So I took the SAT in December and got a 1550 (780 Reading 770 Math). However, I literally went into the essay portion not knowing anything about it (I figured it would be the same as the ACT) and I got a 5 on it (5 Reading, 3 Analysis, 7 Writing).
I’m pretty disappointed about the 5, but I’ve also heard that colleges don’t really care about the essay. My top picks are UChicago, Northwestern, and a few Ivies. Should I retake the entire SAT just to get my score up? Is there a way that I can send my SAT score without the Essay? Would the 5 on the essay really hurt my application at top schools, especially considering that I got a 12 on ACT writing? Also, would it be easy to get that 5 up to like a 7 if I actually practiced?
Any help would be appreciated. This is my first post and the college search process officially feels real. Thanks!
Seriously - if you were my kid I’d say no, don’t retake, esp. with the 1550 from a single-sitting. Not one college brags about their high range of essay scores, and of course they have their own prompts and/or read your Common Ap. essay. Not sure about the Ivies but neither NU nor UChicago required the essay last time we checked (which was last year when my own kid applied to those schools).
Are you planning to submit your ACT as well? If so, there’s your awesome essay score.
Time to move on to other parts of your application! Well done on the testing, and good luck to you!