The average score on the ACT fell for the class of 2023 as educators continue to grapple with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The average composite score fell to 19.5 for the class of 2023, a drop of 0.3 from 2022, according to ACT, the nonprofit organization that administers the college readiness exam. Also, the average scores in math, reading and science were all well below the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks for those subjects. The benchmarks are the minimum ACT scores required for students to have a high probability of success during first-year college courses.

“This is the sixth consecutive year of declines in average scores, with average scores declining in every academic subject,” ACT CEO Janet Godwin said. “We are also continuing to see a rise in the number of seniors leaving high school without meeting any of the college readiness benchmarks, even as student GPAs continue to rise and students report that they feel prepared to be successful in college.

“The hard truth is that we are not doing enough to ensure that graduates are truly ready for postsecondary success in college and career,” she added.

The graduating class of 2023 was in their first year of high school when COVID-19 shuttered classrooms and forced many students to online learning. The data showed the percentage of 2023 seniors meeting none of the college-readiness benchmarks – goals for English, math, reading and science – reached historic highs with 43% failing to achieve any of the goals.

The percentage of students meeting all four benchmarks dropped 1.3 percentage points to 20.8% while the percentage of those meeting none of the benchmarks grew by 2 percentage points.

Roughly 1.4 million high school seniors took the ACT test, an increase over the 2022 graduating class.

Average ACT scores in the U.S. for class of 2023

• Average composite score – 19.5
• English – 18.6
• Math – 19
• Reading – 20.1
• Science – 19.6

Average ACT scores in Alabama for class of 2023

• Average composite score – 18
• English – 17.4
• Math – 17.3
• Reading – 18.5
• Science – 18.2

Percent of Alabama students taking ACT meeting benchmarks:

• Meeting English benchmark of 18 – 42%
• Meeting reading benchmark of 22- 30%
• Meeting math benchmark of 22 – 18%
• Meeting science benchmark of 23 – 21%

Among the eight states where an estimated 100% of graduates take the ACT – Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Wyoming – composite scores from highest to lowest were:

1. Wyoming – 19

2. Kentucky – 18.7

3. Tennessee – 18.4

4. Louisiana – 18.2

5. Alabama – 18

6. Oklahoma – 17.8

7. Mississippi – 17.6

8. Nevada – 17.2