Is the writing section on the new SAT as important as everything else now? I know it’s combined with the reading score but I wasn’t sure if the subscores(out of 40) would still be shown separately. My writing score was by far my lowest score, with more points off on the writing subscores than math and CR combined. So is writing still not as important as math/CR or is it now considered just as important? When I convert my new SAT(760 M 700 CR/W) to old, it said my score is equal to a 700 CR, 740 M, and 600 W. Not sure how to judge my scores.
I’m pretty sure all schools will consider writing, but only the most elite schools will consider the essay. Where are you planning to apply?
@nw2this No school I’m considering right requires the essay at all. Will colleges now consider writing equal to CR and math though? I know before most colleges looked at writing but didn’t give it as much weight, and there were some colleges that only cared about CR+M. I am retaking in June though so I hope it improve regardless but its such a harsh curve I don’t think I can do much better.
Good question, we will have to wait until colleges update their admission criteria to know for sure, but I’m guessing they will consider it since the essay is not part of it anymore and it is completely objective.
@nw2this Will there be any more information by colleges and CB released later on how to interpret these scores? Looking at automatic scholarships based on stats is a bit fishy with the new SAT until they get updated for the new SAT. Also the concordance is based on percentiles from a sample rather than the actual group so I’m not sure if my score is good enough for some of the schools I’m looking at considering lots of people seem to be getting higher scores now. People at my school usually get around 1600-1700s at my schools but now it’s up to 1200-1300s which translates to a higher score.
Here is an example:
http://scholarships.ua.edu/types/out-of-state.html
In the past UA considered only CR+M for their automatic scholarships and they haven’t updated their page with cut-offs for the new SAT yet but at the bottom of the page, it says they won’t consider the optional writing portion of the new SAT, but it doesn’t say they won’t consider required writing portion meaning they probably will consider it.
Most colleges (and nearly all of the best colleges) do require the essay, so it’s wise to take the SAT with essay at least once, but for those of you who really struggle with it, it’s important to note that the new SAT is now essay-optional, and that many other schools will accept your SAT scores without the essay (same goes for the ACT).
I would say that the keys to scoring well on the new SAT essay are understanding what’s expected in the new format, writing at least 2-3 official practice essays beforehand, and making full use of the 50 minutes allotted. Oh, and don’t forget to read the sample perfect-score essays in the Official SAT Study Guide, 2016 Edition (pages 214-200). They are listed in the book as “4/4/4” essays, but they are in fact perfect-score essays of 8/8/8, because each essay is read by two readers, and thus is effectively scored from 2-8 in each area.
The scoring system is a bit esoteric. Two graders from 1-4 in 3 areas (Reading, Analysis, Writing) means that the composite (all scores added together) essay score ranges from a low of 6 to a high of 24.
We don’t have any percentiles at the moment, but think of the sub-scores this way:
2 = Bad
3 = Poor
4 = Below Average
5 = Average
6 = Above Average
7 = Very Good
8 = Excellent
I think there is some confusion in terminology. The grammar section is the “writing and language” section. The essay section is the “Essay” section. The original poster doesn’t seem to be asking about the Essay at all. She is asking about the Writing and Language section which is combined with the Reading section to give you your score on the English portion of the SAT.
I agree with @cvalle that the OP is not asking about the written essay, but the writing subscore which is like the ACT English score. For that question, I don’t think there are any clear answers at this point. Unfortunately for the class of 2017, July and August are probably going to be the earliest those answers start to appear.
This quote by @ivysource
is inaccurate (as well as completely subjective in terms of what best is.). The list of colleges requiring the essay is small compared to the list that does not require nor recommend. The Ivys, several CA and FL public schools, and several others are requiring it, but most are not. https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sat/register/college-essay-policies
MIT, BU, JHU, UNC, for example, are neither requiring nor recommending. (There is also the recommend category…I would contact those schools directly and ask.)
Students should research the schools they are interested in and make the determination based on fact.
Just noticed that UPenn and Brown are neither requiring nor recommending, so no blanket statements for that category, either.
I’m not sure whether everyone on this forum knows the meaning of the terms “most,” “nearly all” and “many.” None of these is a blanket statement.
And yes, there are plenty of other schools that don’t require the SAT essay, as I have already written. Here is a full list from the College Board: https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/digitalServices/pdf/professionals/sat-score-use-practices-participating-institutions.pdf
Not all colleges are on there, but it will give you an idea.
@ivysource Most is defined as greatest in amt. If you look at CB’s website, “required” is not the most frequent response. And more schools are switching to not requiring or recommending. For example, right now their website states that FSU requires it, but FSU has recently changed its stance to neither requiring nor recommending. Your post stating “most require” is an overstatement of fact.
Fwiw, the reference to the blanket statement referred to my own post where aI had stated Ivys required the essay bc upon actually looking through CB’s list, I realized that they didn’t and that I had misrepresented the facts.
My concern as a college consultant is this: if I’m working on an admissions committee at a top college --even a school that doesn’t require the essay – and someone doesn’t submit an SAT or ACT essay, then I’m often going to assume that the applicant is a poor writer and don’t want me to know. This worries me because writing ability is a key component of college success.
Is this a fair assumption? Of course not. But that’s just the way it is.
Yes, I can read the student’s college admission essays, but those are likely edited by a team of relatives, teachers and perhaps even experts. How am I supposed to know the student’s true capabilities as a writer without the aid of a timed, proctored essay?
It reminds me of colleges who don’t require SAT scores. “Are you really trying to be progressive,” I wonder, “or is this just a sneaky way of raising your school’s average SAT scores by eliminating the bottom 25% of scorers?”
Skepticism rules the day when it comes to admissions, so let’s not be so quick to take colleges at their word. They might neither require nor recommend the essay, but in many cases they will still consider the essay score when it’s presented to them. When comparing two similar applicants, if the colleges use the (not required!) essay score as a tiebreaker, then the better writer might win.
@Mom2aphysicsgeek Allow me to define my terms: when I say “most” I mean “most of the top 50 colleges,” since that’s where the majority of my students (and many of the students on College Confidential) want to go.
However, because of the fluid nature of college admissions, policies are indeed changing all the time. If you discover that most of the top 50 schools no longer require or recommend the new SAT essay, then please let me know. I would still hesitate not to send an essay score to these schools, however, especially if your son/daughter has the capability to write well.
Just because something is not required or recommended does not mean that it’s can’t help your application. For example, AP scores are neither required nor recommended as an official part of the college application process, but if you have lots of 4s and 5s, then you should definitely submit those as well. Same goes for high PSAT scores.
@ivysource The category is neither recommend nor require. There is a recommend but not require category. Big difference in wording. I would suggest students contact admissions offices directly to ask if SAT essays will even be reviewed or considered.
@Mom2aphysicsgeek Yes, I can definitely agree with you on that! Always contact your colleges directly for answers to these type of questions. But don’t necessarily take them at their word.
I just read your last post. Obviously this conversation is completely pointless.
means that
the best colleges are distinctly different than the top 50 colleges. That conversation is probably limited to people willing to pay for a consultant. 
Yes, “Top 50 colleges” is a relative term. You might consider them to be a different 50 schools than I do, or the Princeton Review, etc. does, but there is no difference to me between the word “top” and the word “best.”
Are the Golden State Warriors not the “best” basketball team in the NBA? Because they have the top record of all-time, so that seems like a safe bet to me.
Why would I be on here giving free advice if all I cared about was getting paid? Yes, I do like getting paid by my private clients, but I also enjoy learning, and that’s why I’m here. We are all eternal students.
Beware the college consultant who pretends to know everything already, because the admissions landscape is constantly shifting and no one has access to all the information at once.