Are you trying to figure out the best way to write an SAT essay? The college admissions process requires international students to write a Sat essay and it's therefore essential that you learn how to write an SAT essay. Students applying to degree programs that involve lots of writing like English, History, or Journalism may have to submit additional samples or even take a department-specific placement test. Your ability to write a good essay, one that displays what you know and your ability to make effective use of standard written English, will be measured by your SAT essay score. The better your score, the more likely you will be admitted to a prestigious college. Students who received expert help on the SAT essay averaged 21-26 points higher on their essays than students who did not receive support. Get this same expert help to increase your chance of getting into your dream school.
In this article from the professional essay writing service Acemyhomework, we will discuss how to write SAT essay and get that SAT essay score for college admission. This includes the definition, preparation steps, time-management, SAT essay outline, tips, and examples.
What is a SAT essay?
A SAT essay is a short answer assignment that requires SAT subject tests takers to analyze a source, summarize the source's main points, and explain how these ideas relate to the test taker's personal experiences.
The SAT Essay is designed to assess your ability to analyze and critique an author's argument. To write a strong essay, you will need to focus on how the author uses evidence, reasoning, and other rhetorical techniques to build an argument and make it convincing. The Essay task will be the same in each of the standardized tests.
The CollegeBoard announced that it would stop offering the optional SAT Essay after June 2021. This is a big change, and students are curious about how this may impact the college admissions process. If your dream school didn't require the SAT Essay or consider SAT Essay scores, this change wouldn't really affect you. The College Board's new policies don't impact the admissions processes at these schools, so your chances of getting in are the same as before the College Board's announcement. Check with your potential schools to see how the new SAT Essay policies will affect your admissions process and chances.
The new SAT Essay is a 50-minute, optional component of the redesigned SAT. According to the College Board, SAT Essay scores will be reported separately from evidence-based reading and writing scores. According to the redesigned SAT Essay Scoring Rubric, scores for the samples provided below were assigned on a 1-4 scale. In your essay, analyze how the author uses one or more of the features listed in the box above or features of your own choice to strengthen the logic and persuasiveness of their argument.
How to write a SAT essay
SAT Essay writing requires particular skills. It's daunting to think that you only have 50 minutes to read a passage, analyze it, and write an essay. However, don't worry—getting a top SAT essay score is within everyone's reach! The most reliable way to score high is to follow our SAT essay template for every essay and prepare well beforehand. This article will show you how to write a great SAT essay.
Preparing for the SAT can be stressful, but don't let your essay stand in the way of good scores. Learn methods to help you write a better essay and achieve your full potential on the SAT. Receive personal one-on-one guidance, personalized feedback from Acemyhomework experts, help with scores, sharpen your essay writing skills, get tips on how to structure an essay for the SAT, get practice prompts for the SAT essay, and receive step-by-step instructions planning materials for your session.
There are four major stages to writing your SAT essay. The first involves reading, the second consists in analyzing, planning, and outlining the essay, the third is actually writing it, and the final stage consists of revising and editing your final draft.
Spend a few minutes reading the passage.
There are a couple of reading strategies you can use on the SAT essay. First, you can read straight through the passage, taking notes as you go. But that may not work well if you're a slow reader or find the subject matter too confusing. That's one reason why I recommend skimming first. That way, you can get an overview of what the article is about before diving in and spending more time reading it closely.
Whether you read straight through or skim, make sure to keep an eye on the clock, so you don't run out of time for analyzing and writing! When you go back to doing a more detailed reading of the article, keep an eye out for argument-building techniques and try to remain objective. You may want to circle or underline examples of these techniques as you read, which leads right into the next stage of SAT essay writing.
Evaluate and plan
Many high school students resist planning on the SAT Essay because it already feels like there's not enough time to read and write, let alone take away some of that precious time for planning. But take it from us: you're better off with a plan. This is because the SAT essay graders look for a clear structure: introduction, conclusion, and specific evidence. It's almost impossible to create this structure and still write quickly without a plan. As you read over the passage, look for specific evidence to include in your essay. You might even want to highlight or circle this evidence as you go.
Write in the margins if it helps your thought process. This is your time to examine how the author crafts their argument and think of examples from your own life that would work well.
If you're unsure how to begin, start by reading the passage carefully and marking key points. Then try outlining the main ideas of each paragraph and noting any crucial details. For example, one way to mark up your passage is by numbering your examples and then circling and numbering any evidence from the passage you'll be referring to in each paragraph. Another option is to write a brief description of the details from the passage in your planning and outlining, along with the location of the details. Taking this time during the analyzing and planning stage will end up saving you time in the long run.
Write the SAT essay.
Once you have your analysis and planning done, it's time to write like the wind. If you've taken notes and planned effectively, you should be able to jump right in and not have to go back and forth too much between the text and your essay. Remember to address counterarguments directly and effectively.
Body Paragraphs
Writing a body paragraph is more straightforward than writing an introduction for most people. Start with your body paragraphs and add the introduction later if this is the case. Let's use a methodical structure to try out a body paragraph about how the author uses a counterargument to add support to his own claim.
When you put all of these pieces together, they make a winning body paragraph. First, we move smoothly from the introduction or previous body paragraph. Then, we give enough background information to understand why our example is relevant. Finally, we connect it back to our thesis for the knockout punch.
Introduction and Conclusion essay section
After you finish your body paragraphs, don't forget your introduction and conclusion paragraphs. Both should briefly mention the author's argument and the examples I'm using to support my thesis, but everything else is entirely up to you. Some students write about the concept in general, and others just try to restate the thesis in different ways. Even a couple of sentences is better than none. Try to scribble something down, even if time is running out.
Sample Introduction Paragraph
"In the article "Foreign News at a Crisis Point," Peter S. Goodman argues that news organizations should increase their professional foreign news coverage to people in the United States. Goodman builds his argument by using facts and evidence, addressing the counterarguments, and couching it all in persuasive and compelling language."
Revise and edit your essay
Revising your SAT Essay is a great way to improve your score. Not only can you replace words with better synonyms and fix grammar mistakes or typos, but it's actually a fantastic time management strategy: if you know you'll have time to revise, you can worry less about making every sentence as perfect as you write. Cross out the words that you don't want the grader to read and need to waste time erasing them and focus on making your point! If you feel your editing skills are inadequate, Acemyhomework editing professionals can help.
Tips on standardized testing requirements according to the college board
The SAT Essay asks students to read a high-quality source text and write an essay analyzing how the author builds an argument. Using accurate, credible sources tests your ability to support claims with valid reasoning and relevant evidence. The SAT Essay provides you with an excellent opportunity to showcase your reading, analysis, and writing skills, which are fundamental to demonstrating career and college readiness. Here are a few tips you can use to pass the college essay. Our experts help you write a robust and polished essay. Essay scorers review hundreds of essays. Our SAT essay expert will help you get precisely the score you want.
Have a clear thesis
Now it's time to tackle the writing section of the SAT! Remember, this essay needs to be precisely focused. All you have to do is identify the passage's main idea and list the methods the author uses to support it. Together, these ideas form your "precise central claim." Some essays will leave you scratching your head with questions like, "How is this even an argument?" Don't give up! Remember that all you really need to do is find some sort of assertion that is being supported by examples or evidence in the passage.
It's helpful to refer to the prompt when writing your thesis statement because it ensures that the grader does not have to read far into your essay in order to find your point in the passage.
Have an introduction and conclusion
Including an introduction and a conclusion paragraph in your essay is absolutely essential to getting a Writing score above a 4 out of 8. The introduction paragraph introduces the reader to what you'll be talking about and allows you to set up the structure for the rest of the essay. The introduction also includes your thesis, which is a statement about what devices the author uses to build her/his argument. It's best to include both an introduction and a conclusion, but if you're running short on time and can only have one, definitely pick the introduction.
Introductions can be tricky because whatever you write there locks you into writing just about that. If you're struggling with an introduction paragraph, leave yourself ten blank lines at the beginning of the essay and jump into body paragraphs. Just make sure you remember to go back and write in an introduction before time's up!
Use language that is attractive to your audience.
A few parts of the Writing score section on the SAT essay rubric pertain directly to style. The SAT essay rubric states this about a perfect-Writing-score essay: "The response is cohesive and demonstrates a highly effective use and command of language." For most of us, "command of language" is an area that takes a long time to develop, so unless your language skills are really rough or you're prepping at least a year ahead of time (or both), you'll probably get more out of focusing on the other components of the essay.
In addition to solid argumentation and evidence, you'll want to maintain a formal tone and style in your SAT essay. This means using appropriate language, varying the types of sentences you use, and not making grammar mistakes.
Only use information that is directly cited in the passage.
Remember, the SAT tests a particular type of argument—a literary analysis. To demonstrate your understanding of how the author builds the passage's case, stick to details that are clearly connected to your author's argument.
Keep the topic of your essay focused on relevant details.
It's more important that you clearly explain the most essential elements of the argument and do so to show you understand what the SAT is looking for than it is to try to identify and write about every single persuasive device possible.
