Free · Timed · 25 minutes · Years 6–8

Free Scholarship Practice Test — 30 Questions, 25 Minutes, Instant Results

A free, timed sample in the style of the ACER and Edutest scholarship papers: 30 multiple-choice questions across mathematics and reading and language, drawn from our Year 6, 7 and 8 banks at the stretch and challenge tiers, 25 minutes on the clock, marked instantly with a section breakdown. Part of RHZ Tutoring's 3,261 free practice questions. No sign-up.

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⏱ 25-minute countdown, auto-marked📊 Section breakdown: maths reasoning · reading & language📚 3,261 free practice questions

Free practice quizzes › Scholarship practice test · Selective Entry practice test

The practice test: 30 questions in 25 minutes

Two sections. Press Start the timer, answer every question you can, and press Mark my test before the clock runs out, or it will be marked automatically. Set 44868 · New set of questions →

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Section 1: Maths reasoning (15 questions)

Question 1
Maths reasoning · Percentages & rates

Bought for $50, sold for $65. Percentage profit?

Question 2
Maths reasoning · Ratio & rates

Mia cycles at 12 km/h and Jaylen cycles at 15 km/h. They both start cycling at the same time from the same place. After 40 minutes, how far apart are they?

Question 3
Maths reasoning · Area, volume & angles

The four angles inside a quadrilateral are in the ratio 1 : 2 : 3 : 4. What is the size of the largest angle?

Question 4
Maths reasoning · Algebraic thinking

The expression 4n + 2 gives the total number of tiles in a shape pattern, where n is the pattern number. Which pattern number first gives a total greater than 50 tiles?

Question 5
Maths reasoning · Area, volume & angles

A composite shape is made of a rectangle 10 cm wide and 6 cm tall, with a right-angled triangle sitting on top. The triangle has a base of 10 cm and a height of 4 cm. What is the total area of the shape?

Question 6
Maths reasoning · Pythagoras

A right-angled triangle has legs of length 3 cm and 4 cm. A student draws a new right-angled triangle by adding 2 cm to each leg, giving legs of 5 cm and 6 cm. The student claims: 'Because I added the same amount to each leg, the hypotenuse also increased by exactly 2 cm.' Which statement is correct?

Question 7
Maths reasoning · Algebraic expressions

A rectangular garden has a length that is (2w + 5) metres and a width of w metres. A gardener says: 'The area of the garden is 3w + 5 square metres.' Which statement best explains why the gardener is wrong?

Question 8
Maths reasoning · Algebra & linear equations

Jamie thinks of a number. If you triple the number and subtract 10, you get the same answer as doubling the number and adding 4. Jamie then doubles his original number and adds 3. What is the final result?

Question 9
Maths reasoning · Geometry

A right-angled triangle is removed from a rectangle. The rectangle is 10 cm long and 6 cm wide. The triangle occupies one corner and has legs of 4 cm (along the length) and 6 cm (along the width — the full width). A second right-angled triangle of the same size is then added onto the opposite short end of the rectangle. What is the area of the new shape?

Question 10
Maths reasoning · Algebraic expressions

A factory produces boxes. It costs $120 to set up the factory each day plus $4 for every box made. On Monday, b boxes are made. On Tuesday, 10 more boxes are made than on Monday. Which expression gives the TOTAL cost over both days, in dollars?

Question 11
Maths reasoning · Percentages & rates

A jacket is discounted by 30%, then the sale price is increased by 30%. Compared to the original price, the final price is:

Question 12
Maths reasoning · Fractions, decimals & percentages

A jacket costs $120. The shop reduces the price by 15%, then reduces the new price by a further 10%. What is the final price?

Question 13
Maths reasoning · Percentages

Luca says: 'Increasing a price by 10% and then decreasing it by 10% gives you the original price.' Is Luca correct?

Question 14
Maths reasoning · Ratios & rates

A school canteen sells two sizes of orange juice. The small cup holds 250 mL and costs $2.00. The large cup holds 375 mL and costs $2.85. A student says: 'The large cup is better value because you get more juice for less than double the price.' Is the student's conclusion correct, and which size actually gives the better value per millilitre?

Question 15
Maths reasoning · Percentages & rates

A phone plan charges a flat rate of $0.35 per minute for calls and $0.12 per SMS. In one month, Lachlan makes 45 minutes of calls and sends 80 SMS messages. What percentage of his total bill is made up by SMS charges? Round to the nearest whole percent.

Section 2: Reading & language (15 questions)

Question 16
Reading & language · Reading & comprehension

A student reading a novel writes: 'The theme of this book is loyalty because a character called Loyalty appears.' What is wrong with the student's reasoning?

Question 17
Reading & language · Text response & analysis

A narrator in a short story repeatedly describes a character called Mr Holt as 'generous' and 'kind', but every scene shows him demanding favours in return for help and ignoring people who cannot benefit him. What technique is the author using, and what is its most likely purpose?

Question 18
Reading & language · Comprehension

Read this passage, then answer the question. "Nadia had not spoken to her best friend in three weeks. She told herself it did not matter. She rearranged her bookshelf twice that afternoon, reorganised her pencil case, and made a list of things she needed to do — none of which were urgent." What do Nadia's actions in the second and third sentences most strongly suggest?

Question 19
Reading & language · Text response & analysis

Read this extract from a short story: 'Every morning, Grandma set two cups on the table — one for herself and one that sat untouched, waiting, as it had for three years now. She hummed while she made the tea, the same song she had always hummed, and smiled at the window the way she used to smile at the door.' A student says the extract is simply about a woman's morning routine. Which statement BEST explains why this reading is insufficient, and what technique supports a deeper interpretation?

Question 20
Reading & language · Reading & comprehension

Text A is a scientist's report on ocean warming. Text B is a diary written by a sailor watching coral bleach in front of him. A student says: 'Text A is more reliable because it has facts.' Which response best evaluates the student's claim?

Question 21
Reading & language · Vocabulary & grammar

Two newspaper headlines report the same event — a student walkout at a school: Headline 1: 'Students Walk Out in Passionate Protest' Headline 2: 'Pupils Skip Class in Defiant Stunt' Which technique most reveals Headline 2's negative bias, and how?

Question 22
Reading & language · Phonics & spelling

Read this sentence: 'The principal complemented the students on their patients during the long ceremony.' How many words are used incorrectly because a homophone or near-homophone has been chosen instead of the correct word?

Question 23
Reading & language · Vocabulary & grammar

A student writes: 'Having finished her homework, the television was turned on by Maya.' A teacher marks this as containing two errors. Which pair of errors is correct?

Question 24
Reading & language · Reading & comprehension

Read this paragraph from a feature article about an Australian mountain rescue: 'The searchers fanned out across the ridge as the temperature dropped another two degrees. By nightfall, twelve volunteers had covered fourteen kilometres of rocky ground, their torches blinking like hesitant stars. The mountain, as always, gave nothing away.' The writer ends the paragraph with 'The mountain, as always, gave nothing away.' What is the most likely reason for this sentence, and how does it work?

Question 25
Reading & language · Speaking & listening

A group of Year 6 students is discussing whether the school day should start later. Ella says, 'Research shows teenagers need more sleep.' Dev says, 'But most of our parents work early shifts — starting later creates problems at home.' Ella responds, 'That's only some families though.' Dev then goes quiet and looks at the table. Which analysis of the group's communication is most accurate?

Question 26
Reading & language · Persuasive & creative writing

A student wants to persuade readers that school uniforms should be abolished. She writes: 'Uniforms crush creativity and make students miserable.' Which revision would make this argument MOST persuasive, and why?

Question 27
Reading & language · Vocabulary & grammar

Read this sentence: 'The exhausted players, dragging their boots through the mud, collapsed onto the bench.' A student is asked which technique the writer uses to slow the pace of this sentence. Which answer is correct, and why?

Question 28
Reading & language · Comprehension

Read this passage, then answer the question. "The two candidates for school captain gave speeches on the same day. Priya said: 'I want to make our school a place where every student feels heard — not just the ones who already have a voice.' Marcus said: 'We have a strong school community. I will work to keep what we have built and push us even further.'" A student claims: 'Priya's speech shows she thinks the school already treats students fairly.' Is this claim accurate? Choose the best evaluation.

Question 29
Reading & language · Persuasive & creative writing

A student wants to persuade readers that social media should not be banned for teenagers. She drafts this concession paragraph: 'Of course, some teenagers misuse social media. However, banning it entirely would be like banning cars because some drivers speed.' What does the analogy in the second sentence add to the argument that a simple 'however' clause would not?

Question 30
Reading & language · Vocabulary & grammar

Which sentence uses an apostrophe correctly?

Your result

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Maths reasoning0 / 15
Reading & language0 / 15
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What this scholarship practice test contains

Thirty multiple-choice questions in two timed sections. Section 1, Maths reasoning, has fifteen questions drawn from our Year 6, Year 7 and Year 8 maths banks: number and algebra, ratio and rates, measurement, geometry, statistics and probability, with the stretch and challenge tiers preferred so most items sit above the year level a Year 6 student is used to. Section 2, Reading & language, has fifteen questions from the same three years of our English banks: comprehension of short literary and informative passages, inference, vocabulary in context, spelling, grammar and punctuation. Every set is seeded, so the link you are on shows the same questions each time and a new seed gives a fresh set. The clock is 25 minutes for the lot, which is deliberately tight: roughly fifty seconds a question, which is close to the pace of the real scholarship papers.

The answer key is not in the page. When you press Mark my test, or when the timer reaches zero, the browser asks our server for the key for this exact set, marks every question, shows the correct answer and an explanation with the year level of each item, and breaks the score down by section and by topic. Unanswered questions count as wrong, as they do in the real exam, so it is worth answering everything before the time runs out.

About the Victorian Selective Entry exam

Victoria has four selective-entry high schools: Melbourne High School (boys), Mac.Robertson Girls' High School (girls), Nossal High School in Berwick (co-educational) and Suzanne Cory High School in Werribee (co-educational). Entry is by a single competitive examination sat in Year 8 for Year 9 entry, usually in June, with a smaller number of places sometimes offered for later year levels. Students nominate their preferred schools on one application, and places are offered on the basis of exam results, with a proportion of places set aside under equity provisions. Suzanne Cory, in Werribee, draws heavily from Melbourne's west and is the school most families we work with are aiming for.

For students in Year 8 in 2027, school communications give the exam date as 20 June 2027, with applications typically opening early in the year and closing well before the exam. Dates, fees, eligibility rules and the exact test format are set by the Department of Education and can change from year to year, so confirm every detail on the VSEHS website before you plan around it. What has been consistent is the shape of the test: reading comprehension, mathematics, verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning and two short writing tasks (one creative, one persuasive or analytical), all under strict time limits and pitched above the Year 8 curriculum. The reasoning sections are the ones school programs rarely teach, and the writing tasks are marked for ideas, structure and control of language in a very short time, which is why students who are strong in class can still struggle on the day.

The multiple-choice sections of the real exam reward three things: secure knowledge a year or so ahead of the classroom, the habit of reading a question exactly, and pace. This practice test checks the first and the third. It does not check writing, and it does not include the pattern-based verbal and numerical reasoning puzzles, both of which need their own practice.

ACER and Edutest scholarship tests

Independent and Catholic schools in Melbourne offer academic scholarships through external testing agencies rather than their own papers. The two you will meet most often are ACER and Edutest, and they feel quite different. ACER's Cooperative Scholarship Testing Program (CSTP) is run at set levels: Level 1 for Year 7 entry (sat in Year 6), Level 2 for Year 9 entry and Level 3 for Year 11 entry. The papers are long and demanding: two written expression tasks, a humanities paper of reading comprehension and interpretation that includes poems, cartoons, tables and extracts, and a mathematics paper that leans on reasoning rather than recall. ACER tests are usually held on a single day in February or March, and one sitting can be used for several participating schools.

Edutest papers are shorter and broken into five sections, typically of about thirty minutes each: verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning, reading comprehension, mathematics and written expression. Most sections are multiple choice and the pace is brisk. Schools using Edutest often run the test on their own campus at their own date, so a family may sit two or three across a season. Because the sections are short, a student who loses a minute panicking on a hard question pays for it immediately, which is why timed practice matters so much for Edutest in particular.

This practice test is closer to the multiple-choice mathematics and reading sections of both formats than to the reasoning puzzles or the writing. If your child is preparing for a Year 7 scholarship, treat the Year 7 and Year 8 items here as the stretch they are; a Year 6 student who handles them comfortably is well placed.

A preparation timeline

  1. Twelve to nine months out (for Selective Entry 2027: Term 3 and 4 of Year 7). Diagnose first. Sit this test and the free Skills Check, and find out whether the gaps are knowledge (Year 8 maths not yet met), technique (never seen a reasoning question) or speed. Close the maths gaps with the Year 7 and Year 8 topic quizzes and start reading widely: non-fiction, opinion pieces and short fiction, not just novels.
  2. Nine to six months out (Term 1 of Year 8). Learn the question types. Work through each section of the exam separately with short timed sets, and begin a weekly timed writing task with feedback. Confirm the application window on the VSEHS website and lodge the application early.
  3. Six to three months out (Term 1 to 2). Full-length practice papers under exam conditions every fortnight, marked and reviewed by section. The review is where the marks come from: every error goes into a list and gets re-attempted a week later.
  4. The last eight weeks. Taper. One full paper a week, timed sets on the weakest section between them, and writing practice to a fixed plan. In the final week, sleep, a light set each day and nothing new.

For a Year 6 scholarship, compress the same sequence into the second half of Year 5 and the first term of Year 6, because ACER and most Edutest sittings fall between February and May of Year 6.

How to read your result

We do not report percentiles, because a thirty-question free sample cannot be normed against the real candidate pool and any percentile we invented would mislead you. What we can say is this. Selective-entry and scholarship tests are competitive, and the students who win places are typically answering above-level questions quickly and accurately. A score of 80% or more here, inside the time limit, suggests your child is ready for full-length timed practice papers and should move to those. A score between 50% and 80% usually means the content is mostly there and the work is in the hardest third of the questions and the clock; look at which section is weaker and drill it with timed sets. A score of 50% or less means the Year 6 and Year 7 foundations need attention before exam-style practice will pay off, which is common and fixable: start with the Year 6 and Year 7 topic quizzes, secure the weakest topics and come back to this test in a term.

Watch the time as well as the score. A high score with the clock expired is a pace problem; a low score with minutes to spare is a content problem. They need different fixes, and the results panel shows both.

What to do next

1. Free Skills Check

Fifteen minutes, every Year 7 topic at every tier including stretch and challenge, with a same-day topic-by-topic report and a tutor call to walk through it. It is the diagnostic we use to start every selective and scholarship program.

Start the free Skills Check →

2. Selective Entry 2027 program

Two sessions a week, maths and English with reasoning drills, a full timed practice test every fortnight, at our Truganina centre or online. First session free.

Selective Entry 2027 → Selective entry and scholarship tutoring →

3. Printable practice packs

Full-length selective and scholarship practice papers with worked answers, so a student can practise on paper under the clock the way the real test is sat.

Browse selective and scholarship packs →

Questions? Call 03 9509 3293 or book a free consultation. RHZ Tutoring, 17/47 Apex Drive, Truganina VIC 3029.

Frequently asked questions

When is the 2027 Victorian Selective Entry exam?

School communications give the date as 20 June 2027 for Year 8 students seeking Year 9 entry in 2028. Dates and application windows can move, so confirm on the Victorian Selective Entry High Schools (VSEHS) website before planning around it.

Which schools does the Selective Entry exam cover?

Melbourne High School (boys, South Yarra), Mac.Robertson Girls' High School (girls, Melbourne), Nossal High School (co-educational, Berwick) and Suzanne Cory High School (co-educational, Werribee). Students sit one exam and list the schools in order of preference.

Is this practice test the same as the real exam?

No. It is a 30-question, 25-minute multiple-choice sample drawn from our Year 6, 7 and 8 maths and English banks at the stretch and challenge tiers. The real ACER and Edutest scholarship tests include writing tasks and, for Edutest, separate verbal and numerical reasoning sections. Use this page to check readiness and pace, not to predict a result.

What score should my child be getting?

There is no official pass mark and we do not publish percentiles for a free sample. As a rule of thumb, 80% or more here suggests a student is ready for full-length timed practice; 50% or less suggests starting with the Year 6 and Year 7 topic quizzes to secure the foundations first.

Does the timer matter?

Yes. Both selective-entry and scholarship tests are speed tests as much as knowledge tests, and most students lose more marks to the clock than to the content. If the score is good but the time ran out, practise timed sets; if there was time to spare but the score was low, work on the content.

What is the difference between ACER and Edutest scholarship tests?

Both are used by independent schools for Year 7 entry (sat in Year 6) and some for Year 9 or Year 11 entry. ACER's Cooperative Scholarship Testing Program has longer papers in written expression, humanities (reading and interpretation) and mathematics. Edutest papers are shorter and include five sections: verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning, reading comprehension, mathematics and written expression. Check which test each school uses.

Is this free, and is anything collected?

It is free and there is no sign-up. Marking happens on our server and only an anonymous score event is recorded. The free Skills Check, which produces a full report, asks for a parent email so we can send it.

Build the foundations first

If the result points to a content gap, these free topic quizzes cover the ground the test draws on:

All 3,261 free practice questions, Prep to Year 12 →