Test for Admission into Catholic High Schools

TACHS practice tests

The TACHS (Test for Admission into Catholic High Schools) is the entrance test for Catholic high schools in New York City, the lower Hudson Valley and Long Island, set by the Archdiocese of New York and the dioceses that cover Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island. Grade 8 students sit it once, online at home, in early November: six timed tests in about 2 hours 10 minutes, Reading, Written Expression and Mathematics, then three short Ability tests with pictures.

Our TACHS-style practice follows the published test: the six tests in order, with four choices on Reading, Written Expression and Mathematics and five on the Ability tests, which run back to back, each on its own clock. Riverside does not publish how many questions each test has, so our lengths are chosen to fit its 2 hours 10 minutes. Each test is new when your child starts it, and the score shows straight away.

Start free practice See the price

A look at the test

Questions in the TACHS style

Written by us in the style of the published TACHS question types.

Ability: paper folding
A square of paper is folded, and then a hole is punched through it. Which picture shows the paper when it is opened out?
1. A
2. B
3. C
4. D
5. E
Show the answer and whyHide the answer
AnswerE
1. Every hole goes through every layer of the folded paper.
2. Open the folds one at a time, last fold first. Each fold works like a mirror: every hole gets a twin the same distance from the fold line on the other side.
3. This paper was folded in half from left to right, then in half again from bottom to top, so the hole becomes 4 holes in all.
4. Final answer
  The square with 4 holes, each mirrored across the fold lines.
Remember
A punched hole goes through every layer.
Ability: figure matrices
The first two pictures go together in a certain way. Which picture goes with the third picture in the same way?
1. A
2. B
3. C
4. D
5. E
Show the answer and whyHide the answer
AnswerB
1. Name the change in the first pair
  The shape is turned a quarter turn anticlockwise.
2. Check that is the ONLY change
  Nothing else about the shape moves — same parts, same sizes, and the shading stays as it was unless the change says otherwise.
3. Do the same to the third shape, and no more than that.
4. Final answer
  The picture showing the third shape turned a quarter turn anticlockwise.
Remember
Name the change between the first two pictures: a turn, a flip, or the shading swapped.
Mathematics: percent
A store buys a video game for $75. It marks the price up by 35%. What is the new price?
1. A$101.25
2. B$26.25
3. C$110.00
4. D$48.75
Show the answer and whyHide the answer
AnswerA$101.25
1. Find 35% of $75
  35/100 × $75 = $26.25.
2. Add it to the price
  $75 + $26.25 = $101.25.
3. Final answer
  $101.25.
Remember
Find the percent of the amount first (7% of $40 is 7/100 times $40), then add it for tax, tips and markups or subtract it for discounts.

The test

Six tests

Test	Grades	Questions	Time	What is on it
Reading	Grade 8	30	35 minutes	Stories and nonfiction, with questions on each passage. Four choices.
Written Expression	Grade 8	32	30 minutes	Improving a piece of writing, and spotting mistakes in how words and sentences are used. Four choices.
Mathematics	Grade 8	32	35 minutes	Number sense, measurement, equations, probability and percent. Four choices.
Ability	Grade 8	60	30 minutes	Figure Matrices 22, Paper Folding 16 and Figure Classification 22, each in 10 minutes. Five choices.

The six tests, their order and their answer choices are Riverside's published figures, and so is the total time of about 2 hours 10 minutes. Riverside does not publish how many questions each test has or how long each takes: ours are chosen to fit, the Ability tests at the length of the same publisher's CogAT Level 13/14 tests.

By grade

Free practice for each grade

Grade 8TACHS for Grade 9 entry

Pricing

Three free practice tests. Unlimited tests and answers are US$69.

A free account includes 3 practice tests. A plan opens unlimited tests and shows your child what they got right, the right answers and how to reach them, on every ISEE, SSAT, HSPT, TACHS and Hunter test. Practicing for more than one kind of test? The US bundle covers them all for US$99.

Private school packLaunch price

US$69

for 6 months

Which questions your child got right, after every practice test
The right answer to every question
A worked solution for every question, step by step
ISEE Primary 2 to 4, Lower, Middle and Upper Level, every section
SSAT Elementary, Middle and Upper Level, all three sections
HSPT and TACHS for Catholic high school entry, every part
Hunter-style reading and math for Hunter College High School, with the writing marked

Every US testLaunch price

US$99

for 6 months

Everything in every US pack, in one payment
CogAT, NNAT, OLSAT and NGAT, for gifted and talented programs
SCAT-style practice for the CTY talent search, Grades 2 to 9
InView-style practice for gifted screening, Grades 2 to 12
Matrices-style and spatial reasoning practice
ISEE and SSAT, for private school entry
HSPT and TACHS, for Catholic high school entry
Hunter-style practice, for Hunter College High School
Math contest practice, Grades 1 to 8
MAP Growth practice, by grade and subject
i-Ready-style Math and Reading, Kindergarten to Grade 8
Early reading practice, Kindergarten to Grade 3
SHSAT practice for Grades 8 and 9, English and math
Iowa practice for Grades 3 to 8, all five Core tests
TerraNova, Stanford 10 and CTP-style practice for Grades 3 to 8
ACT-style English, Math, Reading and Science for Grades 10 to 12
SAT-style and PSAT-style practice, Grades 8 to 12, Reading and Writing and Math
State test practice: STAAR-style and CAASPP-style math and reading, Grades 3 to 8

One payment in US dollars for 6 months of access. No auto-renewal: when the 6 months end, access stops unless you buy again.

Questions

What parents ask

Are these real TACHS questions?: No. TACHS questions are secure, and Riverside offers no practice test online. We write our own questions in the style of each TACHS test, with the same answer choices, timed to fit the real test.
When is the TACHS?: Once a year, in early November of Grade 8, online at home, on the day the Archdiocese or your diocese sets. There is a later make-up day for students who could not test.
Can my child use a calculator?: The online test has a basic calculator built in for some questions, and personal calculators are not allowed. Practice working by hand, and use a basic calculator only where the real test would offer one.
Is there a penalty for guessing?: No. Only right answers count, so your child should answer every question before a test's time runs out.
Is the TACHS like the HSPT?: Both are Catholic high school entrance tests for Grade 8, but they are different tests. The TACHS is used in New York City and on Long Island; most other dioceses use the HSPT. Our HSPT-style practice is on its own page, and the guide below compares the two.
Is it free?: A free account includes 3 practice tests. A plan opens unlimited TACHS tests and shows which questions were right, the right answers and a worked solution for each. The private school pack (US$69 for six months) covers ISEE, SSAT, HSPT, TACHS and Hunter. The US bundle (US$99) covers every US test we offer.
Does a practice score predict my child's TACHS result?: No. TACHS reports percentile ranks against other applicants, which only the real test can do. Our score is the number of practice questions answered correctly.

Read our guide: HSPT vs TACHS: how the two tests compare

TACHS (Test for Admission into Catholic High Schools) is given by Riverside Insights for Catholic high schools in New York City and on Long Island. Scholar Tests is not affiliated with or endorsed by Riverside Insights, any diocese or any school. Our TACHS-style practice questions are written by us in the style of the published TACHS question types; they are not real TACHS questions, and a practice score is not a TACHS score.