As part of ACT's Holistic Framework, ACT researchers developed a Behavioral Skills Framework that can be used to assess behavior in education and work settings. By utilizing specific statements of effective behaviors, known as performance level descriptors (PLDs) (e.g., communicating well in group tasks), the Behavioral Skills Framework is…

Building upon the research findings in an earlier ACT Research Report (Westrick, 2016), this study used data from 119,131 students at 26 four-year institutions to make comparisons between STEM majors earning semester GPAs of 3.0 or higher and their STEM peers earning semester GPAs less than 3.0. The results indicate that the higher-performing…

ACT reporting categories and ACT Readiness Ranges are new features added to the ACT score reports starting in fall 2016. For each reporting category, the number correct score, the maximum points possible, the percent correct, and the ACT Readiness Range, along with an indicator of whether the reporting category score falls within the Readiness…

Using date from 120,612 students at 26 four-year institutions, this report provides a description of STEM majors entering four-year postsecondary institutions and those who persist through four years of study. The results indicate that persisting STEM majors enter college with very high levels of pre-college academic achievement as measured by the…

It is no secret that global markets and innovations in technology are driving rapid change in the U.S. economy. While much has been said over the years about the employment shift from goods-producing to service-providing industries, new research suggests that the shift is not due to sectoral employment change but rather a shift in the mix of jobs…