New SAT To Include Longer, More Difficult Reading Sections

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork)-- Those hoping to get into the school of their dreams may be facing even more stress than before. The SAT is getting a huge redesign by The College Board coming this March, and it could present substantial obstacles for some students.

The revamped test features longer and harder reading passages, leading some educators to fear the new SAT will be tougher for students who speak another language at home.

Lee Weiss, vice president of the pre-college programs at Kaplan Test Prep, said it's a legitimate concern.

"There's more of an emphasis on reading comprehension, not just on the verbal side of the test, the reading side of the test, but also on the math side," Weiss told WCBS 880's Marla Diamond.

The college board says everything on the SAT is publicly available. Some students still have concerns over the latest changes.

"It's not necessarily too many words, it's just, it might be the way they format the questions might be the problem," David Gelman, a junior at James Madison High school in Brooklyn, said.

The college board is also changing how the test is scored. Sixteen hundred, will once again, be the top achievable score.

The new roll-out of the test is urging some students to reconsider how to prepare for the test, as well as also taking the ACT as an alternative option.

College officials said they have not yet decided how much weight the new test will carry in the admissions process.