3-8 Grade Statewide Tests

Statewide Tests are yearly exams administered for student from 3rd to 8th grade. They are used to determine if students have mastered the Common Core Learning Standards of that grade year and will allow schools to decide whether or not to advance a student to the next grade. The Statewide Tests are as follows:

• English Language Arts: Students in grades 3-8 take this test in the Spring.

  • Session 1: Reading: Multiple Choice Questions

  • Session 2: Writing: Short-Response Questions and Extended-Response Questions

• Math: Students in grades 3-8 take this test in the Spring.

  • Session 1: Multiple Choice Questions

  • Session 2: Short-Response Questions and Extended-Response Questions

• Science: Students in grades 4 and 8 take this test in the Spring.

  • Session 1: Multiple Choice Questions

  • Session 2: Short-Response Questions and Extended-Response Questions

SHSAT (Specialized High Schools Admissions Test)

The SHSAT (Specialized High Schools Admissions Test) is a standardized exam used for admissions to New York City's specialized high schools. It is administered to eighth and ninth-grade students residing in New York City and is the sole criterion for admission to eight of the city's nine specialized high schools.

• The test consists of two sections: English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics, with a total of 57 questions.

• Students have 180 minutes to complete the test, and there are no breaks between sections.

• The SHSAT is moving to a digital format starting in 2025, with a transition to a computer-adaptive test (CAT) in 2026.

• The exam is designed to assess critical thinking, problem-solving, and language skills, and it is open to all New York City residents in 8th grade or eligible 9th graders.

High School Regents

High school students in New York State take Regents Exams to determine  New York State Learning Standards. In order to graduate from high school, students must pass exams in five subjects: English, mathematics, science, global history, and U.S. history and government. Student may also earn an Advanced Regents diploma if they pass additional exams in math, science, and a foreign language. The New York State Regents Exams are the following:

SAT

The SAT exam is a standardized test used by many colleges and universities in the United States to assess a student's readiness for college. It consists of two main sections:

• Reading and Writing: This section includes 54 questions and lasts for 64 minutes. It tests comprehension, grammar, and language skills.

• Math: This section consists of 44 questions and lasts for 70 minutes. It evaluates algebra, problem-solving, and data analysis skills.
  The SAT is adaptive, meaning the difficulty of questions changes based on your performance in the first module of each section. The total exam duration is 2 hours and 14 minutes, and it is designed to measure critical thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills. 

Hunter College High School Admissions Test

Hunter College High School serves students in grades 7-12. Eligibility to take the admissions test is only for students who scored in the 90 percentile or above* on the NY Statewide tests in the 5th grade.

The admissions test is three hours long and is divided into three sections:

• Critical Reading:

  • 5-6 Passages, 50 multiple-choice questions in total

• Math:

  • 30 multiple-choice questions based on estimation; computations with fractions, decimals, percents, and whole numbers (not negative numbers); rules of divisibility; simple probability; rate; average; ratio; time; money; area of shaded regions; perimeter; counting; visual and numerical pattern recognition; and three dimensional figures.

• Writing:

  • Students will write either an essay or  a creative piece.

Eligible students will take the HCHS admissions test in January of their 6th grade year.

*Constantly check the school website under testing eligibility for the release of the statewide cut of score to see if your child is eligible to apply to take the admissions test.

Mark Twain Admissions Test

Mark Twain Intermediate School (I.S. 239) is a gifted and talented school that have their own admissions test in order for students to be qualified to enroll in the school. Students must take two talent exams of their choice from the following list of talent areas offered at Mark Twain:

To be eligible to take the test, students must submit a Request for Testing (RFT) form by a deadline to their elementary school. After submitting the RFT form, students who are eligible will receive notification of the date that they are scheduled to audition. The audition will take place at Mark Twain.