SAT Essay -- get a 12!

Test Preparation SAT Preparation
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<p>Using the topic of stem cell research is an especially unique and good topic to use!!
You can use a lot of “Flash” vocabulary to talk about the process and controversy of it! Also it works well for questions involving ethicality, innovation, and tradeoffs. This topic probably will spark the reader’s interest as I am sure they get tired of reading about the scarlet letter and students’ personal experiences! I used this in both of my SAT essays I have taken and recieved an 11 the first time and a 12 the second time!</p>

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<p>I wish I had known you could use art! I’m in Art History AP (or rather, since 09 graduated today, no longer in it since I’m a SENIOR). </p>

<p>But anyway, I did the May SAT essay and my examples were
Tolstoy’s War and Peace (specifically Nikolay Rostov)
Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina (specifically Levin)
Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Illyich (specifically Gerasim)</p>

<p>ETA: Oh, I got a 10 on essay. Up from my 8 in January where my only example was Millay’s poem Renascence, which I discussed in great length.</p>

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<p>It’s not true that your essay needs to be long for a 12. Look at the collegeboard website, one of the sample essays that got a 6 was only 3 paragraphs and probably not longer than a page.</p>

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<p>I completely disagree with all this literature/history BS. I wrote a developed personal experience (somewhat made up) with an intro, conclusion, and 2 bodies. It filled both pages and I got a 12 - so I really think that all this stuff about having 3 strong examples is kinda false.</p>

<p>I’m thinking of writing a guide to my method because it seems to have worked well for me with minimal preparation.</p>

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<p>[SAT</a> Sample Essay](<a href=“College Board - SAT, AP, College Search and Admission Tools”>College Board - SAT, AP, College Search and Admission Tools)
[SAT</a> Sample Essay](<a href=“College Board - SAT, AP, College Search and Admission Tools”>College Board - SAT, AP, College Search and Admission Tools)</p>

<p>One of the samples that got 6 was a 3 paragraph personal experience while the other was about one novel/real life experience.</p>

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<p>Old man and the sea. absolutely anything can be said about this novel because of how much symbolism can be seen. Taoist theories to racial segregation.</p>

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<p>So it is my understanding that a literary and historical example score the highest. However, I have a few questions regarding the essay as a whole:

  1. What should you write in the introduction and conclusion specifically? I seem to have a knack to make these two paragraphs longer than they probably should be.
  2. Should your paragraphs always be 5 paragraphs, or do 4 paragraph essays suffice occasionally?</p>
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<p>HA! I’m a rising sophomore, and for every single essay I’ve written (5-7) I have used either To Kill a Mockingbird or Of Mice and Men.</p>

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<p>TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD!
It’s seriously amazing…between the whole Atticus Finch trial, Scouts’s development and understanding, and Gem’s growing up as a brother, you get like EVERY THEME haha. </p>

<p>Honorable Mentions: Lord of the Flies, Great Expectations</p>