's optional. For most students it's a low-stakes diagnostic and a rehearsal.
| Feature | Since the redesign |
|---|---|
| Score scales (1–35, 1–30, 1–32 for PreACT 9 Secure) | Unchanged |
| School-day administration | Unchanged |
| Predicted ACT ranges, benchmarks, STEM score | Unchanged reporting mission |
| Used in college admissions | Still no |
| Composite calculation | Changed: English, Math, Reading only |
| Science section | Changed: optional, school or district decides |
| Question counts and section times | Changed: see table above |
| English and Reading passages | Changed: shorter |
| Math answer choices | Changed: 4 instead of 5 |
| Field-test questions | New: unscored items in each section |
| Extended time | Changed: exact multiplier, no rounding |
There are four PreACT versions, and they didn't all switch at the same time or in the same way.
| Version | Grades | What changed | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| PreACT | 9–10 | Full new blueprint (counts, times, passages, 4-choice math, field-test items); EMR composite; optional Science | Fall 2026 |
| PreACT Secure | 10 | Same new blueprint as the PreACT | Spring 2026 |
| PreACT 9 Secure | 9 | New blueprint: English 44 (33 scored) / 35 min, Math 34 (30) / 45 min, Reading 33 (25) / 40 min, optional Science 32 (26) / 35 min; EMR composite | Spring 2026 |
| PreACT 8/9 | 8–9 | EMR composite and optional Science. New blueprint not yet released, so it still runs about 130 minutes | Fall 2026 |
Students testing on the PreACT this year take the redesigned test. The Enhanced ACT they'll take as juniors or seniors uses the same shorter passages, 4-choice math, and English/Math/Reading composite, so their PreACT previews the test they'll actually face.
PreACT Secure and PreACT 9 Secure moved to the new blueprint in spring 2026, a semester before the school-ordered PreACT. If your state or district gave a Secure test in spring 2026, that score already uses the English/Math/Reading composite.
Since fall 2026, the PreACT 8/9 composite comes from English, Math, and Reading, and Science is optional at the school or district level. ACT hasn't released the new PreACT 8/9 blueprint yet, so its question counts and timing are still the older layout. Expect another update when ACT publishes it.
If you took the PreACT before fall 2026 (or a Secure test before spring 2026), your composite was the rounded average of four sections, including Science. When you compare an older score with a newer one, or with a predicted ACT range, remember that the two composites summarize different sections from different test forms. Treat those comparisons as approximate.
Because the PreACT keeps full content alignment with the ACT, ACT prep materials still work for PreACT prep. Prep built for the Enhanced ACT is the closest match, since it has the same shorter passages and 4-choice math. English, Math, and Reading are the core of both tests and the sections that move your composite.
That's up to your school or district, so ask your counselor before test day. If Science is given, take it seriously. It gets its own score, feeds the STEM score, and shows you how you handle a section you can add to the Enhanced ACT later. It can't lower your composite. If Science isn't given, your test is 120 minutes and you can put all of your prep into English, Math, and Reading.
The PreACT has no national test dates. The redesign rolled out by version, and your personal test date depends on your school, district, or state.
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| April 2025 | Enhanced ACT launches online (paper from September 2025) |
| Spring 2026 | PreACT Secure and PreACT 9 Secure move to the new blueprint |
| Fall 2026 | PreACT moves to the new blueprint; PreACT 8/9 switches to the EMR composite with optional Science |
| Early Sept 2026 – late May 2027 | PreACT and PreACT 8/9: each school picks its own test day |
| Sept – Oct 2026 | PreACT Secure and PreACT 9 Secure fall window (4 weeks) |
| March – April 2027 | PreACT Secure and PreACT 9 Secure spring window (6 weeks) |
| To be announced | New PreACT 8/9 blueprint |
Schools order the PreACT and PreACT 8/9 and choose their own day between early September 2026 and late May 2027. A school testing in October and a school testing in April give the same redesigned test. States and districts schedule PreACT Secure and PreACT 9 Secure inside the fixed fall and spring windows. Online results are available as soon as testing is complete; paper results take longer because the answer sheets are scored first.
Your counselor knows the specifics for your school. Three questions cover most of what you need. When is our PreACT date? There is no national calendar to check instead. Which version are we giving? It could be the PreACT 8/9 (grades 8–9), the PreACT (grades 9–10), or, in state or district testing, PreACT 9 Secure (grade 9) or PreACT Secure (grade 10). Are we giving the Science section? That's a school or district decision, so confirm it rather than assume.
The main reporting change is the composite: since the redesign, the composite on your report reflects English, Math, and Reading only. If your school or district gives Science, you get a separate Science score, and it feeds your STEM score.
All four versions report predicted ACT subject and Composite score ranges, ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, a STEM score, and a WorkKeys NCRC progress indicator. The PreACT 8/9 and PreACT 9 Secure also show predicted PreACT score ranges. The interest inventory and student profile are part of the PreACT and PreACT 8/9 only, not the Secure versions.
For a component-by-component walkthrough of the report, see PreACT scoring explained.