<p>My son just received his ACT Writing Score, which was a disappointing 31. His other ACT scores and SAT scores are as follows:</p>
<p>ACT Composite 33
ACT English 35
ACT Math 31
ACT Reading 34
ACT Science 33
ACT Combined Writing/English 31</p>
<p>SAT CR 710
SAT M 670
SAT WR 740
SAT II Lit 700
SAT II Math 690</p>
<p>We were thinking of simply sending the ACT with Writing and forgetting about the SAT, since the 33 was a higher score than the prior SAT scores. He is applying to top 20 LACs.</p>
<p>What is your opinion about how the ACT Writing score will be viewed by admissions? Will they focus more on the ACT Composite?</p>
<p>And should he send all scores? Retake tests in the fall?</p>
<p>Thanks for your wise counsel.</p>
<p>31 on the writing is not that bad, and his composite is great. His ACT is definitely better than his SAT, but the SAT is still solid. IMHO, colleges will focus on his composite ACT more than the writing score. His 33 is good enough to get him into top 10 LACs, and certainly top 20. Whether or not to send the SAT is really going to depend on the individual LACs you are considering. All are going to take the ACT, but if one would like to see the SAT (call admissions and inquire) then retake in October and do the ‘score choice’ option if some scores go up, and others don’t. Don’t waste any more time on the ACT – the score is very good. Good luck!</p>
<p>You can check the Common Data Set for each college your son is considering and see Section C (scroll down some) for the college’s official policy toward the ACT writing score.</p>
<p>Also, you can find the percentile for a 31 on the ACT website to give you some comparison to other students. My daughter scored a 32 on combined Writing/English, but that is still in the 99th percentile, thankfully.</p>
<p>Most LACs still do not know how to gauge the essay (combined writing/english) score on the ACT/SAT because it is still relatively new. Plus, colleges know that the test only gave you 25-30 minutes to write below par work without revisions. Taking this into consideration, most LACs gauge a student’s writing based on their essay(s), which show writing abilities and reveal a student’s personality.</p>
<p>Thanks for the wonderful advice, we will follow it. And good luck to you and your son or daughter. This college admissions game is so much more complex than when I applied…I don’t know how our kids can handle all this!</p>
<p>Excellent point about the Common Data Set. I am just learning about that.</p>