Competition rules
Everything that governs the AMC 8 on exam day — who can sit it, what you may bring, how it’s scored, and the conduct and integrity rules every candidate agrees to. These follow the Mathematical Association of America’s official policies, which we apply as an authorized test centre in China.
Format and requirements
The essentials of how the AMC 8 is set, sat and scored.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| When | Once a year, in January |
| Eligibility | Grade 8 or below, and under 15.5 years old on the day of the contest |
| Paper | 25 multiple-choice questions |
| Duration | 40 minutes |
| Scoring | 1 point per correct answer, 0 for incorrect or blank — 25 maximum, no penalty for guessing |
| Language | Bilingual papers, available in English and Chinese |
| Format | Sit on-campus (offline) or home-based (online) |
| Results | Released in roughly 6–8 weeks on the official website |
What you can and can’t bring
Per MAA guidelines, only a short list of materials is allowed in the room.
Writing supplies, including coloured pens and pencils; blank scratch paper; erasers; and a laptop or tablet if you’re taking the online sitting.
Calculators; smartwatches; phones and other computing devices; compasses; protractors; and graph paper.
Accommodations & language support
Support is available for candidates who need it — arranged before exam day.
Candidates with physical or learning disabilities may receive a 60-minute extension and/or a teacher or administrator to read questions aloud and record answers under the candidate’s direction. Accommodations are managed digitally.
Large-print needs can be met by zooming the browser during the digital sitting; Braille and large-print materials are arranged through the competition portal.
Students learning English may use a paper, non-technical dictionary, submitted to the competition manager for review 24 hours before the exam. No additional time is given for its use.
After registering, submit an accommodation request via maa.org/amc or your competition manager dashboard so any digital time extension is applied in advance.
Where the AMC 8 can be held
The contest is sat at verified venues, not independently from home.
Schools, universities, learning centres and math circles can host the AMC 8. Each institution’s legitimacy is verified before registration.
Candidates can’t register to sit the contest on their own from home outside a recognised venue. As an authorized test centre, we provide the venue for you.
Conduct and consequences
The AMC takes fairness seriously; these rules apply to every candidate.
Cheating allegations and suspicious conduct should be reported, with supporting evidence, to AMCHQ@maa.org. The MAA AMC office can disqualify results where rules and procedures haven’t been followed.
A student found cheating in the AMC 8, 10 or 12 is disqualified from the remainder of that competition cycle.
A second offence removes the student from the program for future cycles. Cheating in AIME or olympiad-level contests means disqualification and ongoing ineligibility.
Affected scores are deleted from the MAA competition record, and the student becomes ineligible for that cycle’s awards.