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ACER Scholarship Test Preparation for Australian Independent Schools

ACER Scholarship Test preparation for independent and Catholic schools across Australia. Coverage of Primary Level P (Years 4–6 entry) and Secondary Levels 1–3 (Years 7–12 entry), with timed practice and writing feedback aligned to the published ACER formats.

By Braintree Editorial, Exam preparation editors, Braintree Coaching Australia

Reviewed by Braintree Academic Panel on

Last updated

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Independent schools nationwide · Level P + Levels 1–3 · ACER-marked

Mock test packs

ACER Scholarship practice packs — timed papers, marked on the LMS.

Self-paced papers with section-level feedback. Browse tiers by access length and practice volume.

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About the exam

The ACER Scholarship test, in plain language.

The ACER Scholarship Tests identify academically able students for scholarship awards at independent schools. Unlike curriculum exams, they rank applicants by critical thinking, problem solving and higher-order reasoning so schools can differentiate the top end of performance.

Each school sets its own sitting date with ACER. Parents register and pay for every school they apply to, students sit once per school sitting, ACER marks the papers, and the school decides whether to award a scholarship. Result reports may come from ACER or the school. Calculators and dictionaries are not permitted; timing and delivery (paper or online) follow the level the school has registered.

Test dates

Registration and sitting dates are set by each participating school, commonly between February and May for the following year's entry. Confirm the window on the school's scholarship page and on ACER's scholarship site before you register.

Scoring & cutoffs

ACER marks papers and reports results to the school. Scholarship decisions sit with the school, not with ACER. Parents typically receive a result report from ACER or the school after the school has completed its selection process.

  • Reading and Viewing (Level P)

    School-setMultiple choice

    Primary Level P reading and viewing items for Years 4–6 entry. Measures comprehension and interpretation of written and visual texts.

  • Mathematics (Level P)

    School-setMultiple choice

    Primary mathematics reasoning without a calculator. Number, space and data items pitched above routine classroom drills.

  • Writing (Level P)

    School-set1 response

    A single written response under timed conditions. Schools use the writing score alongside the multiple-choice sections.

  • Written Expression (Levels 1–3)

    School-set1 response

    Secondary writing task for Years 7–12 entry. Assesses structure, clarity and control under time pressure.

  • Humanities (Levels 1–3)

    School-setMultiple choice

    Secondary humanities reasoning — reading, interpretation and critical thinking across text-based stimuli.

  • Mathematics (Levels 1–3)

    School-setMultiple choice

    Secondary mathematics reasoning without a calculator. Multi-step items that reward method as much as recall.

Mock test packs

ACER Scholarship mock packs, currently on sale.

Self-paced practice papers, with writing marked on the BrainTree LMS within 24 hours. Buy once, sit whenever — every pack ships with cohort percentiles and section-level feedback.

Mock-pack tiers pending owner waiver

No published ACER Scholarship course tiers are available yet. The external LMS checkout stays wired and tiers will render from DB-backed rows once seeded.

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ACER Scholarship preparation details

Quick answer: what is the ACER Scholarship Test?

The ACER Scholarship Tests are ability assessments written by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) and used by independent schools across Australia to award academic scholarships. Primary Level P covers Reading and Viewing, Mathematics and Writing for Years 4–6 entry (paper-based). Secondary Levels 1–3 cover Written Expression, Humanities and Mathematics for Years 7–12 entry (online or paper). Parents register through each participating school; ACER marks the papers and reports results back to the school.

Braintree Coaching Australia prepares families for the specific level each target school has registered — not a generic “scholarship” mix that blurs ACER, EduTest and HAST formats.

Which schools use the ACER Scholarship Tests?

Independent and Catholic schools across Australia register their own sitting dates with ACER for scholarship rounds. The school chooses Primary Level P or Secondary Level 1, 2 or 3 based on the entry year it is selecting for. Always confirm the level and date on the school’s scholarship page before you buy practice materials or book coaching.

ACER’s published cycle is:

  1. School registers a test date with ACER.
  2. Parents register and pay for each school they apply to.
  3. Students sit the test.
  4. ACER marks the papers and reports to the school.
  5. The school decides whether to award a scholarship.
  6. ACER or the school distributes result reports to parents.

What sections are in Primary Level P and Secondary Levels 1–3?

LevelEntry years (typical)SectionsDelivery
Primary Level PYears 4–6Reading and Viewing, Mathematics, WritingPaper
Secondary Level 1–3Years 7–12Written Expression, Humanities, MathematicsOnline or paper

Exact question counts and minute allocations are set by the school’s registered sitting. Treat ACER’s scholarship page and the school’s information pack as the source of truth for the current cycle — do not copy timings from a different ACER product such as HAST or ASET.

How do parents register, and what does it cost?

Registration is per school, not a single national portal. You register and pay through each school you want to apply to, using the link or form that school publishes for its ACER Scholarship sitting. If a link is missing, contact the school’s scholarship coordinator or ACER Scholarships on scholarships@acer.org / 1300 768 952.

Fees are set by the school’s arrangement with ACER and can differ between schools. Budget for a separate registration for every school on your list, plus any school-specific application forms that sit alongside the test.

How long should families prepare?

A practical runway is six to twelve months once you know the entry year and level:

  1. Foundations (months 1–3). Wide reading across fiction and non-fiction; daily calculator-free maths fluency; one short writing task each week.
  2. Section practice (months 4–8). Timed humanities or reading sets, mathematics reasoning papers, and weekly writing marked against a clear rubric.
  3. Full mocks (final 8 weeks). Full sittings under the school’s published timing, including the writing task in one sitting.

Of our 2024 cohort volume (4,214 students enrolled across Braintree Coaching Australia programmes), scholarship families who locked the correct ACER level early spent less time reworking the wrong paper format in the final term — a programme observation from tutor intake notes, not a placement guarantee.

When a school’s pack or parallel pathway includes visual pattern items (for example HAST Abstract Reasoning alongside an ACER Scholarship sitting), use the abstract and non-verbal reasoning skills guide for matrices and series drills — then return to Level P or Levels 1–3 mocks for the registered scholarship paper.

How does ACER Scholarship compare to EduTest, HAST and ASET?

ProductTypical useSections (summary)
ACER Scholarship TestsIndependent-school academic scholarshipsLevel P: reading, maths, writing · Levels 1–3: writing, humanities, maths
EduTestNSW selective pathways, QLD Academies, many scholarshipsVerbal, numerical, reading, maths, written expression
HASTSelective / accelerated entry (e.g. BSHS)Reading, mathematical reasoning, abstract reasoning, writing
ASET / GATE WAWestern Australian GATE entryACER ASET components for WA selective pathways

Prepare for the paper named on each school’s scholarship or entry page. NSW Opportunity Class and Selective families who also chase independent scholarships often run a parallel ACER or EduTest track in the same year — see our OC preparation and NSW Selective preparation hubs for the state pathways.

Related ACER Scholarship resources

Last updated: 2026-07-09. Reviewed by the Braintree Coaching Academic Team. Section structure verified against acer.org/au/scholarship.

ACER Scholarship results and parent testimonial

“We treated the ACER Scholarship sitting as its own paper, not a reuse of our EduTest mocks. Weekly writing against a rubric and timed humanities sets made the Secondary Level 1 paper feel familiar on the day.”

Wendy L.

Parent · Year 6, independent school scholarship applicant

FAQ

ACER Scholarship, plainly answered.

Five questions our faculty fields most often about the ACER Scholarship exam.

The ACER Scholarship Tests are ability assessments developed by the Australian Council for Educational Research and used by independent schools across Australia to identify academically able students for scholarship awards. They measure critical thinking, problem solving and higher-order reasoning rather than curriculum recall alone. Primary Level P covers Years 4–6 entry; Secondary Levels 1–3 cover Years 7–12 entry.

Primary Level P includes Reading and Viewing, Mathematics and Writing, delivered on paper. Secondary Levels 1–3 include Written Expression, Humanities and Mathematics, delivered online or on paper depending on the school. Exact timings are set by the school’s registered sitting with ACER — always confirm on the school’s scholarship page and on acer.org/au/scholarship.

Parents register and pay through each participating school for every school they wish to apply to. The school registers its test date with ACER; ACER marks the papers and reports results back to the school; the school then decides whether to award a scholarship. Contact scholarships@acer.org or 1300 768 952 if a school’s registration link is unclear.

Both are used for independent-school scholarships, but they are different products. EduTest is a five-section paper used by many NSW selective pathways, Queensland Academies and scholarship schools. The ACER Scholarship Tests are ACER’s own Primary Level P and Secondary Levels 1–3 formats. Prepare for the specific paper each target school lists — do not assume one preparation transfers to the other.

HAST (Higher Ability Selection Test) and ASET (Academic Selective Entrance Test) are also ACER products, but they serve selective-entry and GATE pathways rather than the national scholarship program. HAST is used by Brisbane State High and many selective/independent schools; ASET is used for Western Australian GATE entry. The ACER Scholarship Tests are the separate scholarship product described on acer.org/au/scholarship.

Most families work to a six- to twelve-month runway. Start with wide reading and calculator-free maths fluency, add weekly timed section drills once the school confirms the level (P, 1, 2 or 3), then sit full timed mocks in the final eight weeks. Writing needs weekly practice against a clear rubric because it is scored separately from the multiple-choice sections.

Start with ACER’s own scholarship information and any sample materials published for the level your school uses. Pair that with timed section drills, a weekly writing task and a mistake log. Braintree Coaching Australia’s [ACER Scholarship practice resources](/acer-scholarship-practice-resources) page lists verified starting points and a practical mock cadence.

ACER marks papers and reports to the school; the school then informs parents if a scholarship is awarded. Result reports may be distributed by ACER or by the school. Timing varies by school sitting — commonly within a few weeks of the test, but always confirm with the school’s scholarship coordinator.

Start ACER Scholarship preparation this week.

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