The College Board recently announced that SAT Subject Tests will no longer be offered after this spring. This effectively kills off the test, which has been coming for a while. The number of schools requiring the subject tests has been dwindling every year, and fewer and fewer students have been taking them. In reality, this may have been a business decision for the College Board as it was probably not very profitable to develop and offer the tests any more. In practice, the Subject Tests have largely been supplanted by AP tests, which allow students to demonstrate mastery over similar subject areas.
What This Means for Students
Students can completely ignore these tests from now on, and juniors can focus on SAT/ACT and AP tests instead. Sophomores may want to consider their course schedule for next year in conjunction with their guidance counselor. The College Board will likely put further resources into pushing AP programs into schools not offering them, or expanding them at existing schools. For students applying to certain colleges, it is one less thing to worry about, which is always a good thing!