<p>I made up an anecdote for the essay. I have a friend who wrote about a (completely fake) story about a (non-existent) friend of his who got shot in the head in the battlefield. He got an 11 or something. I have absolutely no idea how he related that to the topic. But heās like that.</p>
<p>What silverturtle stated above is probably the safest method for getting a high score, since itās a great way to give the reader what s/he wants. Itās certainly not the only way, but other options will depend on how confident you are on development (like my friend mentioned above).</p>
<p>I am a veteran SAT essay-hater. In fact, I have developed a theory that they only make it seem like a two-way question. There is a side they want. Rebels will not survive. (At this point Iām only half-kidding >_<)</p>
<p>I also want to say that there is no formula for a 12 essay, and the guide How to Write a 12 Essay in Just 10 Days absolutely does not appeal to me. I got an 11 on the essay by writing how I wanted to write, what I wanted to write, at that very moment in time, and that happened to be about my life and Bill Clintonās. An 11 is not a 12, of course, but I feel that if I had written a bit more succinctly, with better diction and flow, then I could have gotten a 12. It wasnāt my choice of examples that dropped me a point; it was my language, and Iām sure of it.</p>
<p>I just went to check my scores, and I was told to check back in 7-10 days. CB says it could be āfor a multitude of reasons.ā I didnt take the writing section because the college i want to go to (im a senior) dosnt look at it. The college needs my sat scores as soon as possible. Is CB really going to make me wait 7-10 days to see my scores because i didnt take the writing section? Im going to call in the morningā¦ Does anyone think theyāll give me my scores over the phone understanding my situation? ahhh, this sucks!</p>
<p>Iād like to add that it is always good to engage the writer. Make it interesting (but on-topic and with a point, of course). Itās a who-can-find-three-appropriately-obscure-but-relevant-examples test. You can follow the formula and the rigid structure and use examples that are happy medium ones (not cliche but not irrelevant) and if youāre bland and uninteresting, a reader may just as well prefer an essay like Keanās- which I, personally do (but I donāt score the essays, so there you go).</p>
<p>Silverturtle, that is almost exactly what is going on in my head when I solve CR questions. The last ten minutes or so I spend arguing with myself in my mind and justifying my answers. Itās tiring, but most of the time worth it. :)</p>
<p>Oneās essay score is often a simple matter of who reads it. A score of 11 basically suggests that your score would have varied between a 10 and 12 depending on which two individuals happened to evaluate it. Also, I have read that about one percent of all essays vary by two points or more among the two readers and require a third read. Simply put, the SAT essay holds a fair degree of subjectivity. But that is actually quite understandable considering the time guidelines placed upon the graders (one minute per essay).</p>
<p>The thing about the SAT is that itās not out to devour us- itās there for us to conquer. On my very first SAT last December (that is, 2009), I scored a 2180 (CR 640, M 760, W 780). The very best Iām hoping from my GPA is 3.67/4.0 or 4.59/5.0 by the end of my senior year (it ends on December this year. we have a different semester system in Korea, with every new year starting on February), so Iād say a lot my academics depend on the SAT.
Still, I tried to feel comfortable about it, and convinced myself anything, even a 2400, would be possible.</p>
<p>During my month-long SAT prep with no private tutoring, I focused mainly on vocab (wordsmart 1&2) and more importantly, on persuading myself I could do this. </p>
<p>The SAT is a standardized test, and there isnāt a magic formula to any section, even the essay part. Graders are supposed to rate our essays in less than one minute. That means that if the essay sounds persuasive enough for us, than it is likely that it does the same to the graders. Try to familiarize yourself by reading a lot of model essays- I think I read just as many essays as I wrote them. Also, I didnāt haggle myself over on a perfect SAT essay since 1. like silverturtle and alt_f4 said, itās way too subjective to be considered important outside the SAT and 2. a near perfect grammar section would easily give me a 800 with an essay of around 10+.</p>
<p>Again, I have to emphasize that there is nothing more important than believing that we can ace anything with confidence.</p>
<p>Son got:
CR 700
MA 770
Writing 610 ( 62MC 8 essay)
Writing is in general his weakness, but disappointing - his PSAT was 221 and this is actually lower writing score than in 8-th grade 3 years ago and same math. Strange because on 2 SAT he took in 7-th and 8-th grade and PSAT writing score was always higher than CR.
Silverturtle, any explanations /suggestions - greatly appreciated ?
Too bad - I donāt believe in over worrying about test scores, but 2080 will definitely have to retake, yet he does not have much time to study.</p>
But heās like that.</p>