Major Changes Coming to the SAT and is it Still Relevant

Major Changes Coming to the SAT and is it Still Relevant

April 22, 2015

By Chris LeGates, TCS Co-Host

It was recently announced that the SAT and PSAT tests were being changed and redesigned with eight major changes – you can read about them here.  The College Board felt that these changes were necessary to keep the test relevant in a world where fewer and fewer students were taking the SAT and fewer and fewer admissions departments were utilizing the results.  In 2005, the SAT went through a facelift as a result of threats by the University of California system to stop using it.  The changes in the 2016 version allow the test to become more comparable (by design or not) to the ACT which is becoming more and more popular amongst students.  There have been many occasions during my college coaching career that I pushed student-athletes in the direction of taking the ACT in an attempt to put themselves in better standing for admission to my university, or in some cases, help boost their ability to get financial aid.  The ACT, by and large, has not changed over time and many groups of students find the ACT a better fit to what their strengths are.  However, there is a growing sentiment that all of these aptitude tests have become obsolete. 

Sitting in a gym for four hours with your #2 pencils and stressing out as to what the next fifty years of your life were going to be like has now been replaced by admissions departments spending more time getting to know applicants.

The list of institutions that are becoming “test-optional” and/or “text-flexible” is growing by the day.  fairtest.org is now reporting that more than a quarter of the institutions of higher learning in the United States are “test-optional” in some capacity.  These schools allow potential students to decide if they want to submit their test scores or not. The problem is that these institutions are seeing record amounts of applicants.  As a result, these schools acceptances cannot accommodate the numbers of qualified applicants.  If you are from my generation, the SAT was perceived as the make or break test to your college career and beyond. Sitting in a gym for four hours with your #2 pencils and stressing out as to what the next fifty years of your life were going to be like has now been replaced by admissions departments spending more time getting to know applicants.  When I asked admissions people and student service employees why the shift, the reasons were quite simple.  Aptitude tests were not great judges of overall ability, but, more barometers of how a student may do in their first year in college.  In addition, it was felt that students that had the money and the means could take classes like Kaplan – which helped give tips on how to increase the score but did very little in depicting overall ability.  Students that did not have the money to take these classes, or, could not afford the SAT (waivers are very difficult to get on time), needed other ways to be evaluated by colleges.  Now the emphasis has shifted to grades and personal meetings with school staff members as opposed to standardized tests.

So where does leave the student-athlete? Well before you get the pom poms out and celebrate the death of the big bad wolf, think again.  Depending on the level you want to play at, these tests are still relevant.  At Division I and II levels SAT and ACT scores are still factored into the initial eligibility status of student-athletes.  You should check with your guidance departments on what those requirements are as they have changed for the 2016 graduating class.  One will also have to register with the NCAA clearinghouse to make sure that you have taken the appropriate “core courses” to be eligible.  This information can also be obtained from the ncaa.org site.  When it comes to Division III, there are no NCAA academic standards for the student-athlete, however, it is advisable to check with the individual institution to see what their own policies and standards are.

As I always tell our readers on this blog, do your homework early in the process and as always, TCS is here to help.  If you have any questions, please contact me at info@tacklingcollegesports.com

Have a look at our website for further information.

Good luck and always BE YOUR BEST,

Chris