Of the North Dakota high school graduates who took the American College Testing (ACT) examination, the average composite ACT score in 2008 was 21.6 out of a possible 36. This score is unchanged from 2007. Nationally, the composite score for ACT-tested 2008 graduates was 21.1, which is a score down slightly from 21.2 in 2007.

This month’s “Population Bulletin,” a monthly publication from the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University, focuses on ACT scores released by ACT Inc. The scores are designed to predict a student’s potential for success in college. According to ACT, 81 percent of 2008 North Dakota graduating seniors took the ACT assessment during their sophomore, junior or senior year. If a student was tested more than once, only the most recent test record was used.

The ACT program has developed benchmarks to measure what it takes to be successful in standard first-year college courses in the areas of English, math, reading and science. A benchmark score is the minimum score needed on an ACT subject-area test to indicate a 50 percent chance of obtaining a grade of B or higher or about a 75 percent chance of obtaining a C or higher in the corresponding credit-bearing college courses that include English composition, algebra, social science and biology.

According to these benchmarks, 72 percent of ACT-tested 2008 North Dakota high school graduates were ready for college English, 48 percent were ready for math, 57 percent were ready for reading and 31 percent were ready for science.

The proportion of North Dakota students who met all four benchmarks was 24 percent, which is less than one in four. This proportion has remained relatively unchanged during the past several years.

“These are troubling statistics, especially in the competitive global market in which our youth find themselves,” says Richard Rathge, State Data Center director. “We need to find ways to assist our youth in academically preparing themselves for college, especially given the fact that nearly 70 percent of high school graduates in the state attend college, among the highest in the nation.”

North Dakota students who added an additional year of math (such as trigonometry or calculus) to their core requirement of algebra I, algebra II and geometry increased their likelihood of college readiness from 28 percent to 68 percent.

Similarly, in the sciences, North Dakota students who added physics to their general core of general, physical and earth sciences, plus biology and chemistry, increased their likelihood of college readiness from 26 percent to 50 percent.

Analysis of North Dakota ACT scores reveals a disparity in college readiness by gender, race and county. Of the ACT-tested 2008 North Dakota male high school graduates, 26 percent met all four subject-area benchmarks, compared with 22 percent of female students.

An even greater disparity exists among racial groups. One-fourth of white students met all four benchmarks, compared with 45 percent of Asians, 11 percent of Hispanic and 3 percent American Indians. The number of black students reporting ACT scores in North Dakota was too small to provide reliable college readiness results. In terms of geography, 12 counties had at least one in four ACT-tested graduates meeting all four benchmarks. Five counties had fewer than one in 10.

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