With the SAT transitioning to a completely digital format in 2023, ACT began offering both a digital option and the traditional paper test. Is providing options the right choice, or is it just delaying the inevitable transition to all-digital?

The new digital ACT maintains the format and question difficulty of the paper version. However, unlike the SAT, it does not use adaptive questions, which adjust in difficulty based on the test-taker’s performance on earlier questions. One notable difference in the digital version is it eliminates the need to bubble in answers, which could save  test-takers about five minutes per section. However, the need to transcribe math problems from the screen could counteract these time savings. While these updates simplify some parts of the test, they are not a groundbreaking shift; they merely digitize an exam that has remained almost unchanged for decades.

These changes to the ACT  were likely motivated by two factors. The first is ACT Education Corp.’s acquisition by the private equity firm Nexus Capital Management in April. The acquisition began the nonprofit’s transition into a for-profit, public-benefit corporation. As a result of this change, ACT is now seeking to maximize profit. Rolling out a shorter digital test option was an attempt to cut costs associated with paper tests. Additionally, if digital testing becomes popular, it is reasonable to believe that ACT may eliminate paper testing altogether. However, as many students maintain they prefer paper testing, this situation has brought into question if ACT’s priorities now lie with students or with their dollars.

The other reason for these changes was the wave of colleges and universities that became test-optional following the COVID-19 pandemic. This caused demand to plummet, with the number of students taking the test dropping by 30% from 2018 to 2022. The digitization efforts may be an attempt to attract students to a new testing platform that allows them to get results faster and to encourage them to take the test multiple times.

ACT also announced a second round of changes to the digital version that will take place in 2025 before rolling out the paper version later that year. These changes will make the test about 33% shorter, with the reading and English sections being cut by around 44 questions and the science section becoming optional. These changes seem intended to make it easier for students to score higher on the exam. After the changes are implemented, there will probably be an increase in students taking the exam, especially for those who think the changes will improve their chances of getting a higher score. The problem is that making it easier to achieve higher scores may cause score inflation, meaning students will need to score even higher to stand out.

So how will these changes affect students? Most likely, these changes won’t have any significant impact on how students navigate the standardized testing environment. The ACT will continue to maintain a significant presence alongside the SAT. While the shift to digital and shorter tests may make the experience more convenient, the fundamental aspects of standardized testing — like the pressure to perform — will remain. Ultimately, these changes are more about keeping pace with technological advancements and market demand than improving the student experience.