ETS Is Acquiring ACT

On June 30, ETS, the nonprofit behind the GRE and TOEFL, announced it is acquiring ACT, one of the most widely recognized names in college and career readiness testing. The deal combines two of the biggest players in educational assessment into a single organization reaching roughly 35 million people annually.

For counselors, the immediate question is: what does this mean for my students?

It’s not clear yet, but here’s what we know as of now:

• No immediate changes to the ACT. Both organizations have confirmed that ACT will continue operating as its own entity. Students shouldn’t expect changes to the test, scoring, or test dates in the near term.
• The ACT stays for-profit, for now. ETS is a nonprofit but plans to keep ACT’s for-profit status for the time being, with the possibility of changing its legal status down the road.
• The deal comes at a pivotal moment for testing. The acquisition arrives as more colleges, including all Ivy League schools by 2027, are returning to standardized test requirements after the test-optional wave of recent years.
• Longer-term changes are likely. ETS has signaled plans to invest in ACT’s products and expand offerings in K-12, higher education, and workforce development. The details are still being worked out.

For now, the advice to students doesn’t change: take practice versions of both the SAT and ACT to see which plays to their strengths, and research the specific testing policies of the schools on their list.