CHANCE Program
Admissions Mathematics Practice Test
Part One will test your background in basic arithmetic, while Part Two will cover basic
algebra.
Each part of the test has 30 questions and has been designed to take approximately
half an hour, so the total time you spend on the test should be about an hour.
Do not use a calculator on any part of the test. Calculators are not permitted during the
CHANCE interview mathematics admission test so if you were to use one during this
practice test you will not fully gauge your arithmetic skills.
Some characters in this test do not translate well on some internet
browsers. In this test, \/28 should be interpreted as "the square root
of 28" and x2 should read "x to the second power." If your browser
does not interpret these appropriately feel free to send an email to
chance@niu.edu or call 1-800-892-3050 for a hard copy of the test.
Part One: Arithmetic
1. 1996 + 28 + 643 =





1667
2557
2667
8344
8454
2. 864 - 77 =





94
787
796
896
897
3. 28 x 17 =





45
376
468
476
484
4. 2406 / 6 =





40
41
401
410
411
5. 1/4 + 2/3 =





3/7
8/3
3/4
5/6
11/12
6. An airplane is flying at an altitude of 7,425 feet. If the plane goes up 450 feet, what is the new
altitude?





6,975
7,875
7,975
8,975
11,925
7. Which of the following represents fifty thousand two hundred and seven?





527
5207
5270
50207
52007
8. Find 6 divided by 5/7.





5/42
7/30
30/7
37/5
42/5
9. A job pays $6 per hour for the first 40 hours per week, and $9 per hour for overtime. If you
work 46 hours a week, what will you earn?





$276
$294
$303
$396
$414
10. Which fraction is less than 3/5?





2/3
3/2
3/4
5/3
7/12
11. An airplane traveling from L.A. to New York is carrying 326 passengers. It stops at Chicago,
where 78 passengers get off and 93 new passengers get on. How many passengers
continue on to New York?





233
248
341
404
419
12. When the number 66,340 is divided by 62, the answer is





1700
1070
107
170
17
13. A woman has an estate of $10,000. She leaves 1/10 to charity. Her daughter gets 2/3 of the
remainder. How much money does her daughter get?





$6,667
$6,000
$3,000
$667
$600
14. When the number 71.07 is divided by 2.3, the answer is





30.9
39
3.9
3.7
3.09
15. A handicapped parking space is designed to measure 14 feet wide by 18 feet long. Find its
area.





252 square feet
244 square feet
222 square feet
64 square feet
32 square feet
16. Write 65% as a fraction:





100/65
10/65
65/10
65/100
65/1000
17. When the fraction 14/27 is divided by 2/3 , the answer is





28/81
28/27
14/81
7/18
7/9
18. 35% of 160 is





56
560
5600
5.6
.56
19. 9 1/3 - 4 5/6 =





5 2/3
5 4/9
5 1/2
4 1/2
4 4/9
20. 6.431 x 0.01 =





0.06431
0.6431
6.431
64.31
643.1
(nine and one third minus four and five sixths)
21. 15.7 x 4.09 =





64213
642.13
64.213
76.93
7693
22. Which one of these numbers is smallest?





27.799
27.51
27.8
27.503
27.53
23. 12 x 3 1/4 =





(twelve times three and one quarter)
39
40
36
48
84
24. Find the average (arithmetic mean) of these numbers: 6.2, 6.7, 12.3





25.2
12.6
9.6
8.4
6.3
25. The number 8 is 20% of what number?





160
16
1.6
4
40
26. Rounding 12.5362 to the nearest hundredth gives





12.54
12.53
12.536
12.537
12.5362
27. Write 5/8 as a decimal:





6.25
0.625
0.0625
0.375
3.75
28. A car dealer is offering 15% off on all vehicles. If the original cost of a car is $16,000, what is
its sale price?





$18,400
$18,000
$14,500
$14,000
$13,600
29. 18 is what percent of 45?





45%
40%
28%
20%
18%
30. A theater owner wants to be able to seat 1250 people. The main floor has 30 rows of 25
seats each. If the balcony has 25 rows, how many seats must be in each row?





40
30
25
20
15
End of Part One
Part Two: Basic Algebra
31. -1 + (-2) =





-3
-1
1
2
3
32. 12 - (-9) =





-21
-17
3
17
21
33. 3 + 2 x 2 - 5 =





-15
-5
2
5
7
34. (-2)3 =





-8
-6
-5
5
8
35. Choose the largest of the following numbers:





-6
-3/2
16/3
9/2
5
36. (1/3)(-18)(-6) =





-36
-12
12
24
36
37. \/ 28 =





4 \/ 7
2 \/ 7
7 \/ 2
14 \/ 2
14
38. Solve for x: 3x + 1 = 6





x = 3/7
x = 7/3
x = 3/5
x = 5/3
x=2
39. 4x - a - 2x + a =





6x
2x
2x - 2a
6x - 2a
2a - 6x
40. If x = 3, then (x-1)2 + 1 =





-3
2
5
10
17
41. Solve for x: 2x - 3 = 5x + 4





x = -7/3
x = -3/7
x = 1/7
x = 1/3
x = 3/7
42. The statement “x is 2 more than y” is written as:





x+2=y
x=2+y
x+y=2
x+2>y
x>2+y
43. 4x2 - y2 =





(2x - y)2
(2x + y)2
(4x - y)2
(2x - y) (2x + y)
(4x - y) (4x + y)
44. If it costs $ .25 per mile to drive a car, how much will it cost (in dollars) to drive d miles?





d - . 25
d + . 25
d / . 25
. 25 d
. 25 / d
45. (x2 y3)(x y)(x4 y) =





x8 y5
x7 y5
x8 y3
x7 y3
x6 y3
46. A box with a square base has a volume of 16 cubic feet. If the base of the box measures 2
feet by 2 feet, how tall is the box?





2 feet
4 feet
8 feet
32 feet
64 feet
47. x6 - 3x4 + x2 =





x2 (x4 - 3x2 + 1)
x2 (x4 - 3x2)
x4 (x2 - 3)
x2 (x3 - 3x2 + 1)
x2 (x3 - 3x2)
16
48. \/(36 x ) =





6 x4
18 x4
6 x8
18 x8
20 x
49. If y = | x | - 2, and x = -3, then





y = -6
y = -5
y = -1
y=1
y=5
50. The y-intercept of the line y - 3x = 2 is





5
-3
3
-2
2
51. The area of the base of a cube is 5 square inches. What is the surface area?





20 square inches
25 square inches
30 square inches
100 square inches
150 square inches
52. Solve for x: 3x > x + 12





x<6
x<3
x>6
x>4
x>3
53. (x - 2y)2 =





x2 - 4y2
x2 - 2y2
x2 + 4y2
x2 + 4xy + 4y2
x2 - 4xy + 4y2
54. Which one of the following is a factor of x2 + x - 12 ?





x-4
x-2
x+2
x+4
x+6
55. Which one of these points is not included in the graph of -2 < 2x - 3 ?





0
1
2
3
4
56. Solve for x: 3x + 7 < 12





x > 19/3
x>4
x > 5/3
x < 5/3
x < 19/3
57. The graph of the line 2x + y = 6





has a positive slope
has a negative slope
is horizontal
is vertical
None of these
58. Which one of these points lies on the line x - 3y = 5 ?





(-1, 2)
(0, -2)
(1, 2)
(2, 1)
(2, -1)
59. In a mixture of concrete, there are 3 pounds of cement mix for each pound of gravel. If the
mixture contains a total of 200 pounds, which one of the following expressions gives the
amount of gravel?





200 - 3x
200 - x
x - 200
3x - 200 / 3
(200 - x) / 3
60. After the 1990 election, there were 14 more Democrats than Republicans in the U.S.
Senate. Which one of the following equations can be used to find the number x of
Democrats?





x - 14 = 100
x + 14 = 100
x + 28 = 100
2x + 14 = 100
2x - 14 = 100
End of Part Two
Back to the beginning of Part One
Back to the beginning of Part Two
Click here for answers
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT NIU
THE NIU Department of Mathematical Sciences