he Ameson Scholastic Test is an aptitude and proficiency test that is administered in English. It is a proficiency test designed by the Ameson Foundation for senior 2 and 3 high school students (USA equivalent grades 11 & 12) or university freshmen who wish to pursue degrees at Western universities.

The aptitude test evaluates students and then groups them into categories, such as ‘qualified’, ‘very good’, and ‘excellent,’ while the proficiency test gauges English ability.

Unlike other tests of its kind, AST is an international test with Chinese characteristics. Chinese education experts have been involved in designing an international evaluation test for English, mathematics and physics (the physics test was added in 2009, and the score is used as a reference for potential engineering and physics majors. AST in chemistry and AST in economics will also be added in the future).

Gateway to elite universities

In 2002, the University of Cambridge adopted AST as its main screening measure for Chinese students. Students who are admitted to University of Cambridge through use of the AST don’t need to take pre-university courses. They are usually admitted directly to a four-year undergraduate plus master’s program.

Today, more than 17 top universities use this test. Of the students who took the AST in 2008, more than 100 applied to University of Cambridge. Among them, 55 went through to the interview process and 8 were granted admission. Twenty-six students applied to University of Warwick, 24 went on to be interviewed and 22 received offers from the school. These are just a few of the promising statics backing the success of the AST.

AST in English

The AST English test consists of listening, reading and writing sections, which tests students’ comprehensive learning ability and research skills.

The AST uses both a subjective testing and an objective testing mode, depending on the particular skill being assessed. Specifically, the listening part uses an objective testing mode, while the reading and writing parts use a subjective mode. Object testing mode: fixed answers, ie. multiple choice
Subject testing mode: open answers, ie. short answer responsesThe English portion of the AST is similar to the IELTS exam both in difficulty and material tested. For example, in the listening portion of the test, the ‘outstanding’ line is roughly equal to an IELTS score of 6.5, the ‘excellent’ line is roughly equal to an IELTS score of 6.0, and the ‘very good’ line is roughly equal to an IELTS score of 5.5.

For the reading and listening parts, some questions are even more difficult than IELTS. The ‘outstanding’ line is roughly equal to an IELTS score of 7.0-7.5, the ‘excellent’ line is roughly equal to an IELTS score of 6.0-6.5 and the ‘very good’ line is roughly equal to a score of 5.5-6.0.

AST in Mathematics

AST in mathematics is a combined aptitude and proficiency test. The aptitude test evaluates students and then groups them into such categories as ‘qualified’, ‘very good’, and ‘excellent’, while the proficiency test gauges actual mathematical ability. The mathematics test is designed to match the level of difficulty of both a Chinese and Western curriculum. A minimum score in both English and mathematics is mandatory for students to participate in the ACEIS program.

The grading scale of the mathematics portion of the AST uses a criterion-referenced testing mode. In 2008, there were 6 items with total possible score of 300. Each item was worth 50 points but contains several sub-questions. The mathematics portion of the AST is designed to be more rigorous than other similar standardized tests and tests more challenging material than the SAT I and the A-level Mathematics test.