What is the TACHS,
and who has to sit it?
If your child is applying to a Catholic high school in New York City or on Long Island, this is almost certainly the exam they will sit — usually in November of grade 8.
Last verified 5 August 2026. Section structure matches the current TACHS format as reflected in our own exams.
The short answer
TACHS stands for the Test for Admission into Catholic High Schools. It is sat by grade 8 students, typically in November, and is used by Catholic high schools across the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Brooklyn and Queens, along with schools on Long Island.
A student sits it once. The results go to the schools the family has ranked, and those schools use them alongside the student's grade 7 and 8 report cards and, at some schools, an interview.
What is on it
The TACHS is broader than most admissions exams, because it includes abstract reasoning as well as academic content. Our practice forms follow the same six-part structure:
| Section | Questions | What it tests |
|---|---|---|
| Reading | 50 | Vocabulary and comprehension of short passages |
| Written Expression | 50 | Spelling, punctuation, usage and expression |
| Mathematics | 50 | Concepts, computation and problem solving |
| Figure Matrices | 17 | Completing a visual pattern |
| Paper Folding | 16 | Predicting where holes appear when paper is unfolded |
| Figure Classification | 17 | Finding what a set of shapes has in common |
The three sections nobody prepares for
Figure Matrices, Paper Folding and Figure Classification are the ability sections, and they are where unprepared students lose the most. They test nothing taught at school, which means a strong student can walk in and score poorly simply because they have never seen the question type before.
They are also the sections that improve fastest with practice, precisely because the gain comes from familiarity rather than knowledge. An hour spent on paper folding is worth more than an hour spent on reading comprehension for most students.
Is it the same as the HSPT?
No, and a number of families sit both. Different schools use different tests — see TACHS or HSPT: which does your child take? before assuming.
Preparing
Our TACHS practice exams are full length across all six sections with every wrong answer explained, including the ability sections, where an explanation is the only thing that turns a wrong answer into a rule. ten free questions will show you the question style before you decide anything.
Practice the real thing
Our TACHS exams are full length and written from scratch — every wrong answer carries its own explanation, so a child learns what they got wrong and why. Ten questions are free, with no account and no card. After that it is five credits an exam.