The Texas Pre-Admission Content Test (TX PACT) is required for many who are planning to enter a State-Board-approved Texas Educator Preparation Program (EPP). While the PACT doesn’t guarantee your admission to a program, schools can use it for admissions to the EPP.
Click “Start Test” above to take a free Essential Academic Skills practice test, and check out our premium-quality TX PACT test prep resources by clicking the links below!
Exam Outline
The TX PACT Essential Academic Skills exam is split into three subtests, and you must pass all three subtests to pass the exam.
Altogether, the exam contains 126 selected-response questions and one constructed-response question, and you will be given a total time limit of 4 hours.
Subtest I: Reading (701)
This subtest contains 45 selected-response questions and is timed at 1 hour and 15 minutes.
The questions in this subtest are designed to assess your knowledge and skills in the following areas:
- The meaning of words and phrases
- The main idea and supporting details in a written text
- A writer’s purpose and audience, point of view, and intended meaning
- Evaluating written material using critical reasoning skills
- Organization of information in written and graphic forms
Subtest II: Writing (702)
This subtest contains 36 selected-response questions and one constructed-response question, and you will be timed at 1.5 hours.
The questions in this subtest are designed to assess your knowledge and skills in the following areas:
- Purpose, audience, organization, and development in writing
- Problems in sentence formation
- Conventions of standard written English grammar, usage, and mechanics
- Composing a developed composition on a given topic
Subtest III: Mathematics (703)
This subtest contains 45 selected-response questions and is timed at 1 hour and 15 minutes.
The questions in this subtest are designed to assess your knowledge and skills in the following areas:
- Number properties
- Number operations
- Fundamental principles of algebra
- Measurement principles
- Geometry concepts
- Probability and statistics
- Problem-solving and reasoning
- Mathematical communication
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Registration
To register for the TX PACT Essential Academic Skills exam, you must create an online NES account via their website. Once your account has been created, you can use it to register for the exam and schedule an exam date. When you register, you will need to pay the $106 examination fee.
Test Day
On testing day, you should arrive at the testing center 15-30 minutes early on the day of your testing appointment to allow time for the check-in process. Upon arrival, you will be asked to sign in and provide at least one form of valid photo ID.
After the check-in process is complete, you will be asked to leave all personal items (cell phone, watch, keys, accessories, etc.) in a locker outside the testing area.
Once you enter the testing room, you will be given a brief tutorial on the computer-adaptive testing system before the exam begins.
How the Exam is Scored
The TX PACT Essential Academic Skills exam is computer-adaptive. Here’s a look at how it works:
The first question is judged to be of medium difficulty, and depending on your performance, the next question may be easier or harder. If you do well on the first question, the second question will be harder; conversely, if you do poorly on the first question, the second question will be easy.
The questions on this exam are rated on a scale of 100-300. The higher a question is rated, the harder the question is (e.g., a question marked as 290 will be more difficult than a question marked 170).
To pass the exam, your final question must be on or above the 240 mark on each subtest. If your final question for each subtest is below this mark, you will not pass the exam, even if you have answered some questions above the 240 mark at some point during the exam. This is because the computer has rated the difficulty of your final question based on how you answered the previous questions.
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FAQs
Q
How many questions are on the TX PACT Essential Academic Skills exam?
A
There are a total of 126 selected-response questions and one constructed-response question on the exam.
Q
How long is the TX PACT Essential Academic Skills exam?
A
The total time limit for the exam is 4 hours.
Q
What is the passing score for the TX PACT Essential Academic Skills exam?
A
To pass the exam, you must achieve a scaled score of at least 240 on each subtest.
Q
How much does the TX PACT Essential Academic Skills exam cost?
A
The examination fee is $106.
