The SAT Essay

To successfully complete an SAT essay, you need to learn how to develop an argument and defend your position. It is not essential that you know every fact and detail on the subject matter. The SAT essay rubric grades a student on a scale of 1 to 6, with 1 being lowest and 6 being highest. It evaluates: point of view/argument, organization, word choice, sentence structure, grammar, and usage/mechanics. You can learn more about how the SAT essay is marked, by reading our post – Scoring the SAT – Part Two. A great way to prepare for the SAT essay portion is to practice with examples from past SAT exams. This will help you to familiarize yourself with the wording of SAT essay prompts. It is essential that you learn how to structure a strong argument and that you back-up your position with evidence. Below are some sample essay prompts from College Board. These samples are from the most recent SAT testing period:

Prompt 1

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

People assume that every accomplishment—each step in what we call progress—will lead to the solution to a problem and will help them reach the goal of understanding themselves and the world around them. In reality, however, each new answer provokes additional questions and each fresh discovery uncovers further complications. Every accomplishment leads to further problems, added responsibilities, more complications, and new challenges.

Assignment: Does every achievement bring with it new challenges? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

Prompt 2

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

Loyalty is a virtue that is encouraged and rewarded in every aspect of our lives. We are, therefore, loyal to our families, our teams, our schools, and our countries. But too often loyalty is blind: by automatically identifying ourselves with a group and accepting its values as our own, we avoid taking responsibility for our own thoughts and actions.

Assignment: Does accepting the values of a group allow people to avoid taking responsibility for their own thoughts and actions? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

For more sample essay prompts visit College Board or look for our upcoming blog on hints for writing the SAT essay.