The New SAT Digital Exam
On Tuesday, January 25, 2022, College Board announced that the SAT exam will transition to a new digital format starting in early 2023. While international students will be administered the new SAT digital exam in spring 2023, students in the United States will be administered the new SAT digital exam in spring 2024. Eventually, College Board will no longer administer the traditional paper SAT exam.
Tentative SAT Exam Changes
College Board announced tentative updates for the SAT exam. One of the most important updates is that the SAT exam will shorten from a 3-hour exam to a 2-hour exam. Reading passages will be noticeably shorter so students will have more time to focus on each passage and question. Unlike the current SAT format, the upcoming SAT digital exam will remove the Math Test–No Calculator section. That means students will be able to use the calculator on all math questions. However, students must keep in mind that these SAT updates are still tentative. College Board reserves the right to backtrack its updates, or add new ones until the new SAT digital exam is officially administered.
The following table details the tentative SAT exam updates from College Board. Created by Presidio Education®, 2022.
| Current SAT Exam vs. Upcoming SAT Digital Exam | |
|---|---|
| Current SAT Exam | SAT Digital Exam 2023 |
| Total test time = 3 Hours | Total test time = 2 Hours |
| Reading Test
Writing & Language Test Math Test–No Calculator Math Test–Calculator |
Reading Test
Writing & Language Test Math Test–Calculator |
| High school-level reading passages | College-level reading passages |
| Longer reading passages | Shorter reading passages |
| Reading passages with multiple questions tied to each passage | Reading passages with only one (1) question tied to each passage |
| Math Test–No Calculator and Math Test–Calculator with longer questions in context and longer word problems | Math Test–Calculator with shorter questions in context and shorter word problems |
| No Essay Test | No Essay Test |
| Scores released in weeks | Scores released in days |
| Total SAT Score = 1600 | Total SAT Score = 1600 |
When Will the SAT Digital Exam be Administered?
For 2022, College Board will stick to its current SAT exam format. That means that the SAT exam will continue to be administered in the traditional paper exam format. Starting in spring 2023, the SAT digital exam will be administered to international students. This will help make processing the SAT much more efficient. In spring 2024, the SAT digital exam will be administered to students in the United States. The new SAT digital exam will allow students to use their personal laptops, tablets, or school computers to complete the whole exam. Even if a student’s laptop loses power or disconnects, the student’s answers will automatically be saved. Once the student is able to reconnect online, the exam will resume.
Will the Question-Types Change?
College Board hasn’t published previews of the SAT digital exam question-types. This is one of the most important pieces of information students need in order to adequately prepare for this new SAT. If the question-types remain the same, then many international students that will train in 2022 will be more on track for the spring 2023 SAT digital exam. But if College Board decides to change how questions are asked, then preparing for the 2023 SAT digital exam will be more challenging. Since students in the United States won’t be allowed to take the SAT digital exam until spring 2024, these students will have the benefit of gaining feedback from international students in 2023.
Will Students be able to Change Answers?
Wondering whether students will be able to change their answers on the SAT digital exam sounds like a ridiculous question. Sure, we all take tests and go back to check answers. Oftentimes, we even change our answers after finding mistakes with our original answers. But why should students consider this as a potential problem? The answer is simple. Currently, the online ACT exam is programmed so that students can’t go back to change their multiple-choice question (MCQ) answers. Once students pick their answers, the online program moves them to the next question. Students also aren't allowed to preview future passages or questions. Therefore, since the ACT makes these rules for its online exam, we have yet to see whether the SAT digital exam will adopt similar constraints.
Why Will the SAT Change Its Format?
The reality is that undergraduate schools are phasing out standardized tests, such as the SAT and ACT, as part of their admissions requirements. According to College Board, in 2020 approximately 2.2 million students took the SAT, but in 2021, only approximately 1.5 million students took the SAT (College Board, 2022). Unfortunately, yes, the COVID-19 pandemic has made taking the paper SAT much harder since many students are forced to stay at home during school. But the pandemic isn’t the main reason why more and more undergraduate schools are becoming test-optional. Undergraduate schools realize that unlike writing exams, multiple-choice question (MCQ) exams don’t measure a student’s intelligence. MCQ exams only measure basic logic and time management.
In 2020, the average SAT score was only 1051 (College Board, 2022). That average was relatively low. In 2021, the average SAT score slightly increased to 1060, which wasn’t that much of an improvement (College Board, 2022). These relatively low scores aren’t really that impressive to many undergraduate schools. This is another reason why College Board is most likely revising its entire SAT format. Along with the hopes that students will improve their scores, and chances of getting accepted into undergraduate schools, College Board will do its best to get as many students to take the SAT before all undergraduate schools no longer even accept them. Don’t forget, College Board still needs to generate revenue in order to compete with ACT. Eventually, undergraduate schools will most likely transition from test-optional to not even accepting the SAT or ACT.
Should Students Still Take the SAT in 2022?
This is a tough question. Students need sufficient time to build reading comprehension, reading speed, vocabulary, grammar skills and math skills. If students take the SAT in 2022, this SAT exam will be an hour longer and apparently much harder than the upcoming SAT digital exam. All 2022 SAT scores will also stay on a student’s permanent College Board record. Then again, if students, specifically international students, wait until the 2023 SAT digital exam, they won’t really have much exposure to those question-types beforehand unless College Board publishes some sample questions. Either way, if students decide to take the SAT this year, or wait until 2023, they need to continue building their skills.
Questions About the SAT Digital Exam?
We encourage all students, parents and even fellow teachers to contact us for questions about the current SAT exam or upcoming SAT digital exam. Even if students feel a bit uneasy about the tentative SAT digital exam, we encourage students not to feel overly anxious. We’re confident that our English and math faculty can help accelerate SAT skills regardless of the SAT exam format. Please contact us today for more information on private SAT classes.
