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 88377 · New set of questions →

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Section 1: Maths reasoning (15 questions)

Question 1
Maths reasoning · Indices

Which expression is NOT equal to 36?

Question 2
Maths reasoning · Geometry

A trapezium has parallel sides of length 5 cm and 11 cm. Its perpendicular height is 6 cm. A triangle is cut from the trapezium: the triangle has the same base as the shorter parallel side (5 cm) and the same height as the trapezium (6 cm). What is the area of the shape that remains after the triangle is removed?

Question 3
Maths reasoning · Geometry

A triangle has angles in the ratio 1 : 2 : 3. A student claims the largest angle equals the sum of the other two. Is the student correct, and what is the largest angle?

Question 4
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 5
Maths reasoning · Area & volume

A water tank is a cylinder with an internal radius of 1.5 m and an internal height of 2 m. A builder says the tank holds more than 14 000 litres. Is the builder correct? (Use π ≈ 3.14; 1 m³ = 1000 L.)

Question 6
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 7
Maths reasoning · Algebra & linear equations

A school is planning a trip. A bus costs $240 to hire plus $3 per student. A minivan costs $90 to hire plus $8 per student. For what number of students is the bus the CHEAPER option?

Question 8
Maths reasoning · Fraction & decimal operations

Which of the following is exactly halfway between 3/8 and 3/4 on a number line?

Question 9
Maths reasoning · Fraction & decimal operations

Which fraction is exactly halfway between 1/3 and 5/6 on a number line?

Question 10
Maths reasoning · Equations

A plumber charges a $45 call-out fee plus $60 per hour. An electrician charges a $75 call-out fee plus $50 per hour. For how many hours of work do they charge exactly the same total amount?

Question 11
Maths reasoning · Ratio & rates

A farmer plants wheat and canola in the ratio 5 : 3. The wheat paddock covers 40 hectares more than the canola paddock. What is the total area planted?

Question 12
Maths reasoning · Geometry

In triangle ABC, angle A = 2x°, angle B = 3x°, and angle C = (x + 30)°. A student says: 'Angle B is exactly twice the size of angle A.' Is the student correct?

Question 13
Maths reasoning · Geometry

Two straight lines cross at a point. One angle is 5x° and the angle next to it (on a straight line) is (3x + 20)°. What is the value of x?

Question 14
Maths reasoning · Percentages

Ella's savings increased by 25% in January, then decreased by 25% in February. She now has $450. How much did Ella have at the start of January?

Question 15
Maths reasoning · Percentages & rates

At the start of 2023, Mia's investment was worth $P. By mid-year, its value had fallen by 20%. By the end of 2023, the mid-year value had risen by 35%. At the start of 2024, that end-of-year value then fell by 10%. Which expression correctly gives the investment's value at the start of 2024, and is the overall change a gain or a loss?

Section 2: Reading & language (15 questions)

Question 16
Reading & language · Writing & grammar

A student writes: 'The committee have made their decision, and everyone on it are pleased.' Which part of the sentence breaks subject-verb agreement, and why?

Question 17
Reading & language · Persuasive & creative writing

A student writes this persuasive letter opening: 'You probably think teenagers are lazy. You're wrong.' What is the PRIMARY strategic purpose of directly addressing the reader's assumed belief in this way?

Question 18
Reading & language · Persuasive & creative writing

A student reads this sentence from a persuasive article about animal testing: 'Surely no compassionate person could look into the eyes of a beagle and approve of what happens to it in a laboratory.' She wants to use it as evidence in her own essay. Her teacher warns her that the sentence is 'rhetorically powerful but evidentially weak.' Which explanation best justifies the teacher's comment?

Question 19
Reading & language · Text response & analysis

A student argues that the narrator of a story is reliable because 'the story is told in first person, so the narrator knows everything that happens.' What is wrong with this reasoning?

Question 20
Reading & language · Persuasive & creative writing

Read this paragraph from a student's persuasive letter: 'Scientists agree that screen time harms children. Parents should therefore ban all devices. Clearly, anyone who disagrees is not thinking about children's wellbeing.' Which TWO logical flaws appear in this paragraph? Choose the answer that correctly identifies both.

Question 21
Reading & language · Writing & grammar

A student wants to write a persuasive sentence that uses a concession to make the argument STRONGER. They write: 'Some people believe social media is harmful, but it can also connect communities and support mental health.' A classmate says the sentence is weak because admitting the other side makes the argument less convincing. Who is correct, and why?

Question 22
Reading & language · Speaking & listening

A Year 6 student is giving a speech about saving local wetlands. She says: 'You might think this is someone else's problem — but this wetland is two kilometres from our school. Some of you have ridden your bikes past it. Last spring it flooded the oval where you play footy.' Her classmates who had been distracted start paying attention. Which explanation best accounts for why this moment in her speech was effective?

Question 23
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 24
Reading & language · Comprehension

Read this passage, then answer the question. "The old lighthouse had stood at the edge of the cliff for over a hundred years. No ships used its light any more. Its windows were dark, its door was sealed, and grass grew thick around its base. Still, the local council refused to demolish it. 'Some things are worth keeping,' the mayor said, 'even when their purpose is gone.'" The mayor's statement 'Some things are worth keeping, even when their purpose is gone' is best described as which kind of language technique, and what does it suggest about the council's view?

Question 25
Reading & language · Phonics & spelling

A student wants to add the suffix '-ous' to the word 'courage' to make an adjective. Which option shows the CORRECT spelling AND gives the correct reason?

Question 26
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 27
Reading & language · Comprehension

Read this passage. "The journalist's report began: 'Hundreds of concerned locals flooded the council chambers last Tuesday.' A second journalist covering the same meeting wrote: 'Approximately two hundred residents attended the council session on Tuesday.'" Which statement best explains how the two reports differ in their portrayal of the event?

Question 28
Reading & language · Text response & analysis

A student writes: "The old lighthouse stood alone on the cliff, its light long dead, its windows like hollow eyes watching the empty sea." Which two techniques are working together in this sentence, and what combined effect do they create?

Question 29
Reading & language · Text response & analysis

Read: "The government's plan will create 10 000 new jobs — a historic achievement. Critics, however, claim the plan ignores environmental costs and relies on projections that experts call 'overly optimistic'." A student says the text is balanced because it includes both the government's view and the critics' view. What does the student overlook?

Question 30
Reading & language · Comprehension

Read this passage. "Every morning, Lena walked past the empty block on Marsh Street. The council sign said 'Future Community Garden.' Weeds pressed through the chain-link fence. By June, the sign had faded. By August, someone had spray-painted 'STILL WAITING' across it. Lena took a photo and posted it without a caption." What does Lena's decision to post the photo without a caption most likely suggest?

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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 →