<p>CTY is the Center for Talented Youth, run out of Johns Hopkins. In 5th & 6th grades, I seem to remember the CTY test being the PLUS. You were eligible to sit for it if nationally normed standardized tests, like the TerraNovas, showed you to be in the 97th percentile or above. I'm pretty sure the PLUS was a 9th grade level test, so kids in those top percentiles could be identified as merely bright, or truly gifted on a test with a higher ceiling. The various CTY programs have different score requirements so that participants are properly placed & served. But prepping skews all that. Kids are supposed to walk into the test cold, so true natural aptitude can be identified.</p>