Year 8 students sit the Victorian selective entry exam in June for Year 9 entry to Melbourne High, Mac.Robertson Girls', Nossal and Suzanne Cory. ACER runs it in one morning:
| Section | Time | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning | 60 min | Multiple choice |
| Reading and Verbal Reasoning | 55 min | Multiple choice |
| Writing | 40 min | Two written tasks |
Content never goes beyond the Year 8 curriculum, and calculators aren't allowed. ACER says many candidates answer only about half the questions correctly, so finding these hard is normal.
Below are 13 original sample questions and two writing prompts at Year 8 level, with answers at the end. These are our own practice questions. ACER publishes a free sample pack, which your child should try first.
Mathematics
1. Solve: 3(x − 4) = 2x + 5 A. x = 1 B. x = 9 C. x = 13 D. x = 17
2. A shirt costs $45 after a 25% discount. What was the original price? A. $56.25 B. $60 C. $65 D. $70
3. The angles of a triangle are in the ratio 2 : 3 : 4. What is the largest angle? A. 60° B. 72° C. 80° D. 90°
Quantitative reasoning
4. What comes next? 3, 7, 15, 31, ... A. 47 B. 55 C. 62 D. 63
5. The symbol ☆ means a ☆ b = 2a − b. What is (3 ☆ 1) ☆ 4? A. 2 B. 4 C. 6 D. 10
6. Find the missing number.
| 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 4 | 5 | 20 |
| 3 | 7 | ? |
A. 10 B. 14 C. 21 D. 24
Reading
Read the extract, then answer questions 7 to 9.
My aunt insists she has never once been lost. She has, on the other hand, taken a great many scenic routes. There was the scenic route through a cane field outside Bundaberg, the scenic route that ended at a locked gate in the Grampians, and the famous scenic route of 2019, which delivered us, after four hours, to the exact service station where we had bought our breakfast.
"You see things this way," she says, "that other people miss."
It is hard to argue. Other people have certainly missed that service station twice in one morning.
7. The tone of the extract is best described as: A. gently humorous B. bitter C. fearful D. formal
8. The narrator uses the phrase "scenic route" mainly: A. as a polite way of saying the aunt was lost B. to describe beautiful scenery C. to show the aunt is an expert driver D. to name a famous road
9. The final sentence is an example of: A. irony B. personification C. alliteration D. onomatopoeia
Verbal reasoning
10. Ephemeral is to permanent as scarce is to: A. rare B. abundant C. fragile D. expensive
11. No reptiles have fur. Some pets are reptiles. Which statement must be true? A. Some pets do not have fur. B. No pets have fur. C. All pets are reptiles. D. Some reptiles are not pets.
12. Which word does not belong with the others? A. candid B. frank C. blunt D. evasive
13. Five people sit in a row. Lea sits at one end and Nia at the other. Mo sits next to both Lea and Jun. Jun sits directly to the left of Kai. Who sits in the middle? A. Lea B. Mo C. Jun D. Kai
Writing
The writing section has two tasks in 40 minutes, usually one creative and one persuasive or analytical. Try both prompts, with about 20 minutes each.
Task A (creative): Write a story or description that begins: "The message arrived three years too late."
Task B (persuasive): "Students learn more from failure than from success." Do you agree? Write a piece arguing your view.
See our Victorian selective entry writing test guide for how the tasks are marked.
Want feedback? Upload your child's response through our free sample and add a human-marked review for $15.
Answers and explanations
| Q | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | D | 3x − 12 = 2x + 5, so x = 17. Check: 3 × 13 = 39 and 34 + 5 = 39. |
| 2 | B | $45 is 75% of the original. 45 ÷ 0.75 = $60. Option A is the trap: adding 25% of $45 to $45. |
| 3 | C | 2 + 3 + 4 = 9 parts. 180 ÷ 9 = 20. Largest = 4 × 20 = 80°. |
| 4 | D | Each term is doubled, plus 1: 31 × 2 + 1 = 63. |
| 5 | C | 3 ☆ 1 = 6 − 1 = 5. Then 5 ☆ 4 = 10 − 4 = 6. |
| 6 | C | In each row, the first number times the second gives the third: 3 × 7 = 21. |
| 7 | A | The narrator teases the aunt affectionately, without anger. |
| 8 | A | Every "scenic route" ends somewhere unplanned. It's the aunt's polite word for being lost. |
| 9 | A | The narrator seems to agree with the aunt but means the opposite: they got lost. |
| 10 | B | Ephemeral (short-lived) is the opposite of permanent. Scarce is the opposite of abundant. |
| 11 | A | The pets that are reptiles have no fur, so at least some pets don't have fur. |
| 12 | D | Candid, frank and blunt all mean direct and honest. Evasive means avoiding the question. |
| 13 | C | Lea, Mo, Jun, Kai, Nia. If Lea sat on the right end, Kai couldn't sit directly right of Jun. |
What these questions show
- Maths traps students who reverse a percentage the wrong way, as in question 2.
- Reading at Year 8 tests tone, irony and what a writer means rather than what they say.
- Verbal reasoning depends on vocabulary at a higher level than school usually teaches, like ephemeral and evasive. See our vocabulary list for selective tests.
More practice
- Read the Victorian selective entry exam guide, exam dates for 2028 and selective schools in Melbourne.
- Our Victorian selective entry mocks launch in December. Join the waitlist.
- Meanwhile, EduTest practice tests build the same verbal and numerical reasoning skills.
Frequently asked questions
Does ACER publish Victorian selective entry sample questions? Yes. ACER publishes a free sample question pack, but says it may not match the real difficulty.
Are there past papers? No. ACER doesn't release past papers.
Can my child use a calculator? No. Calculators, phones and dictionaries aren't allowed.
Sample questions written by Practice Tests & Exams. Exam structure from ACER and the Victorian Government (checked 31 October 2026). Not affiliated with ACER or the Victorian Department of Education.