MANY high school seniors in the Pasadena Unified School District and throughout the San Gabriel Valley are suffering from sweaty palms, bouts of restless sleep and nervous fidgeting. But their white-knuckle behavior is not due to the start of school or seeing old acquaintances after the long summer break.

No, the 16- and 17-year-olds are preparing to take the SAT, the almost larger-than-life college- entry exam that is required for acceptance into most major colleges and universities.

On October 11 and November 1, students will be tested over a three-hour period on their reading comprehension and vocabulary skills, and on their knowledge of geometry, algebra and statistics.

While college admissions boards will consider students' grades, recommendations, extracurricular activities and personal story, the SAT remains the bellwether exam, the results of which can make or break a teenager's goal of entering the college of their dreams.

In the Pasadena Unified School District, one of our major goals this year is to increase the number of students taking the SAT. To do this, we must make certain that students are not only aware of this opportunity but that they are academically prepared to achieve qualifying scores.

For the past two years only about 40 percent of our students have taken the SAT, and while some will forgo the exam because of plans to enter the military, attend trade schools, or enroll in nearby community colleges, there remain many who simply do not know of the opportunity or lack the confidence to feel they can tackle the test successfully.

But college-bound programs offered in our middle and high schools and districtwide efforts to encourage students to take the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT), are helping students to become more aware of the SAT and to master its content.

Even before reaching high school, students are exposed to opportunities designed to help them start thinking about the process for admission to college.

At Wilson Middle School in east Pasadena, for example, approximately 70 students are participating in the state-funded AVID program. An acronym that stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination, the program focuses on preparing seventh- and eighth-grade students for post-secondary education by providing them with one-on-one writing assistance and first-hand knowledge about the grades, classes and standardized tests necessary for college placement. According to Wilson Principal Meg Abrahamson, AVID affords students with a group identity, one centered on the belief that they will be the first ones in their family to attend college.

Similarly, students across the district's high schools take advantage of PUENTE, a University of California-initiated program that seeks to prepare low-income students for entry into the competitive university system. PUENTE not only takes high school students to college campuses, where they can interact with college students and admissions officers, but also provides personalized high school counseling geared toward ensuring that students are fulfilling the "A-G' course requirements, which are the classes all high school students need to take in order to qualify for UC admissions.

There is a push to encourage PUENTE and AVID students as well as all other students in grades 8 through 11 to take the PSAT. This two-hour exam provides students with an opportunity to compete for scholarships sponsored by the National Merit Scholarship Program. This test also provides valuable practice in taking multiple choice exams, and we are very pleased that last year we saw the number of PUSD students taking the PSAT nearly double from 615 to 1,131. This test is offered during October, and our counselors and teachers are preparing and encouraging an even greater number of participants this year.

The touchstone of SAT preparation remains a rigorous and challenging course schedule that prepares students academically and mentally for the nationwide exam. One of the most demanding classes is the Advanced Placement or AP course, where students take a test at the end of the year in order to receive college credit. The number of PUSD students taking this exam has reached a five- year high this year as 538 students took 937 AP tests in 2003.

One of the great moments in every senior year is not necessarily the prom or even high school graduation. It's ripping open an envelope as your heart beats frantically and peering down at a letter that congratulates you on your college acceptance.

By preparing for and taking the SAT, even more students can now experience this sensation.

Mike Babcock is the president of the Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education.