SHSAT Math Prep and Tutoring: the 2026 Adaptive Test

In short

The SHSAT (Specialized High Schools Admissions Test) is run by NYC Public Schools for city residents in grade 8, or grade 9 for the first time. From fall 2026 it is computer-adaptive: 180 minutes, 50 ELA and 50 math items, no calculator. Modern Age Coders teaches SHSAT math live online, in a group batch or 1-on-1, through our SHSAT Math Prep course.

Learn with a teacher

Courses for the SHSAT math section

The SHSAT course itself, then the two school courses whose content the test samples.

$SHSAT Math Prep course thumbnail$

SHX / 01

SHSAT Math Prep

Grades 7 to 9. The adaptive format, pacing and every content strand.

Open the syllabus →

SHX / 02

Middle school mathematics

The grade 6 and 7 ratio, number and geometry work underneath.

Open the syllabus →

SHX / 03

Algebra foundations

Equations and inequalities, and the grade 8 content for ninth graders.

Open the syllabus →

The test

What is on the SHSAT math section in 2026?

The math section has 50 items drawn from the New York State standards, with no calculator and no formula sheet. Students choose whether to start with math or English Language Arts, and the whole test runs 180 minutes.

The fall 2026 SHSAT at a glance (NYC Public Schools SHSAT page and the NYC Guide to the SHSAT for 2027 Admissions, read 31 October 2026)
Feature	What NYC Public Schools publishes
Sections	Two: English Language Arts and Mathematics, 50 questions each
Standard time	180 minutes for the whole test; the student splits it between the two sections
Order	The student chooses which section to start with and must submit it before starting the other
Math content	Ratios and proportional relationships, number system and expressions, equations, inequalities, statistics and probability, and geometry
Item types	Multiple choice and fill in the blank, plus technology-enhanced items (TEI)
Standards	Grade 8 forms: New York State standards through grade 7. Grade 9 forms: through grade 8
Calculator	Not permitted; scrap paper is provided and collected
Formulas	Not given on the test; students must know them
Device	A DOE-provided computer at the home school or a central site

The grade 7 point matters most

An eighth grader sitting the SHSAT in November is tested on New York State math standards through grade 7, not on the algebra they are learning that fall. In the guide’s words, the items "will require you to apply familiar Math skills to complex, multi-step problems."

So the preparation is less about new topics and more about using familiar ones in longer chains: a ratio feeding a percent, an equation built from a sentence, a shape whose area needs two formulas.

Formulas from memory

The 2027 Admissions guide is blunt that definitions and formulas "will NOT be given in the test booklet". It names perimeter, area, volume and surface area of 2D and 3D figures as formulas to know.

We keep a one-page formula list for each student and quiz it in the first five minutes of every class until recall is instant. Writing them out from memory once a week works better than rereading them.

Sources: NYC Public Schools Specialized High School Admissions Test page and the NYC Guide to the SHSAT for 2027 Admissions linked from it, read 31 October 2026. Modern Age Coders is not connected with NYC Public Schools or the SHSAT.

New for fall 2026

How does the computer-adaptive SHSAT work?

From fall 2026 the test picks each next item from how the student has answered so far. A correct answer tends to bring a harder item, a wrong one an easier item, and every student still answers the same number of questions.

NYC Public Schools states it plainly: "Beginning in fall 2026, the SHSAT will move to a computer-adaptive test." Each section opens with an item or passage set of average difficulty. After every response the system re-estimates the student’s score and chooses what comes next. Because items carry an established difficulty on one shared scale, the final score depends on the pattern of right and wrong answers against item difficulty, not just a count of correct answers.

Fall 2025 and fall 2026 SHSAT math compared (NYC Guides to the SHSAT for 2026 and for 2027 Admissions, read 31 October 2026)
Point	Fall 2025 test (2026 admissions guide)	Fall 2026 test (2027 admissions guide)
Math items	57 word problems and computational questions	50 word problems and computational questions
Item selection	One fixed form	Computer-adaptive
Going back	A bookmark tool let students flag questions to return to	Once a student advances, the previous math item is closed
Answering	Questions could be left and revisited	Each item must be answered before the next appears
Field-test items	Not compared on this page	10 unscored field-test items in each subject

What the change means at the desk

The old habit of skipping a hard question and coming back to it no longer works in math. Each item must be answered, and once answered it is gone, so a student needs a decision rule for the item that is not yielding: how long to try, how to eliminate, and when to commit.

NYC Public Schools also warns that students "should not assume that rapidly guessing on remaining questions in order to finish is preferable to making the best attempt on each item." On an adaptive test, a run of rushed guesses at the end can pull the score estimate down.

Scores and field-test items

Each subject includes 10 unscored field-test items, which the city says have no impact on the adaptive nature of the exam. By our arithmetic that leaves 40 scored items per subject. The guide does not say which items are field tests, so we teach students to treat every item as one that counts.

Scaled scores for ELA and math are added to make a composite score, which NYC Public Schools uses to rank students for offers. That process, the city says, is unchanged from earlier years.

Practice on the real platform. The NYC SHSAT Portal hosts the Student Readiness Tool and four full-length practice tests for students testing in grade 8 in fall 2026, two with new content this year, plus mini practice tests for ninth graders. They are free, run in a browser and include explanations. We send every student to them and never copy their items into our lessons.

Sources: NYC Public Schools SHSAT page (adaptive item selection, scoring); the NYC Guides to the SHSAT for 2026 and 2027 Admissions; the NYC SHSAT Portal practice tests; all read 31 October 2026.

Dates and eligibility

When is the SHSAT in 2026, and who can take it?

The fall 2026 SHSAT runs on four days in November 2026, for students seeking a place in September 2027. Registration through MySchools closed on October 30.

SHSAT test dates for fall 2026 (NYC Public Schools Specialized High Schools page, read 31 October 2026; weekdays checked against the 2026 calendar)
Students	Where	Date
Grade 8 at a public NYCPS middle school that ends in grade 8	Their own school, in the school day	Wednesday, November 18, 2026
Grade 8 at a 6 to 12, K to 12, charter, private, parochial or independent school, or homeschooled	A central NYCPS site	Saturday, November 14 or Sunday, November 15, 2026
Every registered grade 9 student	A central NYCPS site	Saturday, November 21, 2026; an alternate date for students who cannot test on Saturday

Who is eligible

To register, a student must be a New York City resident and a current eighth grader or a first-time ninth grader who is not repeating the grade. Public, private and parochial school students all take the same test.

The guide sets two limits that shape planning: an eighth grader cannot test again until the following school year, and a ninth grader has no further chance after grade 9. So grade 8 and grade 9 are two attempts at most.

If your child is in grade 7 now

NYC Public Schools has not yet published dates for the fall 2027 test on the pages we read. Going by the 2026 pattern, registration opened in early October and testing ran in November, but treat that as a pattern, not a promise, and check the city’s page next autumn.

A grade 7 student has the most room: the grade 7 standards the test samples are the ones they are studying this year, so school math and SHSAT practice pull in the same direction.

Source: NYC Public Schools Specialized High Schools enrollment page, read 31 October 2026. The test ticket shows each student’s own date and location.

The eight schools

Which schools use the SHSAT, and how are offers made?

Eight of the nine Specialized High Schools admit by the SHSAT alone. NYC Public Schools calls it "the sole factor", and the ninth school, LaGuardia, admits by audition instead.

The eight testing Specialized High Schools (NYC Public Schools Specialized High Schools page, read 31 October 2026)
School
The Bronx High School of Science
The Brooklyn Latin School
Brooklyn Technical High School
High School for Mathematics, Science and Engineering at City College of New York
High School of American Studies at Lehman College
Queens High School for the Sciences at York College
Staten Island Technical High School
Stuyvesant High School

How offers work

When registering, the student ranks the testing schools in order of preference. The city then works down the list of scores from the top: each student is offered their highest-ranked school that still has seats. In its own words, "The SHSAT is the only criteria used to admit students to the eight testing Specialized High Schools; no other criteria are used."

Two consequences follow. A student is never considered for a school left off their list, and the Specialized High Schools do not have waitlists.

What we will and will not say

No tutor can promise a place, because offers depend on every other student’s score and on seats. We teach the math and the test habits and report honestly on progress; we make no prediction of offers.

NYC Public Schools also runs the DREAM program, which prepares eligible public school students for the SHSAT, and Discovery, a summer program for some students who score below the cutoff. Ask your school counselor about both.

Source: NYC Public Schools Specialized High Schools page, read 31 October 2026. We are not connected with any of these schools.

Pacing

How much time should each SHSAT math item get?

With 180 minutes for 100 items, an even split gives 90 minutes for the 50 math items, about 108 seconds each. The arithmetic is ours; the split is the student’s choice on the day.

Time per math item under three splits of the 180 minutes (our calculation from the published format)
Split, ELA then math	Math minutes	Average per math item
100 and 80	80	96 seconds (4,800 / 50)
90 and 90	90	108 seconds (5,400 / 50)
80 and 100	100	120 seconds (6,000 / 50)

Pick the split in practice, not on the day. Take one full timed practice test on the NYC portal with each order, math first and ELA first, and keep the order that leaves more time in the section that is weaker.
Set a checkpoint. At the 90 second mark on any math item, the student either has a plan or switches to elimination. This replaces the old skip-and-return habit, which the adaptive format removes.
Eliminate with the tool. The Answer Eliminator crosses out options. Removing two impossible choices often makes a hard item a fair guess.
Commit and move. Because the item cannot be revisited, the student writes nothing they plan to check later; they check before pressing next.
Watch the half-way mark. At item 25 the clock should show roughly half the math time used. More than that means speeding up on the easy steps, not rushing the hard ones.

Why rushing the end is a poor bet

On a fixed paper test, a quick guess on the last five questions cost nothing. On an adaptive test the city advises against it, because every response feeds the score estimate. We teach students to finish with steady, real attempts, even if one or two are educated guesses.

The practical fix is earlier: spending forty seconds less on each of the first ten items creates more than six minutes for the end.

Notepad or scrap paper

The digital notepad refreshes for each item, so working left on it disappears when the student advances. Scrap paper is provided and collected afterwards.

Many students find scrap paper quicker for math, because handwriting fractions and diagrams beats typing them. We practice both in class and let each student choose.

Worked examples

Three worked SHSAT-style math examples

These are our own problems, written for this page at the grade 7 level the test draws on. They are not SHSAT items and are not taken from any NYC guide or practice test.

Example 1: a ratio feeding a percent. In September a school store sold 120 notebooks, spiral and bound in the ratio 7 to 5. In October total sales rose by 15 percent while bound sales stayed the same. How many spiral notebooks were sold in October? Reasoning: 7 + 5 = 12 parts, so one part is 120 / 12 = 10, giving 70 spiral and 50 bound in September. October’s total is 120 x 1.15 = 138. Bound stays at 50, so spiral is 138 minus 50 = 88. The trap is applying 15 percent to the spiral count alone, which gives 80.5 and is not even a whole number.

Example 2: an equation from a sentence (fill in the blank). Maya is 4 times as old as her brother. In 6 years she will be twice as old as he is then. How old is Maya now? Let b be the brother’s age, so Maya is 4b. In 6 years: 4b + 6 = 2(b + 6), so 4b + 6 = 2b + 12, 2b = 6 and b = 3. Maya is 12. Check: in 6 years they are 18 and 9, and 18 is twice 9. A fill-in-the-blank item gives no choices to test, so the check is the student’s only safety net.

Example 3: area with no formula sheet. A garden is a 10 m by 6 m rectangle with a semicircle on one 6 m side. What is its total area, in terms of pi? The rectangle is 10 x 6 = 60 square meters. The semicircle has diameter 6, so radius 3, and area half of pi x 3 x 3 = 4.5 pi. The total is 60 + 4.5 pi square meters, about 74.1. The two formulas, rectangle and circle, must come from memory, which is why we drill them.

What the three examples share

Each one is two or three short steps chained together, which is what the NYC guide means by "complex, multi-step problems". None needs content beyond grade 7.

In every case the mistake that loses the item happens at the join between steps: the wrong base for a percent, a forgotten 6 on both sides, a diameter used as a radius.

How we turn them into lessons

The student first says the plan out loud before writing anything: "parts, then the new total, then subtract." Saying the plan is what makes the chain visible.

Then we change one number and solve again. If the method survives a new ratio or a new length, the student owns the idea rather than the answer.

Practice set

Ten original SHSAT math practice problems

Written by our teachers across the six content strands the city lists. No calculator. Aim for about 108 seconds each, the even-split pace from the table above.

Paint is mixed blue to white in the ratio 5 to 3. How many liters of blue are needed to use 24 liters of white?
A price rises by 20 percent and then falls by 25 percent. What is the overall percent change?
Solve 3(2x minus 5) = 4x + 9.
What is the greatest integer n for which negative 4n + 7 is greater than negative 13?
Two fair number cubes are rolled. What is the probability that the sum is 8?
A circle has circumference 10 pi centimeters. What is its area?
The mean of six numbers is 14. One number is removed and the mean of the rest is 13. Which number was removed?
Evaluate (negative 3/4) divided by (3/8), then subtract negative 2.
Two angles are supplementary. The larger is 20 less than 4 times the smaller. What is the larger angle?
On a map, 1 inch stands for 15 miles. How many miles do 3.5 inches represent?

Answers and the idea behind each (ours; every answer checked in Python)
Problem	Answer	Idea
1	40 liters	Each part is 24 / 3 = 8 liters; blue is 5 x 8
2	A 10 percent decrease	1.2 x 0.75 = 0.9; percents do not simply cancel
3	x = 12	6x minus 15 = 4x + 9, so 2x = 24
4	4	Negative 4n is greater than negative 20, so n is less than 5; dividing by a negative flips the sign
5	5/36	Five pairs give 8: (2,6), (3,5), (4,4), (5,3), (6,2)
6	25 pi square centimeters	Circumference 10 pi means radius 5
7	19	Totals 6 x 14 = 84 and 5 x 13 = 65; the difference is 19
8	0	Negative 3/4 times 8/3 is negative 2; negative 2 minus negative 2 is 0
9	140 degrees	x + (4x minus 20) = 180 gives x = 40, the smaller angle
10	52.5 miles	3.5 x 15, a scale factor applied once

Where students slip

Problem 2 catches many students, who answer "5 percent down" by subtracting 20 from 25. Problem 4 catches anyone who forgets that dividing an inequality by a negative number reverses it.

Problem 9 asks for the larger angle. Solving correctly and then reporting 40 is the most common way to lose an item that was really solved.

Then use the official tests

Once these feel comfortable, the next step is a full timed practice test on the NYC SHSAT Portal, in the real platform with the real tools. Afterwards, the summary report and the Explanations Appendix show which items were missed.

We go through those missed items in class by topic, not one by one, and set our own fresh problems on each weak topic.

Two plans

An SHSAT math study plan for grade 7 and for grade 8

Our plans, built on the published dates. One assumes a grade 8 student with the November 2026 test days away; the other a grade 7 student with a year in hand.

Two weeks to the November 2026 test (our plan for a grade 8 student)
Days	Focus
1 to 3	One full timed practice test on the NYC portal; list every missed item by strand
4 to 7	The two weakest strands only, with short untimed sets and formula recall daily
8 to 10	A second timed practice test in the other section order; settle the split
11 to 12	Light review of the formula list and the 90 second checkpoint habit
Test eve	No new material; check the test ticket, the date and the site

A year to the fall 2027 test (our plan for a grade 7 student, one live class a week)
Months	Focus
November 2026 to January 2027	Ratios, proportions and percent; number system and expressions
February to April 2027	Equations and inequalities; statistics and probability
May to June 2027	Geometry: area, volume, surface area and angles, with formulas memorized
July to August 2027	Mixed multi-step sets; first timed practice test on the portal
September 2027 onward	Adaptive pacing drills, more timed tests, and registration when the city opens it

Grade 7

Content first, pacing later. The year plan above.

Grade 8

Practice tests early in the fall, then the weakest strands.

Grade 9

One last attempt, with grade 8 content now included.

Readiness

Four signs a student is ready for SHSAT math

Good grades in math class are the start. The SHSAT adds speed, memory and a no-going-back rule.

From school math to SHSAT math (our readiness steps)
Step	What it looks like
1. Secure	Grade 7 ratio, equation and geometry problems right, given time
2. Remembered	Every area, volume and angle formula written from memory
3. Chained	Two and three step problems planned before writing
4. Decisive	Commits to an answer inside about two minutes and moves on

For parents

Steps 3 and 4 are rarely part of a school math class. They are what SHSAT practice adds, and they show up most clearly on a timed practice test.

Ask to see the summary report after each practice test. A list of missed strands is far more useful than a single raw number.

For students

Before pressing next, ask one question: did I answer what was asked? It saves more items than any trick.

Keep a notebook of every item you missed and the idea behind it. Reread it the week before the test.

The catalogue

Nine courses around the SHSAT years

Live online classes with the same teacher each week, as a batch or one to one.

I

The test years

Grades 7 to 9

SHX / TST / 01

SHSAT Math Prep

The adaptive test, strand by strand.

Open the syllabus

SHX / TST / 02

Middle school math

Grade 6 to 8 content, deeply.

Open the syllabus

SHX / TST / 03

Algebra foundations

Equations before Algebra 1.

Open the syllabus

II

Stretch and speed

For students who want more

SHX / STR / 01

Middle school competitions

MATHCOUNTS and AMC 8 problems.

Open the syllabus

SHX / STR / 02

Statistics and probability

A strand to strengthen.

Open the syllabus

SHX / STR / 03

Speed calculation

Mental arithmetic without a calculator.

Open the syllabus

III

After grade 9

High school and beyond

SHX / HS / 01

High school math

Algebra to calculus.

Open the syllabus

SHX / HS / 02

SAT math

The next big test.

Open the syllabus

SHX / HS / 03

Math through coding

Python for ages 10 to 15.

Open the syllabus

How lessons run

Live SHSAT math classes from New York evenings to weekend mornings

Weekdays or weekends, flexible: choose your batch, or for a very personalised plan choose 1-on-1 at your convenience, weekend mornings or weekdays.

Weekdays

After school, Eastern Time.

Weekends

A good slot for a three-hour practice test.

1-on-1

Paced to one student’s weakest strand.

Strand map

Six content strands tracked separately.

Formula recall

Five minutes of memory work each class.

One-way drills

Sets you cannot go back on, like the real test.

Portal reviews

Official practice tests reviewed together.

All five boroughs

Live online; no commute across the city.

Group size

A batch of 15 to 20, or a single student.

Student work

Projects from our students

Our learners also build with math in code. More on the student labs page.

AI and ML

NutriLife

An AI nutrition coach that reads what you eat and works you toward a target.

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AI and ML

Misti

A chatbot that answers mathematics and programming questions, built and deployed by a student.

by Harshit · Open it

AI and ML

GuardianX

An assistant that helps a young person recognise unsafe situations online.

by Vivaan · Open it

Web app

SkyCast

A weather forecasting site with live conditions for any location.

by Krish

Fees

The SHSAT itself is run by NYC Public Schools; our fee covers only the classes. We bill month by month, so a family can stop the week after the November test.

Free first class

USD 0

no card required

A free first class
A short no-calculator diagnostic
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Group batch

USD 100

a month, billed in US dollars

A batch of 15 to 20
The same teacher weekly
Choose your batch
Monthly billing

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One to one

USD 150

a month, billed in US dollars

A private math teacher
Lessons mapped to the test date
Problems aimed at one student

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Questions from NYC parents

SHSAT math: what families ask

How many math questions are on the SHSAT in 2026?

From fall 2026 the math section has 50 items, the same as ELA, within 180 minutes for the whole test. Ten items in each subject are unscored field-test items, according to NYC Public Schools.

Is the SHSAT computer-adaptive now?

Yes. NYC Public Schools says that beginning in fall 2026 the SHSAT is a computer-adaptive test, which chooses each item based on earlier answers. Every student still answers the same number of questions.

Can you go back to a question on the SHSAT math section?

No. In the math section a student must answer each item before moving on and cannot return to it after advancing. That is a change from the fall 2025 test, which had a bookmark tool.

Can you use a calculator on the SHSAT?

No. Calculators are not permitted, and a watch is allowed only if it is silent and is not a calculator. Scrap paper is provided for math working and collected at the end.

When is the SHSAT in 2026?

NYC Public Schools lists Wednesday, November 18, 2026 for eighth graders at public middle schools ending in grade 8, Saturday, November 14 or Sunday, November 15 for other eighth graders, and Saturday, November 21 for ninth graders. The test ticket confirms each student's date.

What math is on the SHSAT for eighth graders?

Grade 8 forms are based on New York State math standards through grade 7: ratios and proportional relationships, the number system and expressions, equations, inequalities, statistics and probability, and geometry. Grade 9 forms go through grade 8.

Is the SHSAT the only thing that counts for the specialized high schools?

For the eight testing schools, yes. NYC Public Schools says the SHSAT is the only criteria used and that no other criteria are used; LaGuardia High School admits by audition instead.

Do you use real SHSAT questions in class?

No. We write our own problems at the right level and send students to the free official practice tests on the NYC SHSAT Portal. We never copy items from the NYC guides or practice tests.

Can you guarantee an offer to Stuyvesant or Brooklyn Tech?

No one honestly can. Offers depend on every student's score and the seats at each school. We teach the math and the habits the adaptive test rewards, and we report progress plainly.

What days and times are SHSAT classes?

Weekdays or weekends, flexible: choose your batch, or for a very personalised plan choose 1-on-1 at your convenience, weekend mornings or weekdays.

Are you connected with NYC Public Schools?

No. Modern Age Coders is an independent online school with no connection to NYC Public Schools, the SHSAT or any specialized high school. Families register for the test through MySchools themselves.

Elsewhere on this site

More for NYC middle schoolers

Other entrance tests, grade-level help and contests that build the same skills.

ISEE and SSAT math

The independent school route, compared.

7th grade math tutor

The year the SHSAT content comes from.

8th grade math tutor

For the grade 9 SHSAT form.

Algebra tutoring

Equations and inequalities, one to one.

Geometry tutoring

Area, volume and angle work in depth.

Middle school math competitions

MATHCOUNTS and friends, for speed.

Coding classes in NYC

For the student who also wants to build.

Related pages in this guide

Part of the guide: US gifted and selective school tests

Exam schools and private high schools

Gifted and talented screening

Programs for advanced students

More guides: US state math tests by state · US math placement and college readiness tests · Homeschool and school math curricula guide · US math and coding competitions guide

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