Do SAT/ACT essays count for anything?

Test Preparation
1

<p>I've gotten 8/12 on the essay portion of both tests because I'm terrible at writing under a time constraint. I know I'm not a bad writer because I do well on papers for school, and my teachers are harsh graders. Do colleges really look at essay scores? Will they be suspicious when my application essays sound much better than the test essays?</p>

<p>Thanks for helping me out!</p>

2

<p>I have the same question, I also got an 8/12 on the writing portion of the ACT, but my English subscore was a 36.</p>