The Future of Standardized Testing
The SAT test has transformed over the last few decades, largely due to the changes the ACT made that put competitive pressure on College Board. The SAT has reformulated the scoring, removed the subject tests, and added super scoring (see “How to Get the Most Out of the SAT” for more on super scoring).
Starting in 2024, the SAT will be one hour shorter (a 2-hour test, down from 3 hours), have shorter passages on the reading section, and allow a calculator on the entire math section. These changes make the SAT seem more like the ACT, aside from the science section present on the ACT.
The biggest change coming to the SAT in 2024 is the medium through which it is administered. All SAT tests will be conducted online. This couldn’t possibly end in disaster and be plagued with cheating, could it? No way. Impossible. Not in a million years. Students don’t cheat. Never have, never will.
Jokes aside, this could be a very real problem for students taking the tests and the colleges accepting scores. If cheating does end up being an inevitable part of the process, we’ll see score inflation. If it becomes widespread, we’ll see average scores increase. In other words, a score of 1300 in 2020 may have been good enough to get into college X, but may not be good enough in 2025 if we see inflation in scores.
Does this mean that the SAT will phase out over the next decade? It certainly could, but it’s too early to tell. Capitalism always prevails in the United States. The College Board will do anything and everything to salvage one of its biggest revenue generators, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we see more changes as they receive feedback and data about the number of test-takers in the coming years.
Are the ACT and SAT Still Relevant?
For now, the short answer is “kinda”. As if the college admissions process weren’t complicated enough, there are now even more buzz words floating around. Some colleges are test-blind, some are test-optional, and then some (but very few) still require a standardized test score. Let’s start by defining each category:
Test-blind: the school will NOT consider an SAT/ACT score, even if your child chooses to send it to the school. Your child could submit a perfect score and it wouldn’t mean a thing
Test-optional: the school does not require a score to be submitted with an application, but it can influence your application should your child choose to do so
Test-required: business as usual. These schools require you to submit an SAT/ACT score with the application
Test-required schools are by far the rarest schools nowadays. Most schools have adopted a test-optional policy. Each school handles its test-optional admissions process differently. Some schools lump everybody together to determine candidacy while other schools separate students into groups: those who did submit scores and those who did not. Unfortunately, schools aren’t great about making this information obvious so I would recommend contacting an admissions counselor about how they assess students who do/don’t submit scores.
So the big question is “should my child take the SAT/ACT still?” My answer is probably. Even if a school is test-optional, submitting a strong score still benefits your child’s application and increases their odds of acceptance. Now, if your child is interested in test-blind schools exclusively, then my answer is no. Save your time and save your child’s time and stress levels. But in most cases, students will be submitting applications to test-optional schools and would strengthen their application with a good score.
The importance placed on strong test scores is even more pronounced considering the grade inflation currently happening in the public school system. Many counties, like Fairfax County in VA, have adopted a policy making the minimum grade 50% on any assignment. That means students get to put in less effort and get better grades. If they miss an assignment here and there, it doesn’t impact their grade as it did before. The floor has been raised, meaning everyone’s grades are higher than they have been in previous years, and the GPAs of students in a graduating class are more tightly grouped. This makes it harder to compare students based on GPA, making the SAT/ACT even more of a deciding factor than before.
