act six essays examples

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Writing Sample Essays

Write a unified, coherent essay about the increasing presence of intelligent machines. In your essay, be sure to: 

• clearly state your own perspective on the issue and analyze the relationship between your perspective and at least one other perspective
• develop and support your ideas with reasoning and examples
• organize your ideas clearly and logically
• communicate your ideas effectively in standard written English

Your essay perspective may be in full agreement with any of those given, in partial agreement, or completely different.

Get more information about preparing for the writing test .

Sample Test Questions

Section 1 - 5 of 30

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Sat / act prep online guides and tips, how to get a perfect 12 on the act writing essay.

ACT Strategies , ACT Writing

There is no part of the ACT more mysterious to students than the essay, and very few people seem to know what exactly the ACT is looking for in a "perfect" essay (particularly since September 2015 was the new ACT Writing test's debut). Luckily, we've got the expertise to give you some insight into how the essay works and what you can do to push your score those extra few points up the scale.

Whether you're trying to impress your dream school or just want to boost your ACT score, the essay is a great thing to work on. Some of the tips below stand alone, while others are part of larger categories that have been assembled based our ACT expertise.

Important: If you haven't read these two other ACT Writing guides before , take a minute and read them now:

The ACT Writing Rubric: Analysis, Explanation, and Strategies

How to Write an ACT Essay, Step by Step

This will make the rest of the article make more sense.

Part I: What a 12 on the ACT Essay Means

If you're already scoring an 8 or above in every domain on practice (or real) ACT essays, you have a shot at completely nailing what the graders want, represented by a score of 12, with a little practice.

But there's something important to remember in your quest for perfection: on the ACT essay, a 12 is not always achievable. We've got good news and bad news for those of you who are determined to know how to get a 12 on the ACT essay.

The Big Secret

You'll have to practice this specific essay. The perfect ACT essay is like a puzzle that happens to be in writing form—it can be mastered, but to do it well and completely every time requires a few month's practice. Knowing how to write other kinds of essays will only help you a limited amount.

The Bad News

Because the whole essay must be written in 40 minutes, getting a 12 requires some luck. You have to pick a thesis and think of relevant and convincing evidence to support it before you can even start writing, so a lot depends on how quickly you can decided on a point of view and relevant support for whatever the prompt happens to be. And because perfect-scoring essays are almost always at least two pages long , you won't have any time to spare.

The Good News

Because the essay is so formulaic, it's always possible to get at least a 10 in each domain. And, on top of this, no college worth its salt is going to base your college admission on getting those last two points on an essay you had to write in 40 minutes. The goal, really, is to show that you can write a decent essay in that time, and a 10 in each domain shows that just as well as a 12 does.

Part II: The Difference Between a 10 and a 12

If we asked the ACT what the difference is between a 10 and a 12 ACT essay, they would direct us to their scoring criteria (replicated in the table below) that describes the difference between the 5 and 6 essay scores in each domain. As you may already know, a total domain score of 12 comes from two readers separately giving your essay a 6; the four domain scores are then averaged to calculate your total essay score of 12.

We've marked the differences between the 5 and 6 criteria in bold . Later, we'll look at these differences in the context of a sample essay.

Part III: Applying the Criteria in a Real ACT Essay Example

Now we'll look at a sample essay and how it demonstrates the characteristics of the 6 essay above. First, let's look at the prompt:

Intelligent Machines

Many of the goods and services we depend on daily are now supplied by intelligent, automated machines rather than human beings. Robots build cars and other goods on assembly lines, where once there were human workers. Many of our phone conversations are now conducted not with people but with sophisticated technologies. We can now buy goods at a variety of stores without the help of a human cashier. Automation is generally seen as a sign of progress, but what is lost when we replace humans with machines? Given the accelerating variety and prevalence of intelligent machines, it is worth examining the implications and meaning of their presence in our lives.

Perspective One: What we lose with the replacement of people by machines is some part of our own humanity. Even our mundane daily encounters no longer require from us basic courtesy, respect, and tolerance for other people.

Perspective Two: Machines are good at low-skill, repetitive jobs, and at high-speed, extremely precise jobs. In both cases they work better than humans. This efficiency leads to a more prosperous and progressive world for everyone.

Perspective Three: Intelligent machines challenge our long-standing ideas about what humans are or can be. This is good because it pushes both humans and machines toward new, unimagined possibilities.

Write a unified, coherent essay about the increasing presence of intelligent machines.

Now, read the ACT essay example below , and try to notice how it meets the criteria in the table above.

     From the simplest system of pulleys and ropes to the most complex supercomputer in the world today, machines have had (and continue to have) a profound influence on the development of humanity. Whether it is taking over monotonous, low-skill tasks or removing that messy "human" element from our day-to-day interactions, machines have answered the call to duty. The increasing prevalence of intelligent machines challenges us to change long held beliefs about our limitations and to continue forward to new and even more advanced possibilities.     One common argument against the increased presence of machines in our day to day lives is that machines leach from us our basic humanity. Indeed, certain people whose only social interactions are anonymous text-based conversations with other anonymous Internet forum dwellers over computers may begin to lose basic human courtesy and empathy. This is crystal clear with a glance at the comments section of any popular news article. Yet machines are also capable of enhancing people's abilities to communicate. An example of this can be found in Tod Machover's lab at MIT, where breakthroughs in neurotechnology have made it possible for quadripalegics to manipulate text on computers with their minds. Such interactions would be impossible without the existence of intelligent machines. Therefore, I must disagree with Perspective one. Rather than losing part of our own humanity to machines, we instead make that most-essential-to-humanity of acts, communication, possible.     Another school of thought (Perspective Two) argues that machines are good at how and high skill repetitive jobs, which leads to a more prosperous and progressive world for everyone. This can be seen in the human work hours that are saved daily with automated phone menus. Before intelligent machines made automatic telephone menus possible, every customer service call ate up valuable employee time. Now, menus allow callers to choose the number that best suits their needs, routing calls to appropriate destinations without the need for human employees to waste time explaining for the hundredth time that "our business hours are 10am-6pm." On the other hand, no mechanized system of this kind is perfect, because it can't predict all future outcomes. In terms of automated telephone menus, this means that sometimes, no menu options are correct. While automated systems may take the burden off of human workers, it is a mistake to think that they can replace humans entirely. Why else would the last line of resort for most automated phone menus be "Dial "0" to speak to an operator/customer service representative?" Perspective Two is true, but it only goes so far.     A final example will demonstrate how intelligent machines challenge longstanding ideas and push us towards new, unimagined possibilities (perspective three). At my high school, all students had to take diagnostic tests in every main subject to figure out our strengths and weaknesses, and we were then sorted into class by skill level. A truly remarkable pattern emerged as a result of this sorting: it turned out that every kid in my medium-level physics class was also a talented musician. The system that sorted us allowed us to find this underlying pattern, which changed the way our teachers taught us; we learned about mechanics through examples that were more relevant to our lives (answering questions like "how many pulleys are needed to lift a piano?"), which in turn made our classes both more enjoyable and also more effective. When before I had struggled with physics and simply assumed it was a subject I "wasn't good at," the intelligent, automated sorting system allowed me to discover that I could in fact understand mechanics if taught in the right way. This discovery pushed me toward previously unimagined academic possibilities.     In conclusion, intelligent machines help us to move forward as a species to greater heights. While machines can cause problems and may in some cases need human input to function optimally, it is how we react and adapt to the machines that is the real takeaway.

This was a real essay written by me within the time limit. What do you think?

Now let's look at an annotated version of this ACT essay example that points out the essay's features.

What Makes This ACT Essay a 12, Rather Than an 8 or 10?

Considerations that aren't included in the act's published guidelines.

The essay is long enough to analyze and compare the author's perspective to other perspectives in a nuanced way (one positive example for each perspective with an addition negative example comparing two perspectives the author disagreed with to her own perspective) and include an introductory paragraph and a conclusion.

While ACT, Inc. doesn't acknowledge that length is a factor in scoring ACT essays , most experts agree that it is. But length means nothing if there isn't valuable information filling the space, so long ACT essays also need to be detailed—this author uses the space to give lots of analysis of and context for her examples.

Paragraph Breaks

You may have noticed that the essay is broken up into multiple paragraphs (into the standard five-paragraph format, in fact). This makes the essay easier to read, especially for the ACT readers who have about two to three minutes to read (and score!) each essay. If your points can easily be split up into small parts, then it makes sense to split it up into even more paragraphs, as long as your essay's organization and logical progression remains clear.

Content and Examples

This essay uses a personal example, which may or may not be made up (spoiler alert: it is). But the point is that it could be made up, as can anything you use in your essay. Being able to think of examples (that are not too obviously made up) can give you a huge advantage on the ACT essay.

Do's and Don'ts for a 12 ACT Essay

The key to a perfect score on the ACT essay is to use every second of your time wisely. To this end, here are a few tips to avoid common time-wasters and put your energy where it will get you the most points.

Do spend time:

#1: Writing as much as you can without including repetitive or irrelevant information.

#2: Revising the first and last paragraphs (they stand out in readers' minds).

#3: Making sure you have transitions.

Don't spend time:

#1: Thinking of 'smart' sounding evidence— examples from your own life (or made up about your own life) are just as viable as current events, as long as you keep your example focused and concise.

#2: Trying to correct every error—the grammar and spelling do not have to be perfect to score a 12 in the Language Use domain.

#3: Adding as many vocabulary words as you can—you only need enough to avoid repeating the same basic words or phrases multiple times; you'll max out fancy vocab's potential at two words per paragraph.

How To Practice Your Writing To Get A Perfect 12 In Each Domain

• Start with our list of ACT essay prompts.
• Create a list of evidence examples—from literature, history, or personal experience—that you can use for many or most prompt arguments.
• Practice first with extended time—50 minutes—so you can get an idea of what it takes to get a top-scoring essay.
• Find a way to grade your essay, using the ACT Writing Rubric . If you can be objective about your writing, you can notice weak spots, especially if you ran out of time but know what to do. Otherwise, try to get help from an English teacher or a friend who's a better writer than you are.
• Start narrowing the time down to 40 minutes to mirror the actual test.
• Stay confident! The ACT essay is just like a puzzle—every time you do one, you get better at doing it.

What's Next?

Find out more about how to write an ACT essay with this step-by-step example .

Use our analysis of the ACT Writing Rubric to learn about how your essay will be scored—and discover strategies you can use to get the score you want.

Want to aim for perfection on the ACT with a 36? Read our guide on how to score a perfect ACT score, written by our resident 36 scorer.

Make sure your ACT score is high enough for the schools you want to apply to. Find out how to find your ACT target score .

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Laura graduated magna cum laude from Wellesley College with a BA in Music and Psychology, and earned a Master's degree in Composition from the Longy School of Music of Bard College. She scored 99 percentile scores on the SAT and GRE and loves advising students on how to excel in high school.

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Start Your Application Today

This fall we're excited to partner with common app to make applying for act six more efficient than ever. it’s easy to get started and important to begin the process early to make sure your app is complete by the november 2 deadline. there is no fee for act six, and with your completed common app you can also apply to your choice of more than 900 colleges around the country. check your eligibility and review the material below to learn about the application process. then complete an interest form to get started today., check your eligibility, you are eligible to apply now if you:.

• love your community and want to use your college education to make a difference as a leader on campus and at home;
• will graduate from high school in 2022, or previously graduated in 2021 or 2020;
• are not currently enrolled at a four-year college (students at two-year colleges may apply);
• live in one of our seven Act Six program sites ; and
• want to attend at least one of the Act Six partner colleges in your program site.

While ethnicity and family income are considered as factors in selecting an intentionally diverse group of scholars, there are no income restrictions, and students from all racial and ethnic backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

There is no minimum GPA requirement and admissions standards vary across our partner colleges. In general, applicants with a GPA below 3.0 will need to demonstrate their readiness for academic success in college through their recommendations, essays and/or test scores.

It's Application Time

Application details, new for 2021-22.

As the country slowly emerges from the pandemic, we are returning to our pre-COVID selection timeline with in-person events. We also continue efforts to streamline the application process for applicants and recommenders. The following is a summary of significant changes to the Act Six application and selection process this year:

• The information applicants provide to Act Six through Common App can also be used to apply to more than 900 colleges across the country.
• Recommenders can upload a single recommendation for an applicant to be used for Act Six as well as application to any Common App member college.
• We’ve returned to our traditional selection timeline with application deadline of November 2.
• Selection events will once again be in-person . Depending on local conditions, alternative virtual events may also be offered.
• SAT/ACT scores remain optional for Act Six selection and admission decisions for most applicants at most partner colleges. Test scores are still required for Minneapolis-St Paul students applying to Bethany Lutheran and may be required for some other students in ce rtain limited circumstances.

Application Process

Act Six now utilizes Common App to make the application process more efficient for applicants and the recommenders who support them. The information provided to Act Six through Common App can also be used to apply to more than 900 colleges across the country.

The process to apply for Act Six is as follows:

• Complete the Act Six Interest form. If you are eligible, we’ll email you a link to start your application.
• Use the link in your email to create an Act Six account and start your Act Six application .
• Use the button provided in your Act Six application to create a Common App account and add Act Six to your “My Colleges” list. If you have already started your Common App, the button will add Act Six to your existing application.
• From the Common App, send invitations to your school counselor, teacher and community recommenders .
• Complete and submit your Common App to Act Six .
• Submit your Common App to each of the Act Six partner colleges who accept Common App. These colleges are flagged when you select them on your Act Six application. We’ll send your application to the other colleges you select.
• Complete and submit the Act Six application . This requires first completing the FAFSA, if eligible. Those not eligible to complete the FAFSA must complete the College Board EFC Calculator.

Application Components

The Act Six application consists of three major components , which must all be submitted by the November 2  deadline. Details and instructions for each component are available at the bottom of this page.

• Contact and demographic information
• College preferences
• Two Act Six essays
• Financial summary
• Profile and family information
• Education background and optional testing results
• Activities list
• Personal essay
• School report
• Teacher evaluation
• Community evaluation

  1. Act Six Application

Using the personalized link you receive by email, you’ll create an Act Six account by adding a password or securely linking your Google, Microsoft, Facebook or LinkedIn account. Once you log in, you’ll find a task list with a link to start your Act Six application. You’ll return to this task list for updates throughout the selection process.

The Act Six application form has seven sections:

• Basics . Name, contact and school information.
• Demographics . More about you and your background.
• Colleges . Where you want to apply and what you want to study.
• Common App . A personalized link to add Act Six to your Common App “My Colleges” list.
• Essays . Two essays to tell us more about you and how your vision aligns with Act Six.
• Financials . Summary of family finances from the FAFSA or College Board EFC Calculator.
• Certification . All the final legal stuff.

You can complete the first three sections in about 10 minutes .

To complete the remaining sections, you’ll need to do the following before the November 2 deadline:

• complete and submit your Common App , including the personal essay
• thoughtfully respond to the essay prompts ,
• results from your completed FAFSA or College Board EFC Calculator (for those not eligible for FAFSA), and
• have a parent or guardian on hand to sign the form when you are finished.

The information you enter will be saved after you complete each page. After saving, you can leave and log back in to continue the application at any time.

      --- Essays

The Common App personal essay and the two Act Six essays are perhaps the most important part of your Act Six application. Carefully consider and thoroughly edit each of your responses, as you will be evaluated on content, mechanics and style.

The Common App personal essay is shared with Act Six and all the colleges you apply to with Common App. “The essay demonstrates your ability to write clearly and concisely on a selected topic and helps you distinguish yourself in your own voice. What do you want the readers of your application to know about you apart from courses, grades, and test scores?” [Common App]

You can respond to any of the following prompts with an essay of 250-650 words:

• Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
• The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
• Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
• Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
• Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
• Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
• Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

In addition, you have the opportunity in an additional statement to share any information not reflected in other parts of the application.

As part of the Act Six application , you are required to submit two Act Six-specific essays that tell us more about you and how your vision aligns with Act Six. All applicant must respond to the following prompt in 250-650 words:

• Act Six seeks to identify service-minded leaders who want to enhance their college campuses and their home communities. Reflecting on your life experiences, identities and strengths, describe how these elements have motivated you to serve and lead others now and in the future. Further, how have they prepared you to support your peers in a multicultural Act Six cadre on a college campus and beyond?

The second Act Six prompt depends on the colleges you select, and your response should be between 250-500 words:

• Act Six and the colleges you selected do not expect or require any faith commitment from Act Six applicants. We are, however, committed to exploring through Act Six an open conversation about spirituality as it relates to leadership and service in a diverse community. What role, if any, has your own faith tradition or spirituality played in your life to this point, how might it influence your values and vision for your future, and how do you feel about studying at a religiously affiliated institution?

However, if you select one or more of our partner colleges who require a Christian faith commitment as part of their admissions process,* you will instead be asked to respond to a prompt that asks more explicitly about the nature of your Christian faith and how it impacts your life and leadership. If you do not feel comfortable responding to that prompt, you can remove colleges from your set of selections.

It is critical that you compose and save all of your essays in a separate word processor so you can use spell check and edit carefully. When you have a final product, copy and paste your essays into the application. Be sure to save a copy of your essays for your own records.

Use plain text only, as no formatting or special characters will be preserved. Insert a blank line between each paragraph. Pay close attention to the word count requirements and use the word count feature of your word processor to check the length before pasting. After pasting, scroll down to check that the complete essay fit in the box.

Please be aware that if you disclose information regarding child abuse, neglect or other harm to minors, staff may be required to report this information to the appropriate authorities.

* Bethel University, Corban University, Northwest University, Northwestern-St. Paul University, North Central University, Oakland City University and Taylor University require a Christian faith commitment as part of their admissions process.

      --- Financials

We need basic information regarding your financial situation as we consider your application. In order to complete the Financials section of the Act Six application, you need to first submit your completed Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) , if you are eligible.* You can begin working on your FAFSA when it opens on October 1 , using your income and tax information from last year.  If you are not eligible to complete the FAFSA, you must instead use the College Board EFC Calculator , which can be accessed at any time.

The following steps are required to complete the Financials section for those eligible for the FAFSA :

•  In order to complete the FAFSA, both you and a parent you live with need to create a  FSA ID , which will allow you both to access and sign your FAFSA. Visit  fsaid.ed.gov/npas to create a FSA ID.
• After October 1, start your FAFSA at fafsa.ed.gov . Visit the  FAFSA Help Page  for an overview of the process and answers to many common questions. If you have further questions, ask a counselor at your school for assistance. Please ensure that you indicated on your FAFSA to have results sent to every college that you selected on your Act Six Main Application.
• Once you and your parent complete and sign the FAFSA with your FSA IDs, you will receive a FAFSA  Student Aid Report that summarizes the information you provided and shows your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) .
• With your FAFSA Student Aid Report in hand, complete the Financial Summary section. You cannot complete this form without your Student Aid Report.

The following steps are required to complete the Financials section for those not eligible for the FAFSA :

• Visit the College Board EFC Calculator at any time.
• Read all instructions very carefully and complete the five steps of the form. The process should only take 10 minutes if you have all of the required income figures. Be sure to click on the blue question mark icons for instructions and clarification on each question.
• On the Formula page, be sure to select “ Federal Methodology (FM) “.
• After completing the Finances page, click the “ See Results ” button.
• On the Results page, you will find “ Total Estimated FM Contribution “.
• With this number in hand, complete the Financial Summary section. You cannot complete this form without this number.
• As an option, you can click “ Save Results ” to create a College Board account so you can access these results again in the future.

* U.S. Citizens, U.S. Permanent Residents and immigrants with refugee status are typically eligible to complete the FAFSA.

  2. Common App

From the Common App page of your Act Six application, you’ll find a button to add Act Six to your Common App “My Colleges” list. If you have not yet started Common App, you’ll be prompted to create an account. If you have already started an application, you simply login again. After logging in, you’ll find Act Six listed on your “My Colleges” list. Note that you cannot search for or add Act Six directly from Common App.

To apply for Act Six, you must create your Common App account as a first-year student , not as a transfer student (even if you have already graduated high school and are currently enrolled in a two-year college). You cannot add Act Six to a Common App transfer application.

Common App has six sections:

• Profile . Name, contact and demographic information.
• Family . Information about your parents and siblings.
• Education . High schools and colleges you’ve attended and honors you’ve received.
• Testing . ACT, SAT, AP or IB tests you’ve taken or plan to take, and your best scores.
• Activities . List of extracurricular activities, including work, sports, volunteering, etc.
• Writing . Personal essay , as well as any additional information you wish you provide.

The information that you provide in these sections is shared with Act Six and all of the colleges you choose to apply to with Common App.

When you have completed all the sections of your Common App, you must submit it to Act Six . We download updates from Common App once every night. The Common App page of your Act Six application will indicate when we have received your Common App (typically, the day following submission). Note that once you have submitted your Common App to Act Six, we will not receive any further changes you make to the Common App.

In addition to Act Six, you must submit your Common App directly to each of the Act Six partner colleges who accept Common App. These colleges are flagged when you select them on your Act Six application. We’ll forward your application to the other colleges you select.

  3. Common App Recommendations

Act Six requires three Common App recommendation forms:

• School report , completed by your high school counselor who can access your transcript as well as school and class information.
• Teacher evaluation , completed by a teacher who has taught you an academic subject (for example, English, foreign language, math, science, or social studies).
• Other evaluation , completed online by a mentor, employer, teacher, pastor or other adult (possibly at school) familiar with the applicant’s leadership potential and involvement outside of school.

We encourage you to provide your recommenders with specific information about Act Six, and to send invitations as soon as possible to leave adequate time for them to respond. To invite your recommenders, click “ Recommenders and FERPA ” under Act Six in “My Colleges”. Carefully read all the instructions, then click the Invite Recommenders button to invite a counselor, teacher, and an other recommender. You can then assign a recommender to each of the required forms.

Note that you can assign a recommender to both Act Six and multiple other colleges. When you do, the single recommendation form they submit will be shared with all of the colleges you assigned them to. Recommenders are not able to provide different letters to Act Six and other colleges.

Counselors and recommenders can learn more about the process at the Common App’s Recommender Guide .

Selection Process

Selection timeline.

Act Six scholars are chosen through a rigorous, highly competitive, three-phase selection process that spans four months.

Phase I: Online Application

Applicants complete an initial online application that includes three major components : an Act Six application, the Common App, and three Common App recommendations.  All application materials must be submitted by November 2 at  11:59 pm . After an initial screening of written application materials, applicants are notified whether they will advance by email on November 18 .

Phase II: Video Submission and Interactive Group Assessment

Candidates will be given a prompt and have one week to submit a 3-minute, unedited, individual video to supplement their application materials by November 29 . Videos are assessed on their content, not on the quality of the filming.

Candidates then participate in a local half-day interactive event on December 4 where they demonstrate their academic and leadership potential while working together to address a complex community issue. Candidates learn more about each partner college and based on that information can update their college preferences after the event. A local community committee considers candidates’ performance on both the written and interactive components to name 20-30 semifinalists for each partner college. Depending on local conditions, an alternative virtual event may also be offered. Decisions are emailed on January 24 .

Phase III: Virtual Campus Visit

Semifinalists travel to the college for which they were selected for a two- or three-day on-campus event between  February 4-25 . Phase III allows students to experience campus life as they participate in a four-part evaluation process that includes a personal interview, an on-site writing task, academic seminar discussions, and group problem-solving activities. A parent or guardian is invited to participate in a portion of the visit. Depending on local conditions, an alternative virtual event may also be offered. Partner colleges select finalists and decisions are emails on February 28 .

Final Decision and Announcement

Finalists are given one week to decide and commit to the Act Six program by March 7 , agreeing to participate fully in the six-month training program. Applicants may withdraw from the process at any time prior to this commitment.  The new class of Act Six scholars are formally announced to the public on March 18 .

Selection Criteria

E very year Act Six recruits diverse, multicultural cadres of a region’s most promising emerging urban and community leaders. We seek young people who want to use their college education to make a difference on campus and in their communities at home. Act Six scholars must be:

• committed to anti-racism and compelled to work for justice and equity,
• passionate about learning,
• eager to foster intercultural relationships,
• willing to step out of their comfort zones,
• committed to serving those around them, and
• ready to make a difference on campus and at home.

The selection process also places high value on applicants’ teamwork, critical thinking, communication skills and academic potential.

Selecting Act Six scholars is a complex and multi-faceted process that considers many factors.  The selection committees use the following questions to guide their evaluation of Act Six applicants.  These questions best summarize what we are looking for in Act Six scholars.

• To what extent will the student contribute to the racial, economic, and experiential diversity of an Act Six cadre?
• To what extent is the student prepared to succeed and thrive academically at the selected college?
• To what extent will the selected college be a good fit for this student?
• To what extent will the student eagerly engage in a year-long exploration and discussion of Christian perspectives on leadership, diversity, and social justice?
• To what extent does the student understand and desire to advance the stated mission of the selected college?
• To what extent will the student be a service-minded leader and an agent of transformation on the college campus?
• To what extent will the student be committed to serving others and to what extent will s/he view the Act Six initiative as an opportunity to reach out to those around them?
• To what extent will the student be committed to and effective in fostering intercultural communication and acting as an agent for social change on the college campus?
• To what extent does the student see a sense of purpose in their participation in the Act Six Initiative?
• To what extent will attending the selected college and participating in the Initiative align with and/or transform the student’s goals and vision for their life?
• To what extent will the student be able and willing to persevere through hardship? How resilient are they to the challenges and struggles that life brings?
• To what extent does the student possess a depth and strength of character that will serve to encourage, support, and empower those around them?

ACT Essay Samples | Good vs Bad Examples

The ACT Essay option is a great way to impress college admissions officers with your writing ability. But what does a good essay look like vs a bad one? Thankfully, ACT has provided some helpful ACT essay samples that you can study based on good vs not-so-good examples.

In addition, here are 10 helpful ACT Essay prep tips to practice before test day.

ACT Essay Samples Prompt

This provided prompt, Intelligent Machines, is a good representation of how prompts are provided to you on the actual test.

“The test describes an issue and provides three different perspectives on the issue. You are asked to read and consider the issue and perspectives, state your own perspective on the issue, and analyze the relationship between your perspective and at least one other perspective on the issue. Your score will not be affected by the perspective you take on the issue.”

ACT Essay Samples Passage

Here is the actual passage that students drew from when writing the sample essays below.

Intelligent Machines

“Many of the goods and services we depend on daily are now supplied by intelligent, automated machines rather than human beings. Robots build cars and other goods on assembly lines, where once there were human workers. Many of our phone conversations are now conducted not with people but with sophisticated technologies. We can now buy goods at a variety of stores without the help of a human cashier. Automation is generally seen as a sign of progress, but what is lost when we replace humans with machines? Given the accelerating variety and prevalence of intelligent machines, it is worth examining the implications and meaning of their presence in our lives.

Read and carefully consider these perspectives. Each suggests a particular way of thinking about the increasing presence of intelligent machines.”

ACT Essay Samples Perspective Choices

• Perspective One : What we lose with the replacement of people by machines is some part of our own humanity. Even our mundane daily encounters no longer require from us basic courtesy, respect, and tolerance for other people. “
• Perspective Two : Machines are good at low-skill, repetitive jobs, and at high-speed, extremely precise jobs. In both cases, they work better than humans. This efficiency leads to a more prosperous and progressive world for everyone.”
• Perspective Three : Intelligent machines challenge our long-standing ideas about what humans are or can be. This is good because it pushes both humans and machines toward new, unimagined possibilities.”

ACT Essay Sample 1 (Low-Scoring)

“Well Machines are good but they take people jobs like if they don’t know how to use it they get fired and they’ll find someone else and it’s more easyer with machines but sometimes they don’t need people because of this machines do there own job and there be many people that lack on there job but the intelligent machines sometimes may not work or they’ll brake easy and it’s waste of money on this machines and there really expensive to buy but they help alot at the same time it help alot but at the same time this intelligent machines work and some don’t work but many store buy them and end up broken or not working but many stores gets them and end up wasting money on this intelligent machines’ but how does it help us and the comunity because some people get fired because they do not need him because of this machines many people are losing job’s because of this machines.”

Sample Essay 2 (High-Scoring)

“Should machines be used to do good and services instead of humans? I believe they should not for many reasons. Machines can not be smart unless a human is controlling it. So it would not matter if it’s an intelligent machine or not a human is still controlling it to do everything.

When using a machine it could easily malfunction and it could be hard to fix the problem or it will just take a while to fix it. If a human is taking over instead of the machine there may be fewer problems. Machines have so many problems that it would not be worth having.

Also, the more machines you have the fewer jobs there are for people because everyone thinks it would be better to have machines instead of people. When fewer people are out of work that means less money for those people and sometimes they will lose their homes or cars because they can not afford anything.

Sometimes working with machines can be very stressful because they may not work at times or they could be running extremely slow and won’t get anything done. Machines are not smart at all, only when people are controlling them they are but not all the time. It may seem smart but it’s really not.

In conclusion, I think machines should not be used to take over a human job because machines can not think only humans can think and make right or wrong decisions. Machines do not have brains, they’re not wired to think so why have them do stuff that we can do ourselves.”

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The ACT Part 6: Essay

• February 14, 2015

Note: this post has been updated to reflect recent changes to the ACT essay.

This is the sixth in a six-part series on the ACT.

Read Part 1 – Intro , Part 2 – English , Part 3 – Math , Part 4 – Reading , Part 5 – Science

And finally, we come to the Essay section. The Essay is optional but required by some colleges. Unless you’re 100% sure that every college you’re applying to doesn’t require it, then you should take it. It’s just an extra 40 minutes at the end of the test. If you don’t do the essay and apply to a college that requires it, you’ll have to retake the entire test.

As I said in Part 1 , the Essay score doesn’t count toward your composite score. So why should you even care about it?

Because some colleges care about it. You might have a composite score in the 30s, but if your essay score is dismal, that could raise a red flag for the admissions department: this student can’t write! You don’t want that to happen, so take the essay seriously. Don’t freak out over it; just do your best.

Learning to write well is the most important skill for success in college. You can go to class every day, complete all the assigned reading, and have brilliant things to say about what you’ve learned. But if you can’t communicate your thoughts in writing, your professors won’t know how brilliant you are!

Furthermore, most high-paying jobs require some amount of writing. If your emails to your boss or to clients are filled with mistakes and nonsensical sentences, you can bet they’ll notice.

But learning how to write well isn’t easy. It takes years of practice. I can’t teach you how in a two-hour class, much less a blog post. But I can recommend a wonderful little book called Writing with Style by John Trimble. It’s very short and easy to read. He basically shows you all the mistakes every college freshman makes (everybody makes the same mistakes) and then shows you how not to make them. He’s got a lot to say, but the most important part is: Write to be understood. Keep your sentences short and to the point.

Back to the essay . . . You will be presented with three viewpoints on an issue (environmentalism, healthcare; it could be anything really). Your job is to analyze and evaluate the three perspectives, provide your own perspective, and explain the relationship between your perspective and the three perspectives given.

Two graders will score your essay on four metrics, each on a scale of 1-6:

Ideas & Analysis (1-6) Development & Support (1-6) Organization (1-6) Language Use (1-6)

These four scores are averaged for each grader, so you’ll get two scores on a scale of 1-6, which are then added for your final score, on a scale of 2-12. Simple!

Short essays get low scores , so be sure to use the full 40 minutes, and make your essay as long as possible (without repeating yourself).

The best way to prepare for the essay is to read the sample essays and scoring explanations on the ACT website .

If you’re concerned about the essay, you may want to contact your target schools and find out if they require the essay and what kind of score they’re looking for. In most cases, an 8 (on the 2-12 scale) is probably good enough, but higher is always preferred.

Again, the essay does not affect your composite score , and the composite is the primary benchmark colleges will be considering.

Want to know where you stand? Send us your essay, and we’ll grade it for free! Just send us an email with “practice essay” in the subject line, and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

This concludes our series on the ACT. If you live in the Austin area, you can sign up for a free practice test . And, of course, we’ve got ACT classes going all year long. If you’ve still got questions about the ACT (or anything!) we’d love to hear from you !

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By submitting my email address. i certify that i am 13 years of age or older, agree to recieve marketing email messages from the princeton review, and agree to terms of use., sample act essay prompt (and how to tackle it).

Are you taking the ACT with Writing? No need to stress! The ACT essay follows a predictable format, which means you can practice and prepare beforehand. Take a look at a sample ACT writing prompt and learn five key steps to penning a high-scoring essay.

Keep in mind: The ACT writing essay is optional. Currently, only 27 colleges and universities require the ACT with Writing. You can see the complete list  here . If there is any chance that you might apply to one of those schools, you should register for the ACT with Writing. Not sure where you will apply? You should strongly consider signing up for the essay and keep your options open.

ACT with Writing: Sample Prompt

This example writing prompt comes straight from our book ACT Prep :

Education and the Workplace

Many colleges and universities have cut their humanities departments, and high schools have started to shift their attention much more definitively toward STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) and away from ELA (English, Language Arts). Representatives from both school boards and government organizations suggest that the move toward STEM is necessary in helping students to participate in a meaningful way in the American workplace. Given the urgency of this debate for the future of education and society as a whole, it is worth examining the potential consequences of this shift in how students are educated in the United States.

Read and carefully consider these perspectives. Each suggests a particular way of thinking about the shift in American education.

Write a unified, coherent essay in which you evaluate multiple perspectives on the issue of how schools should balance STEM and ELA subjects. In your essay, be sure to:

• analyze and evaluate the perspectives given
• state and develop your own perspective on the issue
• explain the relationship between your perspective and those given

Your perspective may be in full agreement with any of the others, in partial agreement, or wholly different. Whatever the case, support your ideas with logical reasoning and detailed, persuasive examples.

How to Write the ACT Essay

Your job is to write an essay in which you take some sort of position on the prompt, all while assessing the three perspectives provided in the boxes. Find a way to anchor your essay with a unique perspective of your own that can be defended and debated, and you are already in the upper echelon of scorers.

Step 1: Work the Prompt

What in the prompt requires you to weigh in? Why is this issue still the subject of debate and not a done deal?

Step 2: Work the Perspectives

Typically, the three perspectives will be split: one for , one against , and one in the middle . Your goal in Step 2 is to figure out where each perspective stands and then identify at least one shortcoming of each perspective. For the example above, ask yourself: 

• What does each perspective consider?
• What does each perspective overlook?

Read More: What's a Good ACT Score?

Step 3: Generate Your Own Perspective

Now it's time to come up with your own perspective! If you merely restate one of the three given perspectives, you won’t be able to get into the highest scoring ranges. You’ll draw from each of the perspectives, and you may side with one of them, but your perspective should have something unique about it.

Step 4: Put It All Together

Now that you have your ideas in order, here's a blueprint for how to organize the ACT essay. This blueprint works no matter what your prompt is.

Step 5: (If There's Time): Proofread

Spend one or two minutes on proofreading your essay if you have time. You’re looking for big, glaring errors. If you find one, erase it completely or cross it out neatly. Though neatness doesn’t necessarily affect your grade, it does make for a happy grader.

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