Strategy for the Essay Question

Description:

The essay is scored on a scale of 2 to 12. Two evaluators read every essay, and each assigns a score from 1 to 6; the two scores are then combined for your final essay score.

This section is intended to test your ability to develop and express ideas clearly and effectively. You will not be required to have special knowledge about the topic; you are expected to draw upon your experiences from courses you have taken, reading you have done, and experiences you have had both inside and outside of school. The essay is scored as a “first draft,” but you will need to have a sound strategy before starting.

Top scores are given to essays that:

• demonstrate critical thinking and a clear point of view on the assigned topic
• well organized and focused, with a logical progression of ideas
• demonstrate skillful use of language and structure, including varied and sophisticated vocabulary and sentence structure
• are free of grammar and mechanical errors

There are a variety of ways to achieve an essay that merits a score of 12. Fundamentally, the most important aspect is building your essay on an explicit viewpoint, or thesis. A thesis statement should clearly establish the main point or goal of your essay; everything you write should ultimately support your thesis.

Fundamentals for the essay:

• Only write an essay that directly addresses the topic provided. Essays that are on a different topic receive a score of 0.
• Plan on spending the first five minutes of your time to create a thesis and outline for your essay. This will be time well spent, as you will not have to organize on-the-fly as you write.
• As you write the essay, think of ways you can vary your sentence structure. Remember that while the correct use of a semi-colon can impress the scorer, too many complex sentences in a row can sound awkward.
• Use clear and appropriate vocabulary. Don’t use “big” words just for the sake of using them; instead, use more sophisticated vocabulary choices when they seem appropriate.
• Plan on leaving a few minutes at the end to review your essay. The scorers will not penalize you if you have to cross out words or sentences and re-write them; in fact, it is better to show that you identified an error and corrected it. At the same time, make sure your essay is legible; don’t cross out so much that the scorer won’t be able to read the essay easily.

Learning Resources:
Review the following materials on good writing practices:

• thesis statements
• outlines
• basic rules of writing (click the link at the left called “11 rules of writing”

If you are particularly concerned about your writing skills, take the time to review the short book Elements of Style by William Strunk; this is a standard reference used by many professional writers.