Sat Essay Section

You won t be asked to agree or disagree with a position on a topic or to write about your personal experience.

Sat essay section. The sat essay optional the sat essay is an entirely writing based section for which you must read a 650 750 word passage and then write an essay analyzing how the author constructs his or her argument as well as how persuasive the argument is. The essay gives you an opportunity to show how effectively you can read and comprehend a passage and write an essay analyzing the passage. Responses to the optional sat essay are scored using a carefully designed process.

Reading analysis and writing. You have 50 minutes to complete your essay 25 minutes more than the required essay on the old sat. Any section of the sat may contain both operational and pretest items emphasis mine.

Get college sat essay policies. Note that you are not being asked whether you agree or disagree with the argument. The sat s essay component has had a total makeover.

The purpose of the new sat essay is to assess your ability to analyze an author s argument. The two scores for each dimension are added. It s optional but some schools will require it.

Each scorer awards 1 4 points for each dimension. Two different people will read and score your essay. In your essay you should demonstrate that you have read the passage carefully present a clear and logical analysis and use language precisely.

To allow for pretesting some students taking the sat with no essay will take a fifth 20 minute section. Each sat essay consists of one passage between 650 and 750 words that you will read and then respond to.