Cherry Hill's school district channels students toward the SAT, but some would score higher on the ACT, the student newspaper at Cherry Hill High School East reports.
The finding, first reported by the Eastside on Oct. 13, points to a gap in how the district prepares students for college-admission testing. Cherry Hill offers two chances to take the PSAT (Pre-SAT) and an elective SAT review class. Those resources help families save money on test prep, the paper noted, but they leave the ACT out of the conversation.
The distinction matters. The SAT weighs math at half the total score, making it a better pick for math-strong students. The ACT's three required sections are English, math and reading. Two of those are English-focused, giving verbal-leaning students an edge. The ACT can also be taken on paper, an option the digital-only SAT does not offer.
The Eastside's advice: take one practice SAT and one practice ACT before committing study time to either.
District resources reinforce the SAT-first approach. Cherry Hill runs a summer (P)SAT prep workshop that has operated for more than 20 years, coordinated by Nora Santiago. The program offers small classes averaging 10 students, with 3.5-hour sessions over four-day blocks in August. Cherry Hill East's guidance department also held a College Night for Juniors on Feb. 4 that covered SAT and ACT testing alongside topics like the Common Application and college visits.
The district's guidance handbook lists both the SAT and ACT as college-admission testing options. Students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) or 504 plans may qualify for accommodations on either exam.
District offerings reviewed for this article list SAT prep but no ACT-specific course. The Eastside's full comparison breaks down timing, scoring and format differences for each test.
