Hello! I’m applying as an international gap year student to colleges such as Harvard, Yale and Stanford from the UK. I’ve noticed that on the websites of a few US schools it states that the essay section of the ACT/SAT is not required. However, many people and sites state that it’s highly recommended to do the essay section. I was wondering whether not doing it will reduce my chances substantially? I’m worried as that’s my weakest section.
If it’s not required then don’t worry about doing, but if you plan to apply to a school that does require it you definitely need to.
What people/sites and how recently? My observation on the general consensus here, which agrees with my opinion, is that it’s not meaningful unless you’re applying to one of the ever-shrinking list of schools that require it. Among the top schools, Cal-Berkeley is, AFAIK, the only one still requiring it.
This is a significant change from 3 or so years ago, so if the sites/articles you’re reading are more than 2 years old they are out of date.
If you’re looking at top schools, and not Berkeley, there’s no need to take it. In fact, that’s why Berkeley came off my D’s list.