I received a 35 C on the September 2016 administration of the ACT. However, I received a 9 on the essay. The breakdown of my writing subscores was 9/9/9/10. Clearly, I received a 5 and a 4 in each category — except for language in which both graders gave me a 5.
Should I retake the ACT in an attempt to score higher on the writing section? If not, should I send a request for score verification? Since I was only 1 subscore point away from a 10, I think it is possible for me to get another point should another pair of graders read my essay. If I do, ACT will refund the $50 fee as well.
A 9 on the writing section is only in the 91st percentile nationwide. To make matters worse, it is in the 81st percentile for my state.
I am an Asian male who is going to apply to Ivies for computer science.
Dude! I am in the same boat as you!!
I got a 35 C but my essay score hasn’t been posted yet. I’m nervous, but I feel a 9 or 10. What is the standard for Ivies in terms of the writing scores? (2-12)
Don’t know the answer to your question but it seems like the writing score on the ACT is so variable as to be useless. There are a lot of high stats people posting that they got 34-36 in the language components of the test but remarkably lower in the writing score. Of course, that is not impossible, but… Many schools don’t even require that section. Of those that do require writing on the ACT I have never seen the school post any stats about how it affects admissions. In any case, it is well worth the $0-50 to have the test re-scored.
@nicknick567 From what I have read, Harvard’s 25th percentile is 8 and its 75th percentile is 10. However, I got this information from About.com so I am not too sure about its accuracy.
EDIT: These number are for the ACT Writing Exam prior to September 2015, when the scale was still out of 12.
emphasis added
You have a 35C. I think you can figure out whether it’s worth having the essay regraded or taking it again.
