5 Ways to Write a Great Essay on the New SAT

by Justin Dolecki
The Princeton Review
The SAT is undergoing some major changes this month. Among the many changes to the test, the
addition of a new writing section has made many students particularly anxious. !en though the
prospect of writing an essay on the new SAT may seem a little bit scary, it"s actually #uite painless
to prepare for and is probably one of the easiest sections in which to shine. $hy% &ecause a strong
SAT essay is surprisingly formulaic. TS 'ducational Testing Ser!ice, the people who write the SAT,
among many other tests( says the essay is graded holistically. Simply put, they judge your essay by
the o!erall impression it makes.
So how do you go about making a good impression? Here are 5 no-nonsense tips on how
to score big on the New SAT essay
!" Neatness counts
The idea of ha!ing to handwrite an essay may seem #uite old fashioned, somewhere along the lines
of sending a letter through the mail. &ut like it or not, you won"t be using )icrosoft $ord on the
SAT. Therefore, one of the simplest ways to earn a good score is to write legibly. *ou see, graders
are responsible for getting through tons of essays each day, and so they usually only spend around
+ minutes reading each one. $hen they come upon an essay that is messy and makes life more
difficult for them, right away they are left with a bad impression. Translation, a lower score for you.
$ho can blame them though% -f you had to read a bunch of messy essays that make you s#uint and
s#uirm, wouldn"t you be annoyed% So print neatly, because the graders will appreciate it. '*es,
print..no script/(
#" $ore is more
*ou"!e probably heard the maxim, it"s not the #uantity, it"s the #uality that counts. 0ood ad!ice in
the real world, but here in 1ew SAT land, #uantity is just as important as #uality. 2emember, TS
graders will read your essay holistically, meaning they look at the o!erall package and won"t really
get down to the nitty.gritty. So when grading an essay as a whole, longer always looks better. There
are 34 lines to fill..get as close to that as possible. 5illing 36 lines is good. 7nly twenty ... not so
good. 7h, by the way, for those of you who usually ha!e a lot to say, it"s important to know that you
can only use the space that is gi!en. So don"t ramble on fore!er, because you won"t be getting any
extra sheets of paper.
%" &aragraphs are your 'riend
2emember that basic writing structure you learned in grammar school nglish, intro, body,
conclusion% $ell, follow that same format on the 1ew SAT essay. 5irst, your introduction should
include a thesis statement 'the SAT asks you if you agree or disagree with a gi!en statement(. Then
you need three supporting paragraphs that back up your thesis. And finally, you"ll need a conclusion
to sum it all up. &y following this standard format you will gi!e the impression that you are
organi8ed 'they don"t need to know that your locker is a disaster( and you know how to structure an
essay. 7ne other mini.tip..9learly indent all of your paragraphs, about a full half.inch. The clearer
you make things for them, the happier the graders will be.
(" When Shakespeare comes in handy
*ou created your thesis statement in the introduction, but now you need to back up your argument.
The best way to do this is by citing examples. Some may be tempted to write about stuff they"!e
seen on T: or read in US Weekly to explain ;the tragedy of war; 'the great feud between <illary
Duff and =indsay =ohan(, or their personal life to explain ;the sorrow of lo!e lost; 'your breakup
with your boyfriend or girlfriend(. &ut essay graders will find illustrations from history or literature to
be more persuasi!e. -f you can display that you are well read or that you know about topics like the
9i!il $ar, graders will be impressed. &e prepared with some literary or historical examples before
you take the 1ew SAT.
5" )hanne* your inner Webster
!en though the 1ew SAT re#uires less knowledge of !ocabulary than pre!ious years 'analogies are
gone(, you can make a !ery fa!orable impression by simply adding a few well.placed ;big words.;
-deally you will want to show off your considerable diction in the introduction or conclusion, because
your power words might get lost in the body. Don"t go o!erboard though and make sure you
actually know the meaning of the words before you use them. Short words are better than misused
words any day. -f you"re looking to strengthen your !ocabulary, check out The >rinceton 2e!iew"s
New SAT Word of the Day.