Major changes to April’s PSAT/SAT

The SAT/PSAT standardized tests are quite the scare to many high school students and for good reason. The SAT score is a large part of college applications and while many smaller state schools are getting rid of them from their admissions, Ivy league and high profile universities still prefer to include them in their admissions process.

This year, though, the SAT and PSAT will be undergoing a plethora of changes, good and bad.

Total questions for the reading test will go from 96 questions with 2 sections to 54 questions with 1 section. Math will go from 58 questions with 2 sections (with and without calculator) to 44 questions with calculator.

Test time is being reduced on both tests, but because of the reduced question count, the average time per question will increase. Whether the difficulty of each question will increase remains to be seen.

Another major change is that all testing will be done electronically, so be sure to bring your charged chromebook.

These changes seem great in theory for the quality of life of students, but the lowered question count means each question will weigh much more, so be sure to answer as many questions correctly as possible.

The PSAT will happen Tuesday, April 2 for freshmen and sophomores. This day will be an e-learning day for juniors and seniors.

For juniors, the SAT will happen on Wednesday, April 3. Freshmen, sophomores, and seniors will have an e-learning day.

Be sure to attend the tests, especially if you’re a junior because it is a graduation requirement.

Have a great day and score well!