<p>I remember seeing a thread somewhere about the importance placed on the writing section compared to math and reading. It had a really long list of schools separated into the categories from "equal weight to “no weight”. It was probably over in the SAT/ACT forum, although I’m not sure. I’ll look around and see if I find it.</p>
<p>(Edit) I mean to say that if your college of choice places less or no weight on the writing section as a whole, then it probably won’t affect you. Besides, an 8 out of 12 isn’t bad. It means (probably) that the two scorers each gave you a 4, and if you look at the essay scoring guide on collegeboard.com, it says “An essay in this category demonstrates adequate mastery, although it will have lapses in quality.” ([How</a> the Essay is Scored](<a href=“College Board - SAT, AP, College Search and Admission Tools”>What Do My Scores Mean? – SAT Suite | College Board))</p>
<p>I’m in about the same boat as you although I got only a 720 on writing with the 8 on the essay.</p>