<p>hey guys, im a rising sophomore interested in taking the amc 10/12 this year, but i'm not sure which to do. i am starting the testing in my school, and this will be the first time my school is administering it. i just got the AoPS books and did the first chapter, and it seemed a little difficult. do you recommend taking the AMC 10 twice as a sophomore, one of each as a sophomore, or AMC 12 twice? i will be taking algebra II honors this year and will be self-studying using the books. which would look better for schools like MIT? also, is it possible to qualify for USAMO using the AMC 10. lmk guys
thanks!</p>
<p>um it’s not like the SAT/ACT. You’re allowed to take it once a year. Freshmen/Sophomores take AMC 10 and Juniors/Seniors take AMC 12</p>
<p>i believe it is administered twice a year if i am correct? also, i believe you are allowed to take the AMC 12 as a sophomore. my main goal is to qualify for USAMO and im wondering if anyone had experience with this</p>
<p>You should take the AMC 10 test this year. </p>
<p>I took the AMC10 last year as a freshman while taking Algebra II Honors and got the highest score on it in my school, but was a couple points short of qualifying for AIME. Yeah, my school sucks. Nobody went to AIME. I probably could’ve qualified for it if I would have prepared for the test and stuff, but I had zero preparation and only decided to take it like 2 days before the test when my teacher urged me to. The test day was delayed because of snow days, so this was my second opportunity to sign up, too. </p>
<p>Back to the topic. Yes, it is administered twice a year in two different tests. I think you can only take one of them though. There’s the AMC8/10/12A and B. As I said above, I recommend you take the AMC10 because, as far as I know, the AMC12 has more advanced material (calculus?). I thought the AMC10 itself was fairly difficult and didn’t even answer all of the questions (honestly, I didn’t even come close). After the first 10, the questions were very challenging. Good luck.</p>
<p>sure, that’s sort of what i was thinking. after some more reading on the subject, it seems AMC 12 includes pre-calculus which i shouldn’t even bother learning as ill learn it next year. ill most likely take the AMC 10, probably qualify, and just try to do my best on the AIME</p>
<p>The odds of you qualifying for the USAMO without years of strenuous preparation and being extremely awesome at math are very very very very minimal.</p>
<p>nah you can take both tests. you should probably take both 10s, since you say you dont really know rpecalculus (?)</p>
<p>take a practice 12 here [USA</a> • Art of Problem Solving](<a href=“http://www.artofproblemsolving.com/Forum/resources.php?c=182&sid=8e028d5560d3365e2cdbba67ded61787]USA”>http://www.artofproblemsolving.com/Forum/resources.php?c=182&sid=8e028d5560d3365e2cdbba67ded61787) to see how you’d do.</p>
<p>and you can qualify for usamo through amc10 only if you get an 11+ on aime. you can still make usajmo though</p>
<p>rohitht: well, i am not expecting to qualify for usamo at all this year, im just hoping to qualify for the AIME, i’m probably not even expecting to qualify my junior year, and it would probably be a long shot even senior year</p>
<p>urc: what exactly is necessary to qualify for the usjamo?</p>
<p>also, the first volume of AoPS is what i am currently working on. if i understand everything in that entire book, will i be good for the amc 10?</p>
<p>Take one of each, if you can. That’s probably the best practice - and that’s all that really matters at this point.</p>
<p>Kids start preparing for these tests since middle school…</p>
<p>^Yes, but that’s not always necessary. Did you have any experience with MathCounts in junior high? It helps, but that and AMC are not the same.</p>
<p>In answer to your question, understanding all the topics in AoPS book 1 is all very well, but you have to be able to apply them, to recognize when you need this, or that (or a combination of both…or more) and use them on problems in the most efficient way possible (ahem. Time limit).</p>
<p>Speed also helps. One of the things last year that prevented me from making even AIME (loser), besides my suckiness at math, was probably my usual plodding habits. Doing practice tests is likely the best way to bring up both your reaction times and skill level.</p>
<p>And if you haven’t done AMC in the past, I’d recommend taking the 10a and 10b just for this year, as your chances of qualifying for USAMO this year would tend to be low. Although you very well can take the 12 as a sophomore, there’s topics in there covered in Vol. 2 of AoPS, stuff that’s not necessarily going to be in 1.</p>
<p>artofproblemsolving.com is a good place to look at their archive of past tests since 2000 for the 10 and 12, and to feel stupid compared to the insanely smart people on the forum. But good luck.</p>
<p>yes, i took several AMC 10s and 12s and was on the boundary of qualifying each time i took it, some i was just over, some i was just under. i have been doing state-wide math league very similar to these tests since elementary school and been placing very highly, and i am usually very fast in my problem solving. i believe i will take both the 10a and 10b this year. thanks again for the advice</p>
<p>Well,
- I thought you were talking about movies at first. I’m disappointed.
- AMC tests are stupid (and not because I didn’t pass it o_O).</p>
<p>Well you can’t get to USAMO through the AMC10 anymore, unless you score an 11+ on the AIME. But if your struggling to qualify for AIME, that doesn’t really matter yet. Just try to get better and then move on to AIME type questions.</p>
<p>Hope for better tests in 2011 than 2010…2010 was a mess :(</p>
<p>yes, i basically almost always qualify for the AIME using the AMC 10 tests, and that is before even starting the AoPS books, but ill have pre-calc next year, so i figure ill take it this year, (hopefully) qualify for AIME, do as well as i can, and we’ll go from there. this year will just be a practice run to try out the tests, then hopefully junior or senior year ill have the pre-calc concepts layed out, as well as the AoPS books, and (hopefully) qualify for USAMO</p>
<p>imo, going through just the books wouldn’t be enough for USAMO, try taking the AIME A and B classes at aops</p>
<p>how are the courses from AoPS? i was thinking about doing that but im not sure if i would really learn anything that i couldn’t myself. has anyone taken one of these courses?</p>
<p>Yeah, have they? Anyone? That was a good question.</p>
<p>Yes. They are extremely challenging and very problem solving oriented. I don’t think there’s really anything else like the AoPS courses. Highly recommended.</p>