Hi everyone, I'm aware that the JMSS entry for this year was just released, but I know a few people out there that are eager to join this school next year. I'm not sure if the way to apply will be the same as this year (COVID) but below are some tips on how to get in and what I had to do to get in (I received an offer, but declined).
SCIENCE REASONING:
There were 30 questions and a 30-minute timeframe. This test isn't too harsh on the timing so it's important that you get a lot of these questions correct. I think the best way to study for this is to go over past schoolwork, it isn't really an IQ test as it's more like you have to analyse graphs. Biology and environmental things seem to be a favourite of JMSS in the tests.
2021 summary:
- most of the questions involved reading a graph
- around 5 questions were based on the rock cycle and some questions were ‘what are the chemical components of rocks’ and something got to do with pressure and temperature resulting in hard rocks and asking which rocks would be soft
- around 3 to 5 questions were similar in the way they gave u clues to solve something, this was one of them
’three planes (blue, yellow, green, red) must land at 4 different gates’ and then it asked you to pick a multiple choice on where they were allowed to land with then given clues (red must be between green and blue, blue can only be in gate 1 or 4, etc.)
- one question asked about the cross-sections of a conical shape and which of the given shapes would not be made with the cross shape of a conical shape
numerical reasoning:
This is basically more of an IQ test around numbers. A lot of patterns and worded problems will be presented, so it is up to you to turn them into formulas or mathematical methods of calculation. Sometimes it is best to take a formulaic approach, but just being able to look at the differences in a sequence is really important.
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around ten to fifteen of the questions involved the alphabet and associating the letters with the numbers and just finding patterns; it was really similar to the practice tests in edu kingdom (a jmss tuition)
another ten to fifteen of the questions had numbers separated by commas in which they asked you to find a pattern with the way they were added/subtracted etc, and find the missing number.
mathematics:
There were 60 questions and a 30 minute timeframe, this test is the one that most people struggle with due to the short timing. The best way to prepare for this is just your normal schoolwork, your year 9 curriculum should be broad enough to cover the topics in the test. If you want to study for the test then I recommend going over topics in your math textbook that you aren't too confident with, this could be parabolas or linear relations. The whole test is very broad and goes over heaps of topics, but the questions themselves aren't too hard, you just need to be decently knowledgeable in the year 9 math topics and a bit of year 10.
2021 summary:
- two questions involved parabolas
- around 4 to 8 questions involved linear graphs
- many of the questions involved algebra and solving for x etc.
- two questions were about prime numbers and asked ‘which of these is not a prime number’ and another asked to pick a sentence which was false about prime numbers.
- two questions were about trigonometry, and asked which formula was right (soh, cah, toa)
- one question showed the Fahrenheit to Celsius formula and asked for you to make Celsius the subject
- a few questions required you to know the formula for an area of a parallelogram, a circle, and a semi-circle
- many questions were on ratios and gave you the ratio and you had to find the distribution.
THE INTERVIEW:
In the previous years, we had to write a CV (curriculum vitae) and it seems they are continuing that.
In the CV we had to put in our: sporting teams, musical history, leadership roles, awards (max of 5), involvement with science (extracurricular), community involvement and a few questions to answer.
The questions were:
1. Give an example of when you gave your very best effort to do something really well? What was the activity and what was the result?
What fascinates you? How do you follow up this interest?
2. Imagine you have moved forward in time 50 years. What is it that you would like to be remembered for at the end of your working life?
3. When have you influenced someone else for the better? Explain the context of the situation.
4. During the many Covid 19 lockdowns in 2020 and 2021 people took up new hobbies and developed new skills. What did you do that was different in lockdown?
We also had to give in our end of year reports, and the mid year reports for the pervious year, so make sure you do well in these!
There was a two-stage interview;
the first interview wasn't really an interview. There were around 5 other people with me, and one teacher was present, and we had to do a test that was on a google form. In the test, it was essentially just a science practical investigation (hypothesis, discussion, conclusion etc.)
In the second interview, you would enter and there would be two teachers. In this interview, they would ask questions, and you would answer etc. A few questions were:
1. What's a scientific invention that happened in the past 50 years, and what positive impact did this have on the world?
2. What was something really difficult you had to go through and what did you learn from it?
The interview stage is really important, and I can't stress this enough. Find a way to make yourself unique. The teachers were honestly really nice and I didn't feel intimidated at all so remember to not be too nervous entering these!!
The JMSS entry is pretty tough and if you've made it to the interviews already, then well done. I'm pretty sure the cutdowns are from 1000 in the testing stage, 500 in the interviews and 200 that are accepted. Also I don't know if this is allowed, but during the tests I sneaked a few screenshots of some questions... they should be inserted somewhere.
GOOD LUCK TO ALL OF YOU APPLYING!!!!