The NSW selective test: format, dates and how to prepare

There's a longer break during the test for a snack. Students can do their planning and working out on paper, but calculators and dictionaries aren't allowed in any section.

Each correct response earns one mark, and some reading questions have several parts worth a mark each. Wrong and unanswered questions both score zero, with no penalty for guessing, so students should answer every question. The four sections are weighted equally at 25%.

In the writing section, a response that doesn't address the topic given is marked lower, however fluent or creative it is.

Some questions appear in every version of the test to keep versions consistent; these don't count towards the final score.

The department says the questions use maths students already learn at school, based on the NSW curriculum up to Year 6, so there's no need to learn extra topics. What's tested is applying that maths to unfamiliar problems in a short time: about 68 seconds a question.

Typical problem types include:

• Number: fractions of amounts, percentages and discounts, ratio and sharing, money and best buys.
• Patterns and algebra: growing patterns, working backwards from an answer, consecutive numbers.
• Measurement: time and timetables, speed, area and perimeter, volume and capacity.
• Geometry, statistics and chance: angle facts, the mean, and simple probability.

Our free Mathematical Reasoning practice tests follow the real section's format, with worked explanations for every question.

For Year 7 entry in 2027, the test was held on Friday 1 and Saturday 2 May 2026 (each student attends one day), with a make-up test on Friday 22 May 2026. Students sit it at a local test centre, usually a public high school, based on where their primary school is.

From 2026, the test is held only in NSW, so students living interstate or overseas must travel to NSW to sit it. Test admission tickets are released about two weeks before the test through the application dashboard. Parents apply online through the department's application website.

1. Use the official practice tests first. The department's online practice tests use the same software, tools and countdown timer as the real test, so your child knows what to expect on the day.
2. Practise under time. Forty minutes for 35 maths questions is tight. Short timed sets help more than long untimed worksheets.
3. Review mistakes together. For each wrong answer, ask: did they misread the question, make a slip, or not know a method? Most marks are lost to misreading.
4. Keep reading for pleasure. Reading and Writing are half the score, and wide reading builds both.
5. Protect sleep and confidence. In the weeks before the test, a few practice sessions a week is plenty. The goal is familiarity, not exhaustion.

Our guide to helping your child with maths at home has more on supporting practice without pressure.

The department doesn't require coaching, and its preparation advice is built around the free practice tests and student resource hub. Some families use coaching colleges; others prepare at home. If you do prepare at home, the most useful things are realistic timed practice, careful review of mistakes, and lots of reading. Avoid drilling to the point where your child dreads the test.