Hi - I would be writing the HAST this year and have heard that the format of the test is different from the selective exams -would anyone be able to share some insights on the kind of questions for Mathematical Reasoning - also any experience from applying to Hornsby Girls and/or North Sydney girls - thanks much in advance
applying for selective schools year 11??? help (1 Viewer)
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Hi!
I personally sat the HAST a couple of years ago when I was applying for Girraween (I didn't get in, but I did really well on the test FYI). The test is pretty similar to selective, in that there are 4 sections: Reading Comprehension, Maths (except this one has a little, teeny-weeny bit of science - like maybe, one question - in it as well, assuming you are currently in Year 10 - Yrs 9-10 have to sit the Mathematics & Science Test, not the Mathematical Reasoning one), Writing and General Ability (called Abstract Reasoning in HAST). However, the tests are a little bit easier to complete than selective, as the time limits are a lot more reasonable. Just saying, GA is the easiest out of all the tests, so you should aim for 100% on it. It's ENTIRELY about determining the next figure in a sequence - no word knowledge or anything.
For maths, the questions are really just like selective- no tricks or anything; just make sure you have a good reading comprehension because there are mostly word problems that you need to understand, not just a bunch of calculations. They're not even harder than in selective - so just practise selective-type Maths questions, and you're good. Anyway, I would recommend you to purchase an online sample HAST paper (find it on their website) - that's what I did - that has ALL the sections, so you can get a feel for the types of questions you'll get asked. Bear in mind though that the real exam is slightly harder than this sample paper, though not too much.
I have a good friend who has applied for both of those schools a couple of years ago ^^, so I know a little bit about the process of applying for them. She applied for NSGHS in Year 9 for the following year, and she didn't get in, even though she did exceedingly well in both her reports AND the HAST, as it was probably way too competitive, since hardly anyone leaves a school like that at the end of Yr 9. But (again, assuming you are in Yr 10 this year) if you are applying for Yr 11, then you probably have a greater chance of getting in, as selective schools usually take extra people for Yr 11. She applied for Hornsby in the same year, and she got into that school with the same reports and HAST mark (obviously), so that goes to show how many people probably left that school at the end of that year, since it is a "worse"-ranked school than NSGHS. But it could also be because Hornsby has lower standards than NSGHS since it is ranked lower as a school, and hence, the standards that my friend showed might actually have not been good enough for the latter, although we all think she did really well.
In conclusion, it should be easier for you to get into Hornsby/NSGHS for Yr 11 since "In Year 11 the Principal determines the number of new students in this year based on their performance in the ACER test" (copied from http://www.hornsbygir-h.schools.nsw.edu.au/our-school/enrolment), which means that a lot more people get into schools then. Just make sure you ACEr that test (haha, sorry about the bad pun XP ) and you should be fine to get into one of those schools. Oh, and I hope you did well in your two most recent reports, because you will be needing them.
They play a big part in whether or not you get in. (Actually, IIRC, my friend had to submit her 3 most recent reports for NSGHS- but you should check to be sure.)I really hope you get into the school of your dreams this year, so good luck with the application process!
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