Hello all!
So I am wondering if I can use a mechanical pencil on the SAT Essay. It’s hand graded so it should be fine, right? I will have regular wooden #2 pencils for the MC section but when it comes to writing, I am very heavy handed, and it bothers me when the lead gets low and flat (and the lead is always sharp in mech pencils). Not sure how exactly to describe it, but I’d much rather use a mech pencil. Is that fine?
I don’t know the answer. Obviously mechanical pencils are NOT allowed on the bubble filling in part of the SAT. Even if they are not expressly forbidden on the essay, you could have a proctor who says “no mechanical pencil” so I would have a supply of sharpened pencils in case. My daughter has the same issue with flat lead in pencils and takes between 10 and 20 sharpened # 2 pencils in a clear plastic bag with her for standardized tests. She has gotten two 800s on the writing section so I think that method works, at least for her.
I would bring regular pencils just in case. Mechanical pencils definitely won’t cause any problems in terms of grading the essay (in fact, they’re fine for the multiple choice sections as well), but technically, they’re forbidden by College Board because people can use them to cheat. Most proctors don’t really care, and will let you use mechanical pencils if you wish, but I’ve heard about some being very strict about it.
There was a thread about a month ago about a girl (a strong student who had done well on practice tests) who was not allowed to use the mechanical pencils she brought and did poorly on the SAT. Maybe she would have done poorly anyway but I think it is better to be prepared for the possibility that a proctor confiscates your mechanical pencils.
Guys one question
The SAT essay should be written by a pencil or a pen?
https://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/writing/sat-essay “A pencil is required for the essay. An essay written in ink will receive a score of zero.”
Update: even though it said “no mechanical pencils” on the board, our proctor didn’t mind is using it for the writing section. I was able to get through the essay for the first time!!! It didn’t finish till like the last 30 seconds though.
Hey! I used a mechanical pencil on my essay because my hand cramped up with a regular pencil. But I used one of those mechanical pencils that looked like a regular yellow wooden pencil just in case the proctor would be really strict.
Your essay is scanned and the scorers read it off of a screen, so there is the possibility that if your writing is too light it will be difficult to read. The issue with mechanical pencils it that the lead is usually thinner and lighter than a standard #2 pencil. However, if you look around you can find mechanical pencils with thicker and darker (2B) lead refills. However, if you get a proctor who a stickler for the rules, he/she may not allow you to use it regardless of the darkness of the lead.