I gave the SAT this June(I’m an int’l student). I got 800 in CR, 780 in M,and 630 in W.I actually got 45/49 questions right in the grammar mc.what brought down my score was my essay score of SIX(out of 12).neither did I practice writing the essay even once,nor could I even finish it on time in the SAT.suggestions for improving essay writing are welcome,but my main question is- I was considering sending in my college applications early for scholarship deadlines,but nearly all schools I’m applying to are really selective(I need a LOT of fin aid).should I even apply with these scores?I’m retaking the SAT in october and plan to send that score to my reach colleges(which would be nearly all of them.) Will my writing score in this SAT hurt me in the sense that adcoms will view it as my inability to express myself in English properly?it is important they view me as an effective communicator in English since I’m an international student.does my CR make up a bit for it?
What’s important is that your CR and Math scores are perfect/near-perfect. Writing is not as important as those two (it’s not good to, say, get a 750/750/500, but a 800/780/630 is a great score). Some colleges don’t even consider the writing portion, (i.e. Cornell), but they can’t blatantly ignore it because it shows up on the score report along with all other grades. That being said, you being an international student, the admissions committee will most likely see the essay score and will probably understand the problem with the lower writing score.
If you’re worried about this writing score not being able to reflect your English properly, don’t. 630 is a pretty respectable score, and if you have an 800 in Reading no doubt your english skills are at the very least decent. That being said, you should try for a good essay. International competition for reach schools is very high, and international acceptance rates border 3% in many cases where schools (like Ivies, Stanford, MIT etc) have acceptance rates of 5-9%. International acceptance is abysmally small, and it is true that, although your SAT is very good, there will be other international competitors with higher SATs, higher GPAs, better extracurriculars, and better resumes. If it were up to me, I’d focus on a good extracurricular regime and well-developed essays (avoid cliches).
Thank you for your detailed and well thought out answer! I see what you mean.For a long time I thought “extracurricular activities” had to be like international STEM awards or competitions and stuff because we don’t have stuff like after school clubs(mathelete,debate,chess,etc) or student govt. or anything in our school(Its situated in a remote rural area and focuses more on academics than on extracurriculars).I want to do the things I love but I’m afraid they won’t lead to any notable awards or anything which would validate my skill in them.For example,you could say you live to write in your free time,but wouldn’t it be more impressive if you started a school magazine and won writing awards? Should I do the stuff I love which will help me in my(dream) major but can’t be put on a resume or should I focus on going for allll the STEM competitions(since I’m an international student anyway?)
*like to write ,not live