College Board Will No Longer Offer SAT Subject Tests or SAT Essay
College Board announced a variety of changes to the SAT exams for the 2020-2021 school year.
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As of Jan. 19, SAT Subject Tests will no longer be offered for students in the U.S., according to College Board. Students currently registered for an upcoming Subject Test will have their registration automatically canceled and fees refunded. Students should check colleges' websites to see if they will still consider students' Subject Test scores.
The SAT Essay will also be discontinued after June 2021 administration. If you are a student who is already registered for an upcoming SAT with Essay, you can still take that test through the June 2021 administration. Students who are scheduled to take the SAT on a school day should check with their school about whether the Essay will be included. Despite elimination of the essay, writing is still essential to college readiness, says College Board, and the SAT will continue to measure writing and editing skills.
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Changes to the Advanced Placement Exams for 2019-2020
In addition to the above changes to the SAT, the College Board also made changes to the Advanced Placement exams for 2019-2020, offering the tests fully online in the spring (decisions have not been made for the 2020-2021 school year yet). The College Board said it surveyed 18,000 AP students to see if they still wanted the opportunity to take AP exams in the spring. “Their answer: a resounding yes,” according to the College Board website.
Changes for AP exams included:
- They will be open book / open note, like many college-level exams.
- Tests will be 45 minutes for most subjects, with an additional 5 minutes for uploading.
- Students will be able to take exams on any device they have access to.
- Students will be able to type and upload responses or handwrite responses and upload a photo.
- Each subject’s exam will be administered on the same day, at the same time, worldwide.
For more information about ongoing changes to SAT and AP exams for the 2020-2021 school year due to the coronavirus pandemic, visit collegeboard.org.