What Is the Difference Between the Old and New SAT?

The new digital SAT will be administered through a digital app called Bluebook. This means that students will need to take the exam on a device with a strong wifi connection. Students will have the option to use their own pre-approved device, such as a laptop and tablet, or borrow a device from their school or testing center. CollegeBoard will also have a loan program where students can borrow a device for the duration of their test.  

While the new SAT test is now offered online, it is not offered remotely. This means that students will still need to take their exam at an approved test site, such as at a local school. These test sites will have an IT technician on hand to help troubleshoot any technical difficulties. 

While the pencil-and-paper SAT lasted three hours, the new SAT only takes two hours and 14 minutes. Test-taking is always stressful and long exams can be draining — especially high-stakes exams like the SAT. Hopefully now that it’s an hour shorter, you’ll be able to stay focused throughout the exam. 

One of the reasons why the new SAT test is an hour shorter is because the exam now consists of two sections instead of three. Previously, the SAT had a Math section, a Reading section, and a Writing section. Now there are only two sections: a Math section and a Reading/Writing section. 

Both the Math and Reading/Writing sections are broken down into two modules. For the Reading/Writing Modules, the Reading questions make up the first half of each module and the Writing questions make up the second half of each module. Students must complete Module 1 before they can move onto Module 2 on both the Math and Reading/Writing sections. 

Now, let’s take a closer look at how the exams is organized:

The old SAT featured both long and short reading passages, with passages ranging from 500-750 words. These passages corresponded with sets of multiple questions. The new SAT, however, features shorter reading passages, with passages ranging from 25-150 words. Each passage only corresponds to one question. Overall, the questions — on both the Math and Reading/Writing sections — are more straightforward. 

The new SAT format features several digital tools, including a countdown clock, a way to flag questions and come back to them, a digital reference sheet for the Math section, and a built-in graphing calculator. It’s worth noting that for the new SAT test students can use the built-in graphing calculator on all Math questions. 

The new SAT generates individualized exams, based on the questions each test-taker gets right and wrong. All sections contain a mix of easy, medium, and difficult questions. And how well you perform on the first module of each section determines the difficulty of the second module. 

While the old SAT scored all questions equally, regardless of difficulty, the new SAT format gives weighted scores. This means that answering a difficult question correctly will count more than answering an easy question correctly. Depending on how well you did on module 1, you’ll receive a slightly-easier or slightly-more-difficult version of module 2. 

Given the nature of the new SAT format, scores can no longer be calculated by a simple right to wrong ratio. Rather, the SAT is now scored according to an algorithm. This algorithm takes the difficulty of each question into account. If you are aiming for a top score, you’ll need to do as well as possible on the first modules, so that you’ll be given the more advanced module 2 — and thus have the potential of earning a higher score on the overall exam.

Rather than having to wait weeks for your score report, you’ll receive your results much more quickly. Most likely within a couple of days! This will help you make decisions about retakes and score reports more quickly. Students will also have the option to retake the SAT closer to their college application deadlines, in case they want to try for their dream score one last time.

Upon receiving their official score reports, students will also receive more personalized college and career guidance. Personalized recommendations will include information about 4-year colleges, local 2-year colleges, workforce training programs, and insight into how their test scores may be reflective of potential career paths. 

Through the Bluebook app, students will be able to take full-length digital practice exams. Like the actual exam, these practice exams will feature adaptive questions. This means that you’ll get more individualized practice exams.