June 2024 Editorial: The Digital SAT is Here to Stay. What Should You Know About It?

Above, a virtual study room of our SAT Diagnostic Tests, attended by hundreds of students each month.

Article written by JENNA AHN, Millie's co-founder and CEO.

The Digital SAT has gone through three full test cycles in the US since its debut in March 2024, and it has gone through ten (!) full cycles since its international (ex-US) launch in March 2023. Despite the initial skepticism that comes with any major change of this magnitude, the Digital SAT is here to stay, and here’s what you should know about it.

In this article, we will share our four takeways on mastering the digital SAT.

"The Digital SAT is here to stay, and here’s what you should know about it"

1. Know your section breakdow

I will be the first one to admit that when I took my very first SAT, I wasn’t 100% sure how many minutes were given in each section. To be fair, there were whopping 10 sections in my high school days (*ahem* age reveal), so that is more understandable.

The good news is that there are only two sections in the Digital SAT: Reading and Writing, and Math. It is critical for test takers to know the number of minutes given in each module within each section, and also the number of questions in each module. This way, you can allocate the right amount of time to each question, ensuring you do not run out of time.

• Reading and Writing: 2 modules; each module is 32 minutes and 27 questions
• Math: 2 modules; each module is 35 minutes and 22 questions

With quick math, you will know that in Reading and Writing, you will have about 1.2 minutes to spare for each question. In Math, you will have about 1.6 minutes per question. Of course, some questions are easier than others, so you may spend 20 seconds to solve an easy question and perhaps spend 2 minutes to solve a hard one. No matter how hard a question is, however, make sure you are not spending more than 3 minutes on it! If you catch yourself doing this while practicing, skip that question and move on to the next. The chances are, you will run out of time on the actual test if you spend that much time on one question.

"It is critical for test takers to know the number of minutes given in each module within each section"

2. Solve Module 2s faster

One of the biggest changes from paper to digital SAT is that the test has become adaptive. This means that based on your performance in module 1, your module 2 questions will change. Assuming you’ve done well in Module 1, your Module 2 questions will be harder. If you solve questions at the same speed as in Module 1 — spending an equal amount of time on hard questions, medium questions, and easy questions — that is, then with the adaptation in difficulty levels, you are likely to run out of time. So in Module 2, mentally try to solve questions faster than in Module 1. We’ve given this advice to our students who ran out of time in their first SAT try, and they’ve done better and more peacefully in their second SAT try.

"Adaptive [...] means that based on your performance in module 1, your module 2 questions will change"

3. Know how to use Desmos Calculator

With the Digital SAT, comes a digital calculator that is embedded within the Bluebook testing application. The calculator that is embedded is the Desmos calculator, so if you're not familiar with it, take some time to learn how to use it while taking a practice test.

"The calculator that is embedded is the Desmos calculator, so if you're not familiar with it, take some time to learn how to use it"

4. Utilize CollegeBoard’s SAT Educator Question Bank

Did you know that the CollegeBoard has a section where you can find thousands of SAT questions by subject type (Reading and Writing, Math), domains (topics; for instance, in Math, “Geometry and Trigonometry”), skills (sub-topics within the domain; for instance, “Circles”), and difficulty (Easy, Medium, Hard)?

It is truly a goldmine for those who want to surgically dissect the question types and prepare for the big day. You can also select “Exclude Active Questions” which will remove questions that are also included in official full-length practice tests to avoid seeing questions you already solved on your diagnostic test.

"(The CollegeBoard website) is truly a goldmine for those who want to surgically dissect the question types and prepare for the big day"

Closing thoughts…

A 2017 study conducted by Khan Academy and CollegeBoard showed that students who studied 20 hours preparing for the SAT improved their aggregate SAT score by 115 points on average. Even though this study was done during the paper SAT era, I have a strong suspicion that this would hold true for the Digital SAT era and its test takers as well. There’s no magic bullet. It’s really these simple, tried, and true tips and good ol’ effort that will get you to your dream score on the Digital SAT.

So, good luck everyone, and if you have further questions, you know how to reach us.