<p>I was considering the tradeoff between writing quickly and writing neatly, and I'd like to know the extent of influence of handwriting on the essay score, so that I can strike an appropriate balance.</p>
<p>From my experience, it’s all about balance. A neat handwriting(one that gives off a “good-student vibe”) plays a significant role in the SAT essay but only if you can finish at least 1 3/4 pages. If you cannot write that much in the given time with your normal handwriting, it might work in your advantage to write quickly. I made this tradeoff for my Jan SAT, and it proved to be fairly successful(my normal handwriting can only accomplish 1 1/4 pages while my chicken scratch handwriting can accomplish close to 1 3/4 pages of writing).</p>
<p>However, I can assure you that handwriting and the quantity of writing are secondary to content. Although I don’t want to give too much credit to the SAT essay, there must be some reasonable amount of content that can make an argument; this is paramount to a double digit essay score. If someone is not capable of writing a double digit essay with 1 hour of time, he/she simply cannot write a double digit essay no matter which tactic is used.</p>
<p>I think the best balance is when the writing is full but legible at the same time.</p>
<p>I feel as if it shouldn’t have too much of an impact. As long as you don’t write so sloppily that your grader gets annoyed with you, then you’ll be find. Having a frustrated reader is never good.</p>
<p>Hm, does the handwriting matter at all?</p>
<p>What are the criteria for grading SAT essays?</p>
<p>as long as its legible, no effect</p>
<p>if it crosses the line into illegible, 0</p>
<p>I always wrote quickly, last time I took the SAT I filled two pages with 5 minutes to spare; my writing isn’t great at all, b/c I write so fast, but I got a 12 on that essay, 12 on another SAT, and an 11 on the ACT. So I really don’t think it makes a difference with regard to how easy it is to read</p>