Over the past 10 years, the number of high school graduates taking the ACT® college readiness assessment has increased by 56%, from 1.18 million students in 2005 to 1.84 million students in 2014 (see Figure 1). One-third of this growth is due to the adoption of the ACT as a statewide assessment program in nine states (i.e., Hawaii, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Tennessee, and Wyoming).* The other two-thirds of this growth is due to increases in the number of ACT-tested students within 37 other states and the District of Columbia, with the largest increases found in Florida, California, and Texas.

Ten-year growth in the number of ACT-tested students has far outpaced growth in the number of high school graduates in the country. In 2005, roughly two out of five high school graduates (40%) took the ACT. By 2014, roughly three of five high school graduates (57%) took the ACT (see Figure 1). An increase in the share of students taking the ACT is also evident in 47 states and the District of Columbia. Despite this growth, there are still considerable differences in ACT participation rates by state (see Figure 2). In particular, states in the Northeast and West tend to have lower ACT participation rates than states in the Midwest and South.