Do you need to prepare your child for the Music Aptitude Test? Find here the most comprehensive practising tests.

Did you know that a number of highly sought-after state schools give 10% of their places in Year 7 to musically gifted children for which scoring high marks in the so-called Music Aptitude Test is the condition on which to be invited for an audition and finally being offered a place or not? 

Usually, the criterion of Music ranks even higher than academic places offered for scoring high in the Eleven Plus papers such as Verbal Reasoning, Maths and English; in other words, if your child is good in Music, she or he will be able to get into one of the preferred schools despite scoring not very well in the Eleven Plus exam or not sitting the academic tests at all. Considering that places given for academic ability can amount to up to 25%, compared with 10% for Music, for example in some of the schools belonging to the South-West Herts Consortium Grammar Schools, Music provides a fair chance. 

Of course, your child needs to play an instrument or be able to sing to give a good audition. However, in order to be invited to perform, your child needs to pass the first round. And this usually consists of the so-called Music Aptitude Test, described by some schools as being based on the Arnold Bentley's Musical Measures of Music Aptitude Test. 

The problem is that schools are not only secretive about what this test entails, but also that there are hardly any practising tests available in comparison with the sheer endless numbers of Eleven Plus papers. 

Having gone through the process ourselves (and luckily, our child was successful), we have learned that this test has no similarities with the ABRSM graded exams and that even children who are obviously musically advanced (one, notably, who passed Grade 7 violin with distinction at Christmas of Year 7) were not offered a place on the basis of their Music Aptitude Test result. 

In order to avoid that the test becomes like a lottery for you, we have prepared a selection of tests which will be very helpful to get your child prepared for it, 

Yours

Music Aptitude Test Team