Politics and GRE writing scores?

[lizard63]

Hi all,

In preparing for the GRE (ugh) I've been reading through potential issue essay topics on the ETS site (can be found here if interested). Many of these prompts stand out to me as particularly relevant in our (USA's) current political climate.  For example:

• To be an effective leader, a public official must maintain the highest ethical and moral standards.
• Unfortunately, in contemporary society, creating an appealing image has become more important than the reality or truth behind that image.

• Claim: Any piece of information referred to as a fact should be mistrusted, since it may well be proven false in the future. Reason: Much of the information that people assume is factual actually turns out to be inaccurate.

Here's my main concern/question: if the topic seems to be begging for a connection to current events (#fakenews), do you include it in the essay because it's (a) an easy point to make and the first thing that comes to mind and time is limited and (b) proof that you're aware of what's happening around you politically?  OR, do you avoid it in case there is a risk that the human grader who receives your essay might have a different political orientation or might find it inappropriate for you to reveal your political affiliation in a standardized test format? Am I over-thinking this?  Is there a chance one could receive a lowered score with effective writing that ultimately criticizes our current administration if the grader is sympathetic to that administration? Or would they recuse themselves from grading the essay?

Thanks for your thoughts!!

[Keri]

The graders don't really care about your political leanings, they are only looking to grade on your argument. My test had a question about effective leaders, and I criticized current US politics, as well as talked about Korean and Romanian events of the past year. I ran out of time so it wasn't the best essay, but I got a 4.5 in the end which is decent. Whatever you feel can be backed up with a good argument will work. Good luck!