I just received my December SAT scores today, and I got a 1560 but a 5/5/5 on the essay. I’m aiming higher on the RW/M score, but with the essay…I don’t even know how I did that badly. Admittedly, I didn’t feel great about it, but I didn’t think that it would be complete rubbish, considering that I usually receive A’s on AP English rhetorical timed writings. I’m hoping to practice the essay more and look into the sample essays that have received full scores.
My question now is…what will higher level colleges think if I retake the SAT + essay and receive a considerably higher score? How will they regard the lower score, especially that 5/5/5 on the essay?
I stopped right there. They will think you are a test taking drone. There is NO reason to retake. Most colleges don’t even look at the essay score.
Does this apply even if this was my first sitting?
Probably, since your composite score is already pretty competitive anyway.