There are three letters that can strike fear in the heart of upperclassmen: S-A-T. The test is one large hurdle for high school students applying to college and it has given many students countless sleepless nights. And now, with rumored changes on the horizon, more sleep is being lost.

“Why the SAT changed is because the college board believed that the SAT was not showing college readiness,” Kristi Carden, English teacher, said. “There were also issues with the enrollment. The ACT had 2,000 more enrollments than the SAT, more than they’ve ever had.”  

Students planning to take the SAT should rest easy though because the changes aren’t making the test any harder, simply revising what is tested and how it is tested.  

“Instead of 10 sections, they made it four,” Carden said. “It will include math, a 20-minute no calculator section, reading, and a separate revised writing essay. They have also included science and social studies passages, and the only literature is world literature.”

According to www.CollegeBoard.org, additional changes include an all-new essay, that is now optional. There is also no longer a penalty for guessing, and there won’t be onerous vocabulary words that students will never use again.

Even though students can take the old version until January, the prep classes offered on campus are geared towards the new version. Students wanting to prep for the old test will have to rely on www.CollegeBoard.org.

“Even though we don’t really prep anymore for the old course, we definitely push them to the old online prep booklet,” Carden said.

Students wanting to stick with the old test, will need to take it by January 2016. Students interested in trying out the new version must wait until March 2016. For more information, visit www.CollegeBoard.org or stop by C106.