<p>We got back the PSAT scores and one of my kids has high CR and low M and W. He brought the booklet back and I could see his math work and mistakes and he made tons of careless errors. He was shocked himself and he agreed to do some work. Now because I know the kid there is NO way he will work that hard and I feel I need to pick my battle. Since a lot of schools are looking mostly for the CR+M section I am thinking that it would be better if he dedicated all his efforts in increasing his math score and forget about the writing. What do you guys think? He will be applying to a variety of business schools. Btw his math score was 60. He is currently in precalc (A-) and his teacher also complains about the careless errors.He is the creative, big ideas type of guy ( according to his teachers) that could benefit tremendously from drilling and practicing.</p>
<p>Yes, M+CR are most important when it comes to test scores. Many schools could care less about the SAT essay score.</p>
<p>The writing part of the SAT is so unimportant that many schools only consider the Math and Critical Reading portions. They don’t even acknowledge that the Writing portion exists, so when they compute SAT scores it’s out of 1600 not 2400.</p>
<p>What year is he? </p>
<p>Junior. I know he <em>could</em> work for both M and W but unfortunately I do not believe he will.</p>
<p>All you need to do to improve the writing score is to write more. Studies show that longer essays–independent of content, style, and syntax–get higher scores. One of the reasons they’re dropping it. </p>
<p>It seems a reasonable strategy. The SAT Writing includes more than just essay… hard to study for short term. I think learning to reduce careless errors would be a better use of time. It will also useful prep for college math courses and life in general. </p>
<p>Note - Other kids make careless errors too, especially if nervous about the test. Calm attitude and good breakfast are important too. </p>
<p>I would focus on just the Math. Most merit scholarships only count CR+M so if he already has a high CR and can bring his Math up he could end up with a scholarship. </p>
<p>In general, are his writing skills lacking? How does he do in English? </p>
<p>Almost no one cares about the writing scores but if they’re representative of poor English skills, that is another matter entirely. </p>
<p>Yes but my S applied to a few schools that required SAT with writing so make sure that’s the one he takes and not the other.</p>
<p>@Rdtsmith - That’s the ACT that has with or without Writing. The SAT I comes in only one flavor. Focus on the Math. Don’t forget that at some point the Essay and Writing section on the SAT (it’s go back down to 1600 total) will eventually go away so I suspect colleges next year will consider it even less.</p>
<p>Focus on the math and forget the writing. Everyone looks at the CR and M scores; very few schools, even the tippy top ones, care about the W. Why? It in no way measures your preparedness for college level writing. My daughter, who got into Bread Loaf as a sophomore in HS and won a writing prize her first year at Wellesley, only scored a 7 on the essay.</p>
<p>Direct quote from Williams admissions officer: “We look mostly at the reading and math.”</p>
<p>My son had sterling CR+M, similar to ^^ in writing. Accepted ED.</p>
<p>A few, like Harvard, seem to think that the W section is important, and some scholarships use all three parts, but they are less common than those that use just CR and M. Or try ACT.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies. My kid will not apply to the very top universities. I do not know the schools yet because we are in a very unfortunate situation and we are contemplating a move to a different state so his list will have to change according to where we end up and to our new financial picture.</p>
<p>Here is a list of scholarships awarded for GPA and test scores:
<a href=“http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/”>http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/</a></p>
<p>Note that most specify SAT thresholds in terms of CR+M, but some specify SAT thresholds in terms of CR+M+W.</p>
<p>Be sure to check both the old state (to see if he can retain residency there) and the new state (to see if there are any waiting periods for residency there). Depending on the states, it may be possible to be in-state for neither state for tuition purposes, at least for the first year.</p>
The randomness of it all!
So we got my kid’s SAT scores today and he improved a lot in math so we are happy. However he also got a nice 700 in Writting, the section he did not study a secod and the one he totally bombed in the PSAT (way less than 60).
Go figure.