Definitely think the 2 hour format makes it less stressful for most. But the way the difficulty of the questions advances or declines with how you’ve done in the first section makes grading very curious. And how will ACT react?
There are many other tests that are already designed this way (called “adaptive tests”). An example is the GMAT - used for MBA/Finance graduate admissions.
The scoring is based on solid statistical data that is meant to produce pretty much the same score as you would have received on the old (current) SAT. So I wouldn’t worry about it.
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I think it will be easier in all ways, but for the wrong reasons. The test is on the decline and easy means more tests taken each year.
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The net result will be an equated 400-1600 score just as since 2016. I’ve seen no discussion of test renorming.
Individual tests always vary in difficulty.
Personally, I am very glad that I already finished the SAT, and didn’t have to do it online. Being able to just touch, underline, and interact with a physical test helped a lot during the EBRW section for me.
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I feel there’s an opportunity for the College Board to use the new adaptive SAT to actually raise the bar, so that highly selective schools can better distinguish the strongest academic students. Right now, it appears that the top STEM schools don’t get much insights from the SAT math score and turn to math competition results and HS coursework to better gauge college readiness of competitive applicants.
If GPA inflation continues and the SAT becomes even easier, I wonder whether the top schools might introduce their own entrance tests and/or students who apply to these schools will feel compelled to enter math competitions/equivalent in order to stand out.
Of course, this is just speculation on my part.
Anyone know the answer to this question: For kids entering college in Fall 2026 (so college grad class of 2030, I think), will colleges accept the current paper SAT tests as part of the application, or will they accept the digital SAT only?
Background: My 8th grader has taken the SAT once already, so I figured the paper format is easier / familiar to him, so was wondering if he should take it in 9th grade (2023), before the digital version rolls out, and get it over with (rather than studying for the new test / test format with potentially different type of questions - I know this is not mentioned, but still could be a possibility?). The difficulty is not a problem as he did well on his previous SAT so I feel he could hit his target score in 9th grade.
Both of my kids got caught up in SAT changes. One when they added the mandatory writing section…and the other when they then deleted it.
I agree with the above poster who said the SAT is on the decline. I think this is yet another attempt to make the SAT seem more relevant than it really is.
As schools have morphed to test optional, I predict this trend will continue to grow.
And CA is test blind until when?! As are some other colleges.
It’s dying a very slow death.
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Some schools will only accept SAT scores from specific years in high school, often sophomore and junior years. For example, Carnegie Mellon University recommends that students take the SAT in junior year or the summer before, and will be more skeptical of earlier scores (https://www.cmu.edu/admission/admission/standardized-testing)
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They will accept both or either. As noted above, the only will be colleges that don’t accept scored before a certain year in HS. But they are few and far between.
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