On January 25, the College Board announced sweeping changes to the way the SAT and PSAT will be administered. Beginning in March 2023, students outside of the United States will take a new digital version of the SAT; students in the US will begin using the digital format a year later. These will be the first major changes to the SAT since 2016, when the College Board transitioned from using a 2400-point scale back to the original 1600-point scale. 

Because this shift will not take place immediately, current juniors and seniors will not be affected. Current sophomores (the Class of 2024) will be the first international students to take the new versions of the PSAT and SAT, and current freshmen (the Class of 2025) will be the first domestic students to be affected.

So what will be different about these future tests? Here’s a rundown of the changes that have been announced:

● Students will take the test on a laptop or tablet

● The test will take 2 hours rather than 3

● Reading passages will be shorter; questions will be more concise and straightforward

● Students can use a calculator for the entire math section

● Scores will be delivered in days rather than weeks

And here’s what’s not changing:

● The SAT will remain on a 1600-point scale

● Students will take the tests at school or a test center (not at home)

As testing requirements shift for colleges and universities, it remains to be seen if this new format will have an impact on how schools consider test scores in the admissions process. For now, you can learn more about these changes at sat.org/digital.

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Stephen Friedfeld is the co-founder and COO of AcceptU. He received a BA from Cornell University, an MA from Columbia University Teachers College, and a Ph.D. from Rice University. Prior to founding AcceptU, Stephen was an Assistant Dean of admissions at Cornell for four years and an Associate Dean of graduate admissions at Princeton University for six years. Stephen is an IECA Associate Member.