The ACT's decision to exclude Science from the Composite score has reshaped the strategic calculus for students choosing between the ACT and SAT, and Mr. Test Prep, an online test prep service founded by Michael Romano, is urging families to revisit a decision that may have been made under the old rules. Starting September 2025, the ACT Composite is calculated solely from English, math, and reading, while Science remains a separate section that no longer contributes to the overall score. This shift, first available for national online testing in April 2025 and for the paper test in September 2025, alters which students the ACT favors and reopens a comparison that many families had considered settled.
The implications are significant for students whose relative weakness was in Science. Previously, that weakness dragged down the Composite; now it does not. Conversely, students who relied on Science to boost their Composite have lost that advantage, a nuance that Romano says receives far less attention. Pacing is another critical variable: the English section demands 50 questions in 35 minutes, while Reading requires 36 questions in 40 minutes. For accurate but deliberate students, these time pressures can produce dramatically different results, and none of this appears on a transcript.
Romano's position is that guessing at the answer costs families more than measuring it, which is why his recommendation sits inside a free two-hour trial session rather than behind a paid program. The session includes a diagnostic test and a direct SAT vs. ACT recommendation, held online for students in Palo Alto, the Bay Area, and beyond. Afterward, Romano conducts a Zoom call with the parent and student to review diagnostic results, discuss which tests to take and when, set prep frequency and target scores, and then emails a written proposal. Families can book by phone at +1 (650) 575-5867 or through the Mr. Test Prep website.
The preparation itself, known as the Mr. Test Prep Method™, covers content, question logic, and pacing across two-hour Zoom sessions. A-Game Access™ addresses performance under time pressure through four components: A-Game, The Nine, the A-Game Cue, and Smile Into the Action. The system does not promise perfect performances, eliminate nervousness, or guarantee outcomes. Romano graduated from Duke University in 1991 with a major in Psychology, has worked with students since 1997, and has taught more than 4,000 SAT, ACT, and PSAT students. His broader approach aims to increase self-confidence, a strategy he describes as elevating more than a score. For families weighing the SAT against the ACT, the changed Composite means the old math no longer applies, and a fresh diagnostic may be the most reliable way to determine which test plays to a student's strengths.
