<p>While reading posts on CC, I have noticed references to CR/M SAT scores.. Is it typical for colleges to not place a heavy emphasis on the writing score of an applicant or is this happening at only a small number of schools. I believe I read somewhere the essay question on the ACT and SAT may not considered but is this true for the whole writing section of the SAT? Thank you.</p>
<p>…most colleges still mainly look at only M & CR on the SAT & composite score on the ACT.</p>
<p>For specific schools, you can check the common data set to see how they use the writing part of the SAT/ACT. There are several options they can designate - use it for admission, placement, advising, etc, or not at all.</p>
<p>Actually, the common data set only asks schools how they use the SAT and ACT essays. There’s no place for the school to indicate whether and how it uses the multiple-choice writing section of the SAT, which is what give you your SAT W score. The essay is a separate component.</p>
<p>I think schools are all over the map on using SAT W. Some still consider only M & CR. Others consider W but weigh it less heavily than CR and M. Others may consider all three subscores equally. As a general matter, though, because many schools are in one of the first two categories, a strong W score tends to be less helpful in college admissions than CR and M.</p>
<p>I emailed admissions office at specific schools about whether or not they looked at writing scores for SAT and ACT. The ones I contacted said they don’t use them.</p>
<p>Some of S’ schools required a W score. It seemed best to go ahead and take the writing along with the test (which as you may know is optional and costs a little more).</p>
<p>I think that one should almost always take the ACT with writing, because some schools accept that instead of SATIIs. It gives the student maximum flexibility. </p>
<p>It seems that most schools are still evaluating the Writing portion of the SAT, and CR +M is most important. That is one reason why giving an SAT composite instead of specifying the breakdown by section is a lot less useful when asking for advice here.</p>
<p>^ Keep in mind that “Writing” on the SAT and ACT mean different things. SAT has a multiple-choice Writing section that is scored on a scale up to 800, just like Critical Reading and Math. It also has an Essay that is scored separately on a scale up to 12 (reflecting the composite of 2 scorers working independently of each other, each of whom scores the essay on a 1 to 6 scale). The Essay score doesn’t affect the W score, or vice versa. Both W and the Essay are mandatory; everyone takes them when they take the SAT.</p>
<p>The ACT has four mandatory multiple-choice sections (Reading, English, Math, and Science Reasoning) and an optional fifth section, Writing, that is just an essay, which like the SAT Essay is also scored on a scale up to 12. If you take the optional Writing section, you also get an additional score called Combined English/Writing, scored on a scale up to 36 just like the other mandatory ACT sections (and the Composite, which reflects the average of the Reading, English, Math, and Science Reasoning section scores). Combined English/Writing doesn’t affect the Composite score.</p>
<p>A lot of schools ignore the SAT Essay and the ACT Writing (essay) scores, and in truth, they are kind of dopey; the schools probably figure they can learn more about your writing from your application essays and how you did in writing-intensive HS classes (like English) Oddly, though, many of those same schools require “ACT with Writing” of those those who submit the ACT. So I’m not sure what’s going on there.</p>
<p>I’ve always figured the SAT Writing section and the ACT English section are measuring roughly the same thing, while the SAT Essay and ACT Writing are essentially the same.</p>
<p>The Writing score (not just the essay) is minimized by some/many colleges because:</p>
<p>1) The math+CR score seems to provide more clarity to the student’s academic strength.</p>
<p>2) merit scholarships are often based on the Math + CR score. Likely because rankings still seem to look strongly at the M+CR.</p>
<p>3) Schools don’t want the Writing score blurring a low Math score. Schools would rather have a student with a 650M + 650 CR + 600 W (1300/1900), than a student with a 550M + 650 CR + 750 W (1200/1950).</p>
<p>On the contrary, bclintonk, the SAT Essay is worth about 1/3 (if I remember correctly) of the 800 point writing score.</p>
<p>Is anyone willing to name names of schools that do not count writing?
If so, include specifics. The only one I know about is Cornell.
From their Common Data Set:</p>
<p>C8A: They require the SAT or ACT
C8B: ACT with Writing Component required
C8C: Not using essay component (SAT or ACT)
C9: SAT Writing, ACT English scores are n/a</p>
<p>University of Miami and University of Maryland do not look at writing on the ACT or SAT.</p>
<p>i don’t have the CDS handy for them, but admissions told me they don’t look at writing for admissions.</p>
<p>All 23 California State University (CSU) campuses only enter CR and Math scores into an applicant’s records. Acceptance or rejection is determined by a computer algorithm that only takes HS GPA and SAT CR+M or ACT scores into account. There is no essay required and if you send one it will not be read. ECs play no role in admission decisions at CSUs and letters of recommendation are not accepted.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>You’re right, my mistake. Never realized that. So that makes the SAT Writing score roughly equivalent to the ACT Combined English/Writing score. But since the SAT Writing score counts toward your 2400-scale SAT Reasoning Test CR+M+W score, while the ACT Combined English/Writing score doesn’t influence your ACT Composite Score, that means at some schools (those that look at CR+M+W, or at each section score independently, but only look at ACT Composite, as many say they do) the essay might actually be more important on the SAT than on the ACT.</p>