Is ACT Writing Important Expert Guide

Is ACT Writing Important Expert Guide SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips The Writing portion of the ACT has always been an optional portion of the exam. However, it was significantly revised in fall 2015 with the aim of better testing the kinds of analytical writing skills that are necessary for college work. Some colleges require or recommend that students take it for their application, and others don’t. With the recent revision of the SAT, the SAT Essay portion has also become optional. In light of this change, many colleges are changing their admissions policies and no longer requiring or recommending the SAT Essay or the ACT Writing section.But what does this whirlwind of change mean for you? Is the optional ACT Writing section still important? In this article I’ll break it down. First I’ll give a brief of overview of the ACT writing section and how it’s scored, which colleges require ACT Plus Writing, why schools require the Writing section and how they use it, and why other schools won’t require the Writing section going forward. Finally I’ll provide guidance on how to figure out if the ACT Writing section is important for you. ACT Writing: a Brief Overview On the ACT Writing section, you’ll be presented with an issue and then three perspectives on that issue. You then have 40 minutes to write a unified essay that addresses the following two tasks: Present and support your own opinion on the issue Explain how your opinion and at least one of the other three perspectives are related. The scoring system for the resulting essay is fairly complex. Two graders score your essay in 4 domains from 1-6, giving you a total potential score of 12 in each domain. Your scores between the four domains are then averaged to get your overall score from 2-12. For more on ACT Writing scoring, see our complete breakdown. It’s important to note that your score on the Writing section does not affect your composite score. However, it is a part of your English-Language Arts subscore, for which your English, Reading, and Writing scores (scaled to a 1-36 score range to calculate the ELA score) are averaged and rounded to the nearest whole number. The Writing section will also cost you an extra $16-17. It's a little-known fact that the first step in grading your ACT essay is solving an elaborate maze. Who Requires ACT Plus Writing? Most (over two-thirds) of colleges will not require the ACT Writing section for applicants in 2017 and beyond.However, there are quite few institutions that will continue to require it for applicants, especially amongelite-tier schools. The Ivy League is notably divided on the issue, with half requiring the ACT Writing section (Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, Yale) and half leaving it optional (Columbia, Cornell, University of Pennsylvania, Brown). Unfortunately, the ACT’s database of schools’ Writing requirements is very out-of-date and reports many schools as requiring the essay that have in fact dropped the requirement for 2017 applicants. For the most up-to-date information on a school’s position on the ACT plus Writing, check a school’s admissions website. Those schools that do require Writing have gone on the record with specific reasons for doing so. I’ll break those down in the next section. Why Do Schools Require the ACT Plus Writing? You may be curious about why some schools require the Writing section of the ACT in light of the fact that so many schools have made it completely optional.Based on public statements from school officials, there seem to be three main reasons why schools require the ACT’s optional Writing section: Consistency Many schools feel that the revised SAT essay is much better at testing the kinds of analytical skills important for college writing. For those schools that feel the SAT essay is worthwhile, it makes sense for them to also require the ACT’s Writing section for the sake of consistency. More Information Is Better Some college admissions offices have the philosophy that all of the information they can get is useful in evaluating applicants. The Writing section provides another data point on a student’s language and writing skills in addition to transcripts and admissions essays. Thus, schools that value having all the information that it is conceivably possible to obtain about a student tend to require ACT Writing. See Your Writing Skills Under Pressure The ACT Writing section gives admissions officers a unique chance to see how you use your analytical writing skills under time pressure. Your college admissions essays are polished and tightly edited pieces of writing, while your ACT Writing efforts will be much more raw and unvarnished. Again, it’s another data point for schools. The infamous Tower of Time Pressure. These reasons provide some insight as to why schools require ACT Writing- but how do they use your scores? How Do Schools Use ACT Plus Writing? If you are applying to schools that require ACT Writing, it’s important to know how they use it in evaluating your application. Is it a critical piece, a bit of extra fluff, or something in between? I spoke on the phone to admissions officers at different schools about how they use the ACT’s Writing section. Some themes emerged: Admissions officers feel that the ACT Plus Writing gives a more â€Å"rounded† picture of an applicant’s skills than the ACT without Writing. Essentially, they value having the additional information about an applicant’s language skills as part of their standardized test scores. However, they also stress that students are evaluated holistically, and their primary concern would be if a student’s essay score seemed inconsistent with the student’s other writing-based application materials. For example, if your application essay was phenomenal and you got straight-As in your English classes but then a overall score of 5/12 on the essay, that would be a red flag that something bizarre was going on. The general consensus is that schools do really look at the score, but it’s not a super-important part of the application unless the score seems inconsistent with an applicant’s other qualifications.However, your best bet if you are interested in a given school that requires the Writing section and you want to know exactly how they use it to evaluate applicants is to call the admissions office and ask. It’s also worth (re)stating that except for in the most selective tier of institutions, schools that require the ACT Writing section are in the minority. Most schools won’t require or even recommend the new optional essay, and they have their own reasons for doing so. UC Berkeleydoes require the ACT plus Writing. Why Don't Schools Require the ACT Plus Writing? There are three main reasons that schools have given for not requiring the ACT Writing section going forward: Consistency When the essay portion of the SAT was required, it made sense for schools to require the optional Writing section of the ACT for consistencies’ sake. Now that the SAT essay is optional, however, schools can re-evaluate their stance on the issue. Schools that have decided to not require the optional SAT essay have, in general, also removed their ACT Writing requirement to preserve consistency in testing guidelines between the two tests." The Writing Section Is Redundant Some schools feel that they already have sufficient evidence of an applicant’s writing capability through application essays and student transcripts in English. This is particularly true at institutions where multiple essays are required as part of the application. Requiring the ACT Writing Is a Burden to Underprivileged Students Some schools are concerned that the extra cost associated with the Writing section may be a deterrent to underprivileged students. University of Pennsylvania has stated that minority and first-generation college applicants are least likely to have a â€Å"complete testing profile.† They’ve eliminated the ACT Writing requirement in the hopes of attracting a more diverse applicant pool. A diverse applicant pool as represented by these decorative squashes. Is the ACT Writing Section Important for You? I’ve gone over how and why schools will require or not require the ACT Writing section going forward. But how does this affect you? Should I Take the ACT Plus Writing? This comes down primarily to whether or not you are applying to schools that require or recommend the ACT Writing Section. (I generally err on the side of treating recommendations as nicely-worded requirements in the college application process.) If you don’t take the ACT Writing section and later realize you need it, you will unfortunately have to retake the entire exam! So if there is even a chance you might be interested in a school that does require/recommend the Writing section, you should take it. This is especially salient if you are applying to top-tier schools, as about half of them require the ACT Writing section. If you know for certain that you are definitively not interested in a single school that requires or recommends the Writing section, go ahead and skip it. But only if you know you won’t change your mind! Another note here is that if you are very good at timed analytical essay-writing, you might also want to take the Writing section even if you are only applying to schools where it is optional. A stellar score will look good on your application even if it’s not required- in fact, it will show that you took some initiative. How Important Is My Score? The answer to this question is not completely clear-cut, as it does depend on the schools to which you are applying. What’s most important in general is that your Writing score is consistent with your other test scores. It certainly doesn’t have to be a perfect correlation- if you get a 36 for your composite and a 9/12 on writing, I wouldn’t stress too much. But if you have a 30 composite and an 6/12 on the essay, that may cause concern among admissions officers that you aren’t ready for college-level writing. How Can I Succeed on the ACT Writing Section? If you do need to take the Writing section, you can definitely learn the skills necessary to do well. Here are some general tips: Take a few minutes to plan out your essay before you start writing it! Be sure to discuss at least two of the perspectives in your essay, and definitely make your own opinion clear. Support all of the points you make with specific examples. Make sure your essay is logically organized and has an introduction and a conclusion. Write more than a page! For more on how to hit ACT Writing out of the park, see our step- by-step guide to writing an ACT essay, 15 tips to raise your essay score, or our guide to a perfect essay score. These kittens are proud of you! Key Takeaways Because the SAT has made the essay section of the exam optional, schools are taking the time to reevaluate their requirements for the ACT Writing section as well. Many schools have dropped the requirement entirely. However, elite-tier institutions are divided on the issue, with some continuing to require the Writing section and others dropping it. For those schools that do require the Writing section, it may not be clear exactly how they use it in evaluating your application. The general consensus among admissions officers I spoke to was that the Writing score provided valuable information, but that it was mostly used to check for consistency in an applicant’s language skills. In evaluating whether the ACT Writing section is important for you, consider the following: Are you applying to schools that recommend or require the ACT Writing section? Then take the ACT Plus Writing. Are you not sure where you’re applying yet? Take the ACT Plus Writing, because otherwise if you end up needing it later you will have to sit for the whole exam again. If you are taking the Writing section, how important is your score? Well, it’s most important that your score is generally consistent with the rest of your test scores and application profile. But the good news is that it’s very possible to learn how to write an excellent ACT essay. My final word, then, would be don’t ignore the Writing section and definitely prepare for it if you’re going to take it, but don’t stress too much about getting a perfect score. Nothing is truly perfect...except this puppy. What's Next? Wondering about the SAT essay? See our expert guide on the importance of the SAT essay. If you're not surehow important the ACT is for college admissions, see our guide. Prepping for the ACT? See our collection of free ACT practice tests, our comprehensive list of ACT guides, and our total guide to ACT test day. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes what you study to your strengths and weaknesses. If you liked this ACT Writing lesson, you'll love our program.Along with more detailed lessons, you'll get your ACT essays hand-graded by a master instructor who will give you customized feedback on how you can improve. We'll also give you a step-by-step program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Check out our 5-day free trial:

How to Write a Great College Application Essay Title

How to Write a Great College Application Essay Title Your application essays title is the first thing the admissions folks will read. Although there are many ways to approach the title, youll want those words at the top of the page to make the proper impression. Why a Title? Lets start with the  basics: Is your essay about something? Do you want your reader to know what its about? If so, your essay needs a title. Ask yourself which work youd be more excited to read: The Casque of Amontillado or Some Random Story by Edgar Allan Poe Thats About Something that Youll Figure Out After You Read It. If you dont provide a title, you dont give your reader any reason to be interested in beginning your essay other than a sense of duty. Make sure the college admissions folks are motivated to read your essay by curiosity, not by the necessity of their assigned drudge work. Picture a newspaper in which every article lacks a title. What article do you want to read? Which ones sound interesting? Clearly a newspaper without titles would be ridiculous. Application essays arent that different. Your reader wants to know what it is that he or she is going to read. The Purpose of an Application Essay Title Weve established that you need a title. But what makes a title effective? First off, think about the purpose of a title: A good title should grab your readers attention.Related to #1, a title should make your reader want to read your essay.The title should provide a sense of what your essay is about. When it comes to #3, realize that you dont need to be too detailed. Academic essays often have titles that look like this: Julia Camerons Photography: A Study of the Use of Long Shutter Speeds to Create Spiritual Effects. For an application essay, such a title would come across as over-written, pompous, and ridiculous. Consider how a reader would react to an essay with the title,  The Authors Trip to Costa Rica and How It Changed His Attitude Towards Biodiversity and Sustainability. After reading such a long and belabored title, the admissions folks wouldnt feel like they need to read the actual essay. Sample Good Essay Titles In general, there are no concrete rules for titles. Good titles can take a variety of forms: A good title can be clever or play with words. See, for example, Porkopolis  by Felicity or Buck Up  by Jill. Porkopolis is a nonsense word, but it works well for an essay on becoming a vegetarian in a meat-centric world, and Buck Up employs both a literal and figurative meaning of the phrase. As youll read below, however, you dont necessarily want to try to be too clever. Such efforts can backfire.A title can be provocative. As an example, a student who wrote about encountering new foods while abroad titled her essay Eating Eyeballs. If your essay focuses on a humorous, shocking or embarrassing moment in your life, its often easy to write an attention-grabbing title. Titles such as Puking on the President, Romeos Ripped Tights, and The Wrong Goal are sure to peek your readers interest.An essay title can be concise and straight-forward. Dont feel that you need great wit and alliteration in your title. Simple and direct language can be quite effective. Consider, for example, The J ob I Should Have Quit  by Drew,  Wallflower  by Eileen, and Striking Out  by Richard. These titles dont play with words or reveal great wit, but they accomplish their purpose perfectly well. In all of these cases, the title has provided at least a partial sense of the essays subject matter, and each has motivated the reader to continue reading. What the heck does Porkopolis mean? Why did you eat eyeballs? Why should you have quit your job? Avoid These Title Mistakes There are some common missteps that applicants make when it comes to titles. Be aware of these pitfalls: Vague language. Youll be off to a remarkably bland start if your essay is titled Three Things That Matter to Me or A Bad Experience. Bad (or good or evil or nice) is a painfully subjective and meaningless word, and the word things might have worked well in Tim OBriens The Things They Carried, but it rarely adds anything of value to your essay. Be precise, not vague.Broad, overly general language. This is a continuation of the vague language problem. Some titles try to cover far too much. You dont want to call your essay My Life Story or My Personal Growth or An Eventful Upbringing. Such titles suggest that you are going to attempt to narrate years of your life in a few hundred words. Any such effort is doomed to failure, and your reader will be doubting your essay before beginning the first paragraph.Overblown vocabulary. The best essays use clear and accessible language. When a writer attempts to sound intelligent by adding unnecessary syllables to every word, the reading experience is often torturous. When an essays title is My Utilization of Erroneous Rationalizations During My Pupilage, the readers immediate response is going to be pure dread. No one wants to read 600 words of that garbage. Strained cleverness. Be careful if youre relying on wordplay in your title. Not all readers are fans of puns, and a title may sound ridiculous if the reader doesnt understand a supposedly clever allusion. Cleverness is a good thing, but test out your title on your acquaintances to make sure it works.Clichà ©s. If your title relies on a clichà ©, youre suggesting that the experience that you are narrating is unremarkable and commonplace. You dont want the first impression of your essay to be that you have nothing original to say. So if you find yourself writing When the Cat Got My Tongue or Burning the Midnight Oil, stop yourself and reevaluate your title.Misspellings. Finally, nothing is more embarrassing than a misspelled title. There, at the top of the page in bold letters, youve used the word its instead of its, or you wrote about patients instead of patience. We all make these mistakes, but take extra care with your application essay. An error in the title is a sure way to elim inate any confidence your reader has in your writing ability. A Final Word About Application Essay Titles Many writers- both novices and experts- have a difficult time coming up with a title that works well. Dont hesitate to write your essay first and then, once your ideas have truly taken shape, go back and craft the title. Also, dont hesitate to seek help with your title. A brainstorming session with friends can often generate far better titles than a solitary session of pounding your head on your keyboard. You do want to get your title right- its going to make an immediate impression on the admissions folks who read your essay, and you clearly want them to enter your essay in a curious and eager state of mind. Finally, if youre writing your essay for the Common Application, keep in mind that your title will go in the text box with the rest of the essay, and the title will count toward your essays overall word count.