QASMT entrance test format
This page focuses on the QASMT test format. To choose preparation materials, visit our QASMT practice tests and bundles. For broader provider information, see the EduTest format guide.
The QASMT Entrance Test is five timed sections in a single sitting of approximately three hours, facilitated by Edutest. Verbal Reasoning, Numerical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension and Mathematics each run 30 minutes, and Written Expression runs 15 minutes.
That is 135 minutes of timed testing. Every section is multiple choice except the last one.
Is the QASMT entrance test held over two days?
No. It is one sitting, held on one of two published dates. The Queensland Academies list the testing day for the 2028 intake as "5-6 September 2026", and the footnote is explicit: your child will be scheduled to sit on either Saturday 5 September or Sunday 6 September, through an automatic scheduling process.
Several preparation sites read that date range as a two-day examination and describe it that way. It is not. Two dates are published so the Academies can split the cohort across two sittings, and families are told to keep both dates free precisely because you do not get to pick. The Academies state they cannot accommodate requests for a preferred test date or session, morning or afternoon.
Students with approved Access Arrangements and Reasonable Adjustments sit an alternative sitting, which for the 2028 intake was Monday 7 to Tuesday 8 September 2026.
What are the five sections?
Two ability tests and three achievement tests. Ability sections measure reasoning without relying on prior knowledge. Achievement sections measure what has actually been learned.
These are the Academies' own published descriptions, and they are identical for Year 7 and Year 10 entry. What differs between the two entry points is the difficulty calibration, not the structure.
What does Reading Comprehension actually include?
More than comprehension. The Academies describe it as measuring the capacity to read and interpret meaning from written passages, as well as to correct, complete and punctuate sentences.
That second half is a grammar and mechanics test hiding inside a reading section, and it is the part families most often skip in preparation because the section name does not advertise it. A child who reads well but has never been drilled on punctuation and sentence completion will lose marks in a section they thought they were strong in.
How hard is the 15-minute writing task?
Hard, because there is no planning time. Edutest specify that Written Expression runs 15 minutes with no planning or reading time. The clock starts when the stimulus appears.
The mode is not announced in advance. Edutest state that any of creative, descriptive, narrative, persuasive, expository or informative writing may be assessed. A child who has rehearsed one polished narrative and receives a persuasive stimulus has to improvise under time pressure, which is exactly the situation the task is designed to create.
Six things are marked: punctuation, creativity, construction, grammar, spelling and relevance to the task. Relevance is where prepared pieces fail. A beautiful paragraph that does not answer the stimulus scores worse than a plainer one that does.
Practise it at 15 minutes flat, rotating modes weekly, with a pen down rule. Anything else trains a habit your child cannot use.
After teaching English from Year 3 to Year 12 since 2008, our answer to what moves a 15-minute piece up a band is probably not the one you are expecting. It is not vocabulary and it is not a brilliant idea. It is finishing.
A top piece in 15 minutes is a piece that is complete and that does what the question asked. That is it. The students who score well are the ones who can write under pressure and land the ending, because they are working from a framework they already know rather than deciding on the structure while the clock runs. Give a child a framework they have used twenty times and they will produce something coherent and finished in 15 minutes almost every time.
The trap is aiming for the best piece of writing your child has ever produced. That is the wrong target for this task. The target is a finished piece written to the specifications of the question. An unfinished piece of beautiful writing scores below a plain one that answers the stimulus and reaches a proper ending, and in 15 minutes ambition is usually what causes the unfinished piece.
So drill the framework until it is automatic, then drill finishing. Pen down at 15 minutes, every single time, and treat an unfinished piece as a failed attempt no matter how good the first paragraph was.
What can my child bring?
Almost nothing. Edutest publish a prohibited list that covers calculators, dictionaries, working out paper, mobile phones, rulers, digital watches, smart watches and fitness trackers, and erasable pens.
The calculator rule is the one that changes how you prepare. The Mathematics section covers number, measurement, algebra, space and data at year level, all of it calculator free, in 30 minutes. Most Year 5 students have not done sustained mental arithmetic under time pressure in a long while.
The smart watch rule is the one that ruins mornings. Take it off the night before.
What happens to the answer sheet if my child loses their place?
Nothing good, and there is no remedy. Edutest state that if a student discovers after testing that they entered answers out of order or lost their place, Edutest cannot manually score the test or adjust the position of answers.
One mis-shaded row can cascade through an entire 30-minute section. This is the cheapest problem on this page to fix, and the most expensive to leave. Practise with a genuine multiple-choice answer sheet, not by circling answers in the booklet, and build a checkpoint habit: every ten questions, confirm the question number matches the row.
Related: every question is of equal value and no marks are deducted for wrong answers. Blank answers are pure loss. Teach your child to mark their best guess and move, rather than leaving anything empty.
Will we get the test results?
No. The Queensland Academies do not distribute individual test results or parent reports, and do not provide diagnostic information about a child's strengths or areas for growth. They also cannot give individual feedback to unsuccessful candidates.
The Academies' reasoning is that test results are not reviewed in isolation but alongside school reports, the engagement activity and other candidates' applications, to form a holistic assessment. Which is fair enough as a selection philosophy, and also means the only section-by-section picture of your child's performance is the one you build before the day.
How does Edutest score it?
Results are grouped into Ability and Achievement, and each is compared with results from thousands of other students in the same year level nationally. There is no raw mark, no percentage and no published cut-off.
Edutest note that because applicants for these tests are generally high achievers, more than half will land in the average or normal range on any one section. Around a quarter will score above it. Read that as a statement about the cohort, not about your child.
Where to next
section lengths
reported
- QASMT Year 7 entry guide: dates, fees, documents and the merit pool
- Edutest practice tests: timed papers matched to these
- Edutest exam format: the provider, the rules and how results are
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FAQ block for schema
How long is the QASMT entrance test? 135 minutes of timed testing across five sections, described by the Academies as approximately three hours in total.
Is the QASMT test over two days? No. Your child sits once, on one of the two published dates, allocated automatically. Keep both dates free.
How many sections does the QASMT entrance test have? Five: Verbal Reasoning, Numerical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, Mathematics and Written Expression.
How long is the QASMT writing task? Fifteen minutes, with no planning or reading time.
Can my child use a calculator in the QASMT maths section? No. Calculators are prohibited, along with dictionaries, rulers, working out paper and smart watches.
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Written by the teaching team at Practice Tests and Exams. We have taught Year 3 to 12 English and Year 3 to 6 maths in small group classes to our own syllabus since 2008, and prepare Queensland students for selective entry and scholarship exams.
Section timings and testing-day arrangements verified against the Queensland Academies Year 7 enrolments page and edutest.com.au on 10 September 2026. Confirm the current cycle before applying.