ACT Writing Exam

The writing test, which is an optional portion of the ACT, is a short written exercise that is given at the end of the regular exam. The test is intended to test skills that are learned in high school or entry-level college composition courses. The exam itself consists of a writing prompt, generally about a social issue that a high school student would be expected to encounter, and two opposing points of view on the subject discussed in the prompt. The student is expected to then write a short essay defining the student's position on the issue and explaining the reasons behind it. There is no guideline on the essay structure, and the student may write as long or short an essay as they are capable of in the time allotted.

Scoring of the writing essay is different than that of the regular exam. Two essay readers will read the student's essay and score it on a scale of 0 to 6, 0 being assigned if the essay is illegible, not in English, blank, completely off-topic or fails to meet the stated guidelines for the exam in some other fashion. The scores are then summed to create the composite score for the exam. If the scorers disagree by a margin greater than one point, then a senior scorer is brought in to evaluate the essay and provide a final scoring. The writing exam was instituted in February 2005, roughly the same time the SAT was modified into its present format.