Difference between revisions of "American Mathematics Competitions"
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== AMC Contests == | == AMC Contests == | ||
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==History== | ==History== |
Revision as of 22:45, 22 December 2019
The American Mathematics Competitions (AMC) consist of a series of increasingly difficult tests for students in middle school and high school. The AMC sets the standard in the United States for talented high school students of mathematics. The AMC curriculum is both comprehensive and modern. AMC exams are so well designed that some top universities such as MIT now ask students for their AMC scores. "AMC" is also used as an abbreviation for American Math Contest, used to refer to the AMC 8, AMC 10, and AMC 12.
Contents
AMC Contests
History
Curriculum
AMC tests mathematical problem solving with arithmetic, algebra, counting, geometry, number theory, and probability, with far more cross-over between the subject areas than in nearly all classrooms. For example, most classrooms only have divisibility rules and little tidbits of number theory, and consider number theory as not a whole branch of mathematics but just a bunch of short cuts. The AMCs use number theory in much deeper (although elementary, without analysis) ways. Tests vary widely in difficulty. All three of the tests are designed such that no background in calculus, analysis, or any other higher mathematics is needed to take the exams.
Chain
The AMC tests are the first in a series of test to select the American International Mathematical Olympiad team. High scoring students on the AMC 10 or 12 are invited to take the American Invitational Mathematics Examination. Students who have a high AMC index, or a high score on both the AMCs and the AIME, are invited to take the United States of America Mathematics Olympiad, the national Olympiad of the United States. There, many high scorers go to the Math Olympiad Summer Program, which is divided into three "colors" depending on how high one scored. The highest color, black, consists of twelve students, six of whom will form the United States' IMO team.
Resources
Links
Recommended reading
- Introduction to Counting & Probability by Dr. David Patrick. Information
- Introduction to Geometry by Richard Rusczyk. Information
- The Art of Problem Solving Volume I by Sandor Lehoczky and Richard Rusczyk. Information.
- The Art of Problem Solving Volume II by Sandor Lehoczky and Richard Rusczyk. Information.
Preparation Classes
- Art of Problem Solving offers many helpful online classes on topics covered by the AMC exams.
- AoPS holds many free Math Jams, some of which are devoted to discussing problems on the various AMC exams.
- EPGY offers AMC contest preparation classes.