ACT Writing Section: Why You Should Take It & Tips to Score High
Why You Should Take the Writing Section:
Show off your authentic writing skills to admissions officers — they are catching on to AI-written essays, and not in a good way.
A strong science score can make your application more competitive.
If your grades in science courses could be better, a high score can help balance your academic profile.
If you're still exploring your options, taking the science section keeps all doors open, as some colleges or programs may require it.
ACT Writing Test-Taking Tips:
Pace Yourself
Budget time across planning, writing, and reviewing before starting. It is unlikely there will be time to draft, revise, and recopy, so students should account for that upfront.
Plan Before You Write
Read all prompt material carefully to understand the issue, the three perspectives, and the essay task. Use the optional planning questions to think critically and outline a response before writing. Planning questions are not scored.
Write with Focus and Support
Establish a clear argument and main ideas. Support with sound reasoning and meaningful examples. Discuss the significance of ideas as you write, and check that logic is clear, claims are supported, and word choices are precise.
Review Your Essay
Reserve a few minutes before time is called to read over and correct mistakes. For paper testing: write legibly, recopy hard-to-read words, and make corrections neatly between lines. Do not write in the margins.
Practice Before Test Day
Preparation goes beyond writing essays:
- Read newspapers, magazines, and news analyses to build familiarity with current issues and multiple perspectives
- Participate in discussions and debates to practice thinking through different viewpoints
- Write for different purposes and audiences, including journals, editorials, stories, and class assignments
- Practice writing within a time limit, as timed writing builds college-level skills even for students not planning to take the writing section
Watch this video to learn how to write clearly and concisely so your argument comes through with impact.
Free ACT Practice Test!
Get a taste of the ACT test with practice questions (and answers) found in this free study guide.
Here's what you'll get:
- An overview of the ACT test and what to expect on test day
- A full-length practice ACT test (including writing prompt)
- Answers and a scoring key for each test section
- A breakdown of the content covered in each test section
- General test-taking strategies
- Ways to approach each section of the ACT
