<p>I'm really torn on whether or not I should retake to improve writing. I have these scores from last March:</p>
<p>CR 800 M 770 and W 680 .... 1570/1600 or 2250/2400</p>
<p>The problem is that I got a 7 essay....which I feel may be a detractor. </p>
<p>I know that a 2250 is in the 50% for nearly every school. But I'm worried about the 7 - should I retake? And if so, what has worked for people in improving their essay score drastically?</p>
<p>My D improved her writing from a 660 to a 780 and a 6 on the essay to a 10 just by following the tips and "formulas" that people had suggested on CC. She read over the tips and then did quite a few practice essays. Here's one of the threads on the essay that was helpful: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/510782-sat-essay-2.html?highlight=examples+in+essay%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/510782-sat-essay-2.html?highlight=examples+in+essay</a></p>
<p>Also, you might want to search for a thread that was posted that had a list of colleges and whether they are counting or not counting the writing section. So you could also consider whether the schools you are applying to are going to use the writing section.</p>
<p>Why do you think you got a 7 in essay? I guess three reasons: 1.you didn't understand the topic correctly. 2. you spent too much time on planing and wrote only one page or less. 3. your examples were inappropriate.
I think someone whose reading and writing scores are so high should write better than a 7 essay. It's common that excellent students get a 9 in essay but most of them won't get a 7 unless they make some blatant mistakes. Therefore, you's better take it again.</p>
<p>I am sorry for typo.
You'd better take it again.</p>
<p>well......remember that you would have to take the WHOLE test over again, not tht specific section. What if you screw up on the other sections? Another thing-the scores are averaged in the breakdown. You might as well take it again if you are confident for the other subjects</p>