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We're excited to share that NYCGPrep has created a SHSAT Math Mini CAT Test! This fun little test with 10 questions will help you get comfortable navigating through a stream of digital SHSAT Math questions. To access the test, simply click the link below. You'll be asked to submit your name and email address. And once that is done, you'll dive into a series of multiple-choice math questions. Remember to move through the test without backtracking, and after answering all 10 qu

To offer you a glimpse of in-person instruction at NYCGPrep, we have made video lessons available for view on Youtube. These tutorials review individual SHSAT questions from practice tests published by the NYC Department of Education in the past 20 years. Each video lesson is about 1½-minutes long and features David Park, the Director of SAT and SHSAT Prep at NYCG Prep. You can watch these helpful videos on the NYCGPrep YouTube channel. Please subscribe and comment. Your feed

We’re excited to offer a 3-week SHSAT Boot Camp designed to help students feel confident, prepared, and ready to do their best on test day.

Every year, over 30,000 New York City middle schoolers take on the SHSAT. It’s a massive milestone, and the stakes feel incredibly high since it’s the single ticket into the city’s specialized high schools. But starting in the fall of 2026

I think that a good SAT score is anything from 1500-1600. Personally, I know people in my school who have gotten really close to a 1600. They scored above 1550. I believe that a good SAT score carries currency for teenagers among their peers because a lot of people like to post their scores for everyone to see. Of course, they usually only post good scores so others will see how smart they are. I think that getting a high score gets you a lot of recognition in school from tea

I use Desmos pretty often when I practice for the SAT Math section. I think it is really useful, especially for graphing equations, finding intersections, and solving problems that would normally take a lot more steps. However, I don’t use Desmos for everything. For simple calculations, I prefer using a physical calculator because I’m more comfortable with it and can type things in faster. If the SAT suddenly removed Desmos, I don’t think it would affect me too much in term

The SHSAT sometimes requires us to figure out the sum of consecutive numbers. Here is an example from the SHSAT Practic Test 5 (Old Format). Question 62. Given: n is an even integer and 10 < n < 19. What is the mean of all possible values of n? F) 14 G) 14.5 H) 15 J) 15.5 K) 30 We know that all possible values of n are: {12, 14, 16, 18}. To calculate the mean, we can simply add the four values for n, and then divide that sum by 4. But, did you know that there is a method to f

Prime numbers are very special. A prime number is a number that is divisible evenly only by itself and 1. Hence, 18 is not a prime number because it can be formed as the product of 2 and 9, 3 and 6, or 18 and 1. In other words, it has many factors, other than itself and 1. In contrast, 23 is a prime number because its only factors are 1 and itself, 23. Some questions on the SHSAT will ask us to determine whether a number is, in fact, prime. To determine whether any given numb

Let's say we were given the following question on the SHSAT. Example 1 Compare 3⁄7 and 4⁄9. Which fraction is greater? One method of comparing the values of the two given fractions is to convert each fraction into decimal form. Doing so requires doing division. We would divide 3 by 7, and then repeat the process by dividing 4 by 9. Converting fractions to decimal form by doing division would lead us to the answer, but doing so would require computation and time. We would be

Students who are preparing for the SHSAT often ask, "Which specialized high school is the most difficult to get into?" It's a simple question, and one which parents may ask as well, but the answer isn't so simple. The cutoff score, which is the minimum score with which a student wins a seat to a particular school, isn't set in stone. The score changes every year, depending on the number of students who take the exam--usually 25,000 to 30,000--and on how those students rank th

Exponents may seem rather straightforward and simple. And that's usually the case, particularly when dealing with common exponents like 2 and 3. Example: 3² = 3 x 3 = 9 There's no confusion here. To square a number simply means to multiply the number by itself. Likewise, to cube a number follows the same logic and simply means to multiply the number by itself three times. Example: 3³ = 3 x 3 x 3 = 27 But what about exponents that are 0? Negative? Or fractions? What do thos

These are two very common computation traps that can throw off even the most capable math students. 1) Dividing by ½ It's easy to think that some quantity divided by a half means that the result will be the same as dividing by 2. But, that's not the case at all. Example: 8 ÷ ½ = ? Many might confuse the above example with 8 ÷ 2 and think the answer is 4. But. dividing by ½ actually means to multiply by 2, which is the reciprocal of ½. The confusion may stem from the s

Did you know that the SHSAT may be considered tougher than the SAT? While "tougher" can mean different things to different people, here are some facts: Understanding the Digital SAT The SAT, in its current digital form, tests math and reading, has 98 questions, and lasts for 2 hours and 14 minutes. And that time is broken up into 4 modules: 32 minutes for Verbal (27 Questions) 32 minutes for Verbal (27 Questions) 35 minutes for Math (22 Questions) 35 minutes for Math (22 Qu

Time management during test-taking is more important than ever with the SHSAT transitioning to a digital format. Students can no longer skip tricky, difficult questions and return to them later. Once a question is answered, that answer is locked in, meaning the digital CAT format turns the SHSAT into a one-way street—students can only move forward. This change encourages students to be mindful of their time as they navigate their way through the test. With this in mind, it's

Subject Verb Agreement is one of those grammar concepts that shows up again and again on the SHSAT and SAT. But what does it mean for a subject and a verb to “agree”? It doesn’t mean they share the same opinion. It simply means they match in number: singular subjects take singular verbs, and plural subjects take plural verbs. Here’s a very basic example: The clown is sad. In the sentence, “the clown” is the subject and is singular, so we use the singular verb “is" and not th

If you're curious about SHSAT cutoff scores for admission to NYC's top specialized high schools, you're in the right place. Each year, these cutoff scores shift and change, reflecting the unique dynamics of student interest and school rankings. Essentially, the cutoff score is a reflection of demand—when more students list a school as their top choice, the cutoff score for that school tends to rise. For example, we've seen some notable increases in cutoff scores for the High

The shift to test-optional policies that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic appeared initially to suggest that the SAT and other standardized tests would no longer impact the lives of students. But now, new research and findings have thrown a few curveballs into the mix, leading many prominent colleges and universities to rethink their admissions policies. In this post, we’re going to examine the reinstatement of standardized testing requirements and break down what this m

Knowing whether a given number can be divided cleanly by others is not just useful—it's like unlocking a little secret about math! This skill comes in handy for various tasks, whether you're factoring numbers or checking if a number is prime. We've put together a collection of helpful divisibility rules just for you! Many of these rules might already be familiar to you. Please take a moment to focus on the ones that are new to you. You’ll find that learning them can be both f

When we create a sentence that includes multiple items, it’s important to keep those items in a similar format. This not only makes our writing clearer but also more enjoyable to read. Here’s an example from the 2018 SHSAT Test A (Question #3): The animal shelter, which is located on Midway Street, is looking for volunteers to help with a variety of tasks, such as walking dogs, cleaning kennels, hand- feeding newborn kittens, and supporting the pet adoption process. Thi

Probability questions show up on the SHSAT and SAT almost every year—and they can feel tricky at first, especially when more than one event is involved. A common point of confusion is figuring out whether one event makes another event more (or less) likely. Here’s the reassuring part: no matter how complicated a probability question looks, the final probability is always a number between 0 and 1. • A probability of 0 means the event is impossible and will absolutely not happe