On Nov. 10, nearly 100 students took time out of their schedules to partake in the American Mathematics Competition. AMC testing was split into two sessions after school for UHS students, and of those taking the test on the UHS campus, twelve students met the cutoff score that qualified them for the next level of competition: the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME). Sophomore Behruzbek Ahmedov, junior Tejasvi Avnor, sophomore Sophia Dai, junior Timi Fang, junior SangHyuk Im, junior Howard Ji, junior Kristine Lu, junior Raymond Luo, sophomore Daniel Niktash, senior Andy Xu, senior Charles Yates and sophomore Kewei Zhang qualified for the AIME Test. However, the UHS Math Club had even more members that qualified than those listed above, as many took the test at other locations that offered the AMC, such as the learning center Ardent Academy.

As Co-President of the UHS Math Club, Fan was not only pleased with his achievement of becoming an AMC qualifier, but with the performance of the club as a whole.

“I am very proud of the success our club has had this year with the AMC competitions, and I think it is a testament to the encouraging and supportive environment we try to create for anyone interested in math,” Fan said.

The Math Club hosted and organized the two AMC tests to be administered at UHS for the first time since the pandemic. The AMC 10 covers grades 9 and 10 algebra and geometry while the AMC 12 covers the entire high school mathematics curriculum, including trigonometry, advanced algebra and advanced geometry. Students who score in the top 5% on the AMC 12 and those who score in the top 2.5% on the AMC 10 are invited to take the AIME. The AIME test consists of 15 questions to be completed in three hours.

The first mathematical contest for high school students was administered in 1950 by the Mathematical Association of America and was given to approximately 200 schools and around 6,000 students in the New York area. Today, AMC tests have been taken by more than 300,000 students in more than 4,000 schools.

“I was happy and excited when I became an AIME qualifier,” Lu said. “I learned about these tests from one of my middle school teachers.”

However, as many students can attest, qualifying for AIME requires discipline and a few attempts.

“This year I took it to heart to grind and really try to qualify,” Ji said, “Honestly, [I was] just relieved my hard work paid off.”

After taking the AIME, high-scoring participants for the AMC 12 and AMC 10 tests will be invited to take the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad (USAMO) and the United States of America Junior Mathematical Olympiad (USAJMO), respectively, both of which consist of two sessions over two days, each session being nine hours long. 

“We have some amazingly talented kids here on campus, and their devotion to the fun of math is inspiring to me every day,” UHS Math Club Advisors Ms. Stephanie Chang and Mr. Eric Shulman said.

For students who are interested in partaking in the American Mathematics Competition, qualifiers advised future test takers. 

“Be consistent with your practice,” Fan said. “Even if it’s only half an hour, it is critical to take time every day to learn new techniques and practice applying them to problems. Additionally, I would say the best practice resource is simply trying past tests and reviewing the problems you get incorrect.”