# TRATES: Trait-Specific Rubric-Assisted Cross-Prompt Essay Scoring

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.14577 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.14577/

## Key facts

- Cited by 12 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 9 of its 28 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 20 May 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 9 of 9)

- [Llama 2: Open Foundation and Fine-Tuned Chat Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.09288/) (2023)
- [SimPO: Simple Preference Optimization with a Reference-Free Reward](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.14734/) (2024)
- [Exploring LLM Prompting Strategies for Joint Essay Scoring and Feedback Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.15845/) (2024)
- [Can Large Language Models Automatically Score Proficiency of Written Essays?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.06149/) (2024)
- [Unleashing Large Language Models' Proficiency in Zero-shot Essay Scoring](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.04941/) (2024)
- [LLM-as-a-tutor in EFL Writing Education: Focusing on Evaluation of Student-LLM Interaction](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.05191/) (2023)
- [Prompt- and Trait Relation-aware Cross-prompt Essay Trait Scoring](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.16826/) (2023)
- [Prompt Agnostic Essay Scorer: A Domain Generalization Approach to Cross-prompt Automated Essay Scoring](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2008.01441/) (2020)
- [Autoregressive Score Generation for Multi-trait Essay Scoring](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.08332/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 12 of 12)

- [LLM Essay Scoring Under Holistic and Analytic Rubrics: Prompt Effects and Bias](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2604.00259/) (2026)
- [Beyond Holistic Scores: Automatic Trait-Based Quality Scoring of Argumentative Essays](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.04604/) (2026)
- [Trait-Aware Policy Optimization for Autoregressive Multi-Trait Essay Scoring](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.25731/) (2026)
- [CRACQ: A Multi-Dimensional Approach To Automated Document Assessment](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.02337/) (2025)
- [Qayyem: A Real-time Platform for Scoring Proficiency of Arabic Essays](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.01009/) (2026)
- [Structured Prompting for Arabic Essay Proficiency: A Trait-Centric Evaluation Approach](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.19668/) (2026)
- [MAPLE: A Meta-learning Framework for Cross-Prompt Essay Scoring](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2604.17569/) (2026)
- [Feedback-to-Rubrics: Can We Learn Expert Criteria from Inline Comments?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.29857/) (2026)
- [Incentives Of EdTech: A Systematic Review Of EduNLP Research](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.13691/) (2026)
- [LLM Performance on a Real, Double-Marked GCSE Benchmark](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.24973/) (2026)
- [When Rubrics Change: Cross-Rubric Generalization for Critical Thinking Essay Scoring](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.13433/) (2026)
- [A Unified Framework to Elicit Structured Feedback for Interpretable Multi-Trait Essay Scoring](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.28407/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Research on holistic Automated Essay Scoring (AES) is long-dated; yet, there is a notable lack of attention for assessing essays according to individual traits. In this work, we propose TRATES, a novel trait-specific and rubric-based cross-prompt AES framework that is generic yet specific to the underlying trait. The framework leverages a Large Language Model (LLM) that utilizes the trait grading rubrics to generate trait-specific features (represented by assessment questions), then assesses those features given an essay. The trait-specific features are eventually combined with generic writing-quality and prompt-specific features to train a simple classical regression model that predicts trait scores of essays from an unseen prompt. Experiments show that TRATES achieves a new state-of-the-art performance across all traits on a widely-used dataset, with the generated LLM-based features being the most significant.