A 28 ACT Score is Highly Competitive (85th percentile). You are well above the national average (approx. 19.9). This score is the 'Sweet Spot' for most four-year public universities.
Common Data Set (CDS) Fact: According to Section C8 of the CDS, many institutions in this tier rank standardized tests as 'Considered' rather than 'Very Important.' Your GPA will carry more weight, but your 28 provides the necessary validation of your transcript.
Best Colleges for 28 ACT Score
Following is the list of best suited colleges with your 28 ACT Score.
| Logo | College | State | ACT 25th Percentile | ACT 75th Percentile | Acceptance Rate | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Logo | College | State | ACT 25th Percentile | ACT 75th Percentile | Acceptance Rate | Status |
|
Bridgewater College | Virginia | 28 | 29 | 90.81% | SOLID MATCH |
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Virginia Wesleyan University | Virginia | 28 | 29 | 71.29% | SOLID MATCH |
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Muhlenberg College | Pennsylvania | 28 | 31 | 64.01% | SOLID MATCH |
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Lewis & Clark College | Oregon | 28 | 31 | 74.53% | SOLID MATCH |
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Lake Forest College | Illinois | 28 | 31 | 59.41% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Wisconsin-Madison | Wisconsin | 28 | 32 | 43.35% | SOLID MATCH |
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DigiPen Institute of Technology | Washington | 28 | 32 | 68.02% | SOLID MATCH |
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Brigham Young University | Utah | 28 | 32 | 69.19% | SOLID MATCH |
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Clemson University | South Carolina | 28 | 32 | 38.05% | SOLID MATCH |
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Furman University | South Carolina | 28 | 32 | 52.57% | SOLID MATCH |
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Providence College | Rhode Island | 28 | 32 | 48.72% | SOLID MATCH |
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Bryant University | Rhode Island | 28 | 32 | 65.65% | SOLID MATCH |
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Ursinus College | Pennsylvania | 28 | 32 | 87.37% | SOLID MATCH |
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North Carolina State University at Raleigh | North Carolina | 28 | 32 | 39.85% | SOLID MATCH |
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Syracuse University | New York | 28 | 32 | 41.69% | SOLID MATCH |
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St Olaf College | Minnesota | 28 | 32 | 52.15% | SOLID MATCH |
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College of the Holy Cross | Massachusetts | 28 | 32 | 21.1% | COMP. MATCH |
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Chapman University | California | 28 | 32 | 55.61% | SOLID MATCH |
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Rhodes College | Tennessee | 28 | 33 | 49.68% | SOLID MATCH |
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Stony Brook University | New York | 28 | 33 | 49.01% | SOLID MATCH |
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Touro University | New York | 28 | 33 | 63.01% | SOLID MATCH |
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United States Military Academy | New York | 28 | 33 | 13.98% | COMP. MATCH |
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Yeshiva University | New York | 28 | 33 | 63.75% | SOLID MATCH |
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Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences | New York | 28 | 33 | 59.08% | SOLID MATCH |
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Rutgers University-New Brunswick | New Jersey | 28 | 33 | 65.35% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Florida | Florida | 28 | 33 | 24.03% | COMP. MATCH |
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University of Colorado Boulder | Colorado | 28 | 33 | 83.28% | SOLID MATCH |
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Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | Georgia | 28 | 34 | 16.46% | COMP. MATCH |
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Marist University | New York | 27 | 30 | 64.71% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Puget Sound | Washington | 27 | 31 | 76.28% | SOLID MATCH |
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Champlain College | Vermont | 27 | 31 | 66.72% | SOLID MATCH |
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Wofford College | South Carolina | 27 | 31 | 58.59% | SOLID MATCH |
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Saint Joseph's University - Philadelphia | Pennsylvania | 27 | 31 | 86.39% | SOLID MATCH |
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Hofstra University | New York | 27 | 31 | 70.59% | SOLID MATCH |
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Ithaca College | New York | 27 | 31 | 69.94% | SOLID MATCH |
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St. John's College | New Mexico | 27 | 31 | 49.46% | SOLID MATCH |
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Seton Hall University | New Jersey | 27 | 31 | 78.9% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Minnesota-Twin Cities | Minnesota | 27 | 31 | 77.03% | SOLID MATCH |
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Loyola University Chicago | Illinois | 27 | 31 | 81.39% | SOLID MATCH |
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Florida State University | Florida | 27 | 31 | 25.38% | COMP. MATCH |
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University of Florida-Online | Florida | 27 | 31 | 64.38% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Delaware | Delaware | 27 | 31 | 65.11% | SOLID MATCH |
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Lawrence University | Wisconsin | 27 | 32 | 63.03% | SOLID MATCH |
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Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | Virginia | 27 | 32 | 57.03% | SOLID MATCH |
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Baylor University | Texas | 27 | 32 | 50.99% | SOLID MATCH |
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The University of the South | Tennessee | 27 | 32 | 50.9% | SOLID MATCH |
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Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | Pennsylvania | 27 | 32 | 54.22% | SOLID MATCH |
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Gettysburg College | Pennsylvania | 27 | 32 | 47.51% | SOLID MATCH |
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Thomas Jefferson University | Pennsylvania | 27 | 32 | 86.14% | SOLID MATCH |
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Willamette University | Oregon | 27 | 32 | 79.11% | SOLID MATCH |
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The College of Wooster | Ohio | 27 | 32 | 54.32% | SOLID MATCH |
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University at Buffalo | New York | 27 | 32 | 69.3% | SOLID MATCH |
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SUNY at Purchase College | New York | 27 | 32 | 72.83% | SOLID MATCH |
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Loyola University Maryland | Maryland | 27 | 32 | 76.33% | SOLID MATCH |
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Indiana University-Bloomington | Indiana | 27 | 32 | 80.37% | SOLID MATCH |
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Wheaton College | Illinois | 27 | 32 | 89.98% | SOLID MATCH |
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Whitman College | Washington | 27 | 33 | 49.99% | SOLID MATCH |
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The University of Texas at Austin | Texas | 27 | 33 | 29.12% | COMP. MATCH |
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Drexel University | Pennsylvania | 27 | 33 | 77.53% | SOLID MATCH |
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Purdue University-Main Campus | Indiana | 27 | 34 | 50.3% | SOLID MATCH |
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Immaculata University | Pennsylvania | 26 | 28 | 78.45% | SOLID MATCH |
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Salisbury University | Maryland | 26 | 28 | 88.63% | SOLID MATCH |
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Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Berks | Pennsylvania | 26 | 29 | 97.13% | SOLID MATCH |
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Siena College | New York | 26 | 29 | 70.57% | SOLID MATCH |
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Kettering University | Michigan | 26 | 29 | 79.09% | SOLID MATCH |
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Endicott College | Massachusetts | 26 | 29 | 72.29% | SOLID MATCH |
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Salve Regina University | Rhode Island | 26 | 30 | 69.91% | SOLID MATCH |
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Arcadia University | Pennsylvania | 26 | 30 | 79.19% | SOLID MATCH |
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Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Harrisburg | Pennsylvania | 26 | 30 | 96.39% | SOLID MATCH |
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Rowan University | New Jersey | 26 | 30 | 77.82% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Massachusetts-Lowell | Massachusetts | 26 | 30 | 85.24% | SOLID MATCH |
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Goucher College | Maryland | 26 | 30 | 72.9% | SOLID MATCH |
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Maryland Institute College of Art | Maryland | 26 | 30 | 77.29% | SOLID MATCH |
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Marquette University | Wisconsin | 26 | 31 | 87.44% | SOLID MATCH |
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Beloit College | Wisconsin | 26 | 31 | 57.36% | SOLID MATCH |
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Gonzaga University | Washington | 26 | 31 | 75.96% | SOLID MATCH |
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Patrick Henry College | Virginia | 26 | 31 | 81.98% | SOLID MATCH |
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Texas Christian University | Texas | 26 | 31 | 42.6% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Rhode Island | Rhode Island | 26 | 31 | 77.07% | SOLID MATCH |
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Duquesne University | Pennsylvania | 26 | 31 | 78.85% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Dayton | Ohio | 26 | 31 | 61.65% | SOLID MATCH |
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Miami University-Oxford | Ohio | 26 | 31 | 82.09% | SOLID MATCH |
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Clarkson University | New York | 26 | 31 | 77.16% | SOLID MATCH |
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SUNY College at Geneseo | New York | 26 | 31 | 63.53% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of New Hampshire-Main Campus | New Hampshire | 26 | 31 | 86.87% | SOLID MATCH |
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Saint Louis University | Missouri | 26 | 31 | 81.47% | SOLID MATCH |
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Hope College | Michigan | 26 | 31 | 75.85% | SOLID MATCH |
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Michigan State University | Michigan | 26 | 31 | 83.92% | SOLID MATCH |
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Simmons University | Massachusetts | 26 | 31 | 66% | SOLID MATCH |
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Emmanuel College | Massachusetts | 26 | 31 | 80.6% | SOLID MATCH |
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Butler University | Indiana | 26 | 31 | 85.87% | SOLID MATCH |
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DePauw University | Indiana | 26 | 31 | 54.06% | SOLID MATCH |
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DePaul University | Illinois | 26 | 31 | 73.53% | SOLID MATCH |
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Agnes Scott College | Georgia | 26 | 31 | 67.31% | SOLID MATCH |
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Rollins College | Florida | 26 | 31 | 40.56% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of San Francisco | California | 26 | 31 | 50.77% | SOLID MATCH |
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Hendrix College | Arkansas | 26 | 31 | 52.98% | SOLID MATCH |
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Austin College | Texas | 26 | 32 | 46.66% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of South Carolina-Columbia | South Carolina | 26 | 32 | 61.49% | SOLID MATCH |
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Hobart William Smith Colleges | New York | 26 | 32 | 57.28% | SOLID MATCH |
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Pratt Institute-Main | New York | 26 | 32 | 53.17% | SOLID MATCH |
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Gordon College | Massachusetts | 26 | 32 | 58.78% | SOLID MATCH |
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Centre College | Kentucky | 26 | 32 | 54.34% | SOLID MATCH |
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Pepperdine University | California | 26 | 32 | 49.85% | SOLID MATCH |
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United States Air Force Academy | Colorado | 26 | 33 | 13.93% | COMP. MATCH |
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Pennsylvania State University-Penn State New Kensington | Pennsylvania | 25 | 27 | 93.31% | HIGH SAFETY |
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Saint Anselm College | New Hampshire | 25 | 27 | 78.32% | HIGH SAFETY |
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Western New England University | Massachusetts | 25 | 27 | 83.26% | HIGH SAFETY |
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James Madison University | Virginia | 25 | 29 | 76.25% | SOLID MATCH |
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Ohio Northern University | Ohio | 25 | 29 | 73.35% | SOLID MATCH |
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Marymount Manhattan College | New York | 25 | 29 | 78.88% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Central Florida | Florida | 25 | 29 | 39.52% | SOLID MATCH |
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Quinnipiac University | Connecticut | 25 | 29 | 77% | SOLID MATCH |
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George Mason University | Virginia | 25 | 30 | 88.83% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Scranton | Pennsylvania | 25 | 30 | 84.35% | SOLID MATCH |
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University of Portland | Oregon | 25 | 30 | 95.39% | SOLID MATCH |
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John Carroll University | Ohio | 25 | 30 | 81.1% | SOLID MATCH |
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Warren Wilson College | North Carolina | 25 | 30 | 77.62% | SOLID MATCH |
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Long Island University | New York | 25 | 30 | 89.77% | SOLID MATCH |
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Nazareth University | New York | 25 | 30 | 79.5% | SOLID MATCH |
Your best choices will be the schools and colleges where the average ACT score of the admitted students is 26 to 30. We are also showing you the 25th percentile and 75th percentile ACT Score of the admitted students so that you can have a clear understanding of how many students score what ACT Score. If your 28 ACT Score is higher than 25th percentile, it means your score is better than the quarter of the admitted students, and if it is higher than 75th percentile, then it means your ACT score of 28 is higher than 75% of the students admitted at that school.
Choose a college where your score is near to 75th percentile, this will maximize your chances of admission. You can also apply to other schools as well, but to be on safe side, you must apply to at least 2-3 such schools and colleges.
Data Methodology & Expert Verification
The admission statuses (Elite Reach, Competitive Match, etc.) displayed on this page are calculated using a proprietary 7-tier multivariate logic. Unlike static lists, our algorithm cross-references the student's score of 28 against:
- 2024-2025 Common Data Set (CDS): Specifically Section C8 (Standardized Testing) and Section C9 (Percentiles).
- IPEDS Analytics: Latest federal reporting on institutional acceptance rates.
- 2026 Trend Analysis: Adjustments for schools that have recently reinstated mandatory testing (e.g., Brown, Dartmouth, Harvard).
Note: Standardized test scores are one component of a holistic application. For 2026, many institutions place "Very Important" weight on the rigors of your secondary school record and GPA.
FAQ for ACT 28 Score
How does a 28 ACT score compare to the SAT?
A 28 ACT is approximately equivalent to a 1350 SAT. It’s a competitive score for many mid-range schools.
What scholarships are available for a 28 ACT score?
Many schools offer merit scholarships in this range. A good GPA and extracurriculars can increase your eligibility for scholarships.
Can I get into Ivy League schools with a 28 ACT score?
Ivy League schools typically look for higher scores, but a 28 can still make you competitive for many other top schools.
Should I retake the ACT to improve my score?
If your goal is to attend an Ivy League or highly competitive school, retaking may help. Otherwise, your score is still strong for many colleges.
What is the national average ACT score?
The national average ACT score is 20–21, so a 28 is well above average and places you in the top 10% of test-takers.
Do test-optional colleges consider a 28 ACT score if submitted?
Yes, a 28 ACT is a strong submission for test-optional colleges, demonstrating your academic potential.
What GPA is a 28 ACT?
A 28 ACT typically corresponds to a GPA of around 3.2–3.5, suggesting that you have a good academic background.
Can I get into NYU with a 28 ACT?
Yes, NYU typically accepts students with ACT scores in the 30–33 range, but your 28 is still competitive for admission.
Is 28 a good ACT score for Harvard?
Harvard typically admits students with scores of 34 or higher, but a 28 can still be competitive when combined with strong grades and extracurriculars.
Can I get into MIT with a 28 ACT?
MIT prefers scores of 34 and above, so a 28 is slightly lower than their average, but your academic background may still make you a competitive candidate.
Can I get into Princeton with a 28 ACT score?
Princeton generally admits students with scores of 34 or higher, but a 28 is still a solid score for many other competitive schools.
What if you improve your ACT score by 2 points (to 30)?
Improving to a 30 would significantly improve your chances at more selective schools and scholarships.

