lewber Posted March 9, 2017 Share Posted March 9, 2017 These tests are not currently held anywhere in our area - or state as far as I can tell. We have a math competition that goes to the state level, but as far as I can tell it is exclusive to our state. DS will be going to the public high school next year and I'm wondering if I should suggest they participate in AMC testing in addition? We have some fairly gifted math students and I think with some prep they would do well on these tests. No one in my area has heard of AMC or AOPS, but I'm wondering if they would be more recognized on college apps than the generic math competitions we do now. Ours you can't really prepare for either. They seem pretty random, and I think the kids would like the idea of prep work actually being useful to the actual test. Are AMC results helpful in the college application process? Or would the SAT/ACT math score be sufficient? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy in Richmond Posted March 9, 2017 Share Posted March 9, 2017 Have you tried a zip code search for AMC 10/12 locations? I'm pretty sure every state has sites; at least they did several years ago when we were involved. At the time, they published physical books of top schools & individuals, and it was easy to find where the tests were offered. I have a much harder time scouring their new online statistics page :-/ Some states, though, don't have as much of an AMC culture. Our relatives in Louisiana hadn't heard of it, even our nephew who was at the top of his high school class. They were more involved in the Mu Alpha Theta and other competitions. I think the AMC contests are very worthwhile. Very little about them is computation based or purely quick arithmetic. You have to really understand number theory, combinatorics, geometry, etc, to do well. My kids and I all learned a lot of mathematics preparing for these tests. It's not too difficult or expensive to run a school site, so I'd suggest finding a math teacher at the school who'd be willing to help out. Are they helpful in the college app process? Well, good scores certainly can only help. A few schools actually have a place on the app for AMC/AIME results (MIT is one), and others recognize them. AMCs test math on a much higher level than SAT/ACT, so they can differentiate abilities among the top group of math kids. [Of course, there are plenty of other ways to get the attention of colleges; AMCs aren't the only way for math kids to stand out.] 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewber Posted March 9, 2017 Author Share Posted March 9, 2017 Ok, I guess there are some in other cities in our state- almost 2 hours away. There are two within 15 miles in a bordering state. I did not realize this. They are all at public schools, wonder how hard it would be to get a seat? If it's worth it to our kids, I think I could get a teacher to proctor it at least. I'll have to look at test prep costs on AoPS. Practice tests are at least free. Do you think test scores would only be useful to differentiate perfect or almost perfect SAT test scores? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy in Richmond Posted March 9, 2017 Share Posted March 9, 2017 Sure, ask the contest managers at the nearby schools. Our local public schools were willing to host a few outsiders, and we used them for AIME and up. Some will ask you to cover the cost of a test, but it's not much. We did the AMC 8/10/12 ourselves as a registered homeschool at the library with a hired proctor (pricier option, but ensured a quiet environment with no glitches). Also, I always got the contest manager's name from the AMC folks and asked them directly, skipping the front office at the schools. Math teachers who love to host competitions usually are welcoming. You don't have to pay for a test prep course unless you like that format. Working through old papers is fine, especially since there are full solutions online. We did like the AoPS prep classes personally here, even though I could have guided the kids myself. Yes, high AMC scores definitely differentiate among the top (even perfect) SAT scorers. It's much easier to get 800 on SAT or SAT 2 math than to get high AMC scores. That's one reason schools like MIT ask for them. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewber Posted March 10, 2017 Author Share Posted March 10, 2017 Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted March 10, 2017 Share Posted March 10, 2017 (edited) My kids are too "lazy" to prep and to them it is the social aspect of test day because there are quite a few 4th to 8th graders at our test site. My oldest went from not interested to ambivalent about trying to qualify for USAJMO. Now he is impatiently waiting for AIME I results because it is his first time doing. My kids took at a private university since I rather not deal with my public high schools, I have 4 test sites within a 5 mile radius and 55 test sites in a 10 mile radius. daijobu did the librarian as proctor as well. For free test prep: AoPS AMC 10 questions and solutions page https://artofproblemsolving.com/wiki/index.php/AMC_10_Problems_and_Solutions AoPS AMC 12 questions and solutions page https://artofproblemsolving.com/wiki/index.php/AMC_12_Problems_and_Solutions AoPS videos for AMC link https://m.youtube.com/user/ArtofProblemSolving AoPS AIME questions and solutions page https://artofproblemsolving.com/wiki/index.php/AIME_Problems_and_Solutions AoPS Resources for mathematics competitions http://artofproblemsolving.com/wiki/index.php/Resources_for_mathematics_competitions AoPS Forum 2017-18 AIME study group https://artofproblemsolving.com/community/c415733h1374877_references My oldest is in 7th so I have no idea about college app. I am also in an area where perfect scores for AMC aren't unheard of and local kids compete for perfect scores. AMC10A and 12A results are posted here. The 2017 AMC10B and 12B results are still being uploaded. There are 10 students who scored 15/15 for last year's AIME I, the youngest is a 9th grader. http://amc-reg.maa.org/reports/generalreports.aspx E.g. A local 7th grader has perfect score "Perfect Scores- 10A 2017 Location: United States Total Students: 28" Local 10th and 11th grader have perfect scores (2 in SF Bay Area, total of 3 in California) "Perfect Scores- 12A 2017 Location: United States Total Students: 10" For AMC8, the youngest perfect scorer is a 4th grader from Anaheim, CA "Perfect Scores- 2016 Location: United States Total Students: 264" ETA: There are 15 test sites within a 5 miles radius of Palo Alto, CA zip code For San Jose, CA. there are 20 sites within 5 miles, 50 test sites within 10 miles. I am also in a talent search heavy area so middle school students taking ACT and SAT are common. Edited March 10, 2017 by Arcadia 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewber Posted March 10, 2017 Author Share Posted March 10, 2017 I live in the opposite area of that! I think someone a few months ago referred to their area as an educational dessert and that sums up my area pretty well. There are some parents who look outside what is offered, but there are also a lot of really talented kiddos who would benefit from these experiences but just don't know about them. Now, I don't think any of them are going to get perfect AMC scores:) I don't think our public school math education is going to get them there and they've had very few other opportunities. But to expand their math experiences and take a national test would be beneficial I think. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted March 10, 2017 Share Posted March 10, 2017 There are some parents who look outside what is offered, but there are also a lot of really talented kiddos who would benefit from these experiences but just don't know about them. ... But to expand their math experiences and take a national test would be beneficial I think. Spread awareness about USAMTS in your neighborhood. As long as they have an internet connection at home, school, library, they can take part. No test site required. "The USA Mathematical Talent Search (USAMTS) is a free mathematics competition open to all United States middle and high school students. As opposed to most mathematics competitions, the USAMTS allows students a full month, or more, to work out their solutions. Carefully written justifications are required for each problem. The problems range in difficulty from being within the reach of most high school students to challenging the best students in the nation. Students may use any materials - books, calculators, computers - but all the work must be their own. The USAMTS is run on the honor system - it is an individual competition, whose competitive role is very secondary. (Although we do give prizes.)" http://www.usamts.org 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewber Posted March 10, 2017 Author Share Posted March 10, 2017 That looks great. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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