The changes, which will go into effect in 2005, include creating a written essay as part of a new writing exam, replacing the analogies segment of the verbal exam with short reading passages and making the algebra portion of the math section more difficult.
The revisions mark the 10th time the test has been modified in its 76-year history, but it is one of the more drastic changes during the test's history.
During the past year, the SAT has come under fire for its ability to accurately predict academic achievement. A number of universities, including the eight-campus University of California system, suggested dropping the test as an admissions requirement.
College Board officials say the changes will reward classroom performance and produce better writers among college applicants.
"(The changes will) only improve the test's current strength by placing the highest possible emphasis on the most important college success skills -- reading and mathematics and now writing," said College Board President Gaston Caperton in a prepared statement.
But Chris Guttentag, director of undergraduate admissions at Duke University, said it is still too early to predict what kind of impact the changes will make on how the SAT is weighted in undergraduate admissions decisions.
Guttentag said his department will need to study the correlation between scores from the new writing exam with scores from the SAT II writing skills test and the writing skills section of the PSAT to determine the validity of the revised test.
Guttentag said that while changes are being made to the traditional math and verbal sections of the test, only the new section will require examination by admissions officials.
"What will be interesting is how we factor in the writing portion," he said. "While verbal and math will be different, they will essentially be providing the same information that we're used to."
