A handful of Highline students participated in the national AMATYC (American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges) math competition last week.
Their scores haven’t been released, but the students said they were glad for the experience. Students from a dozen different colleges in Washington entered the event, along with over 140 schools throughout the United States.
Last Thursday, Highline’s competitors tackled the hour-long competition exam, which included 20 multiple choice problems. Points were awarded for every correct answer, but points were also deducted for every incorrect answer. Leaving a question unanswered did not affect the students’ scores.
Emily Vorng, AMATYC participant and Calculus 3 student, said she hopes to receive a good score after finishing a dedicated study routine.
“I prepared by looking over previous year tests, specifically the one my professor, Dr. [Terry] Meerdink, provided. She also had an answer key that contained her work so I could compare my work against hers and learn from it,” said Vorng. “I also went to the AMATYC website to continue looking at previous years’ questions and practiced those problems.”
Still, for Vorng, participating in the competition meant more than just scoring well.
“I participated because I really like math and math competitions. I wanted to do the AMC test at my high school as well but it wasn’t offered. So, when I saw the opportunity to do a similar test here, I decided to do it. Also my math teacher said that he would give extra credit if we did it and got a positive score.”
Another AMATYC participant and Linear Algebra student, Yuna Kim, shared a similar sentiment.
“I never participated in math competitions before so I thought that the AMATYC math competition would be a great opportunity to experience one,” said Kim.
After taking the exam, students have mixed feelings about their results. Nevertheless, both Vorng and Kim said they are glad they chose to participate.
“Honestly, I was confused on 95 percent of the questions,” said Kim. “However, I’m still looking forward to future math competitions and I hope I’ll be able to learn how to solve some of these problems.”
The winners of the AMATYC Competition are yet to be announced. The top scorers will receive a variety of different awards and prizes, ranging from fun gift cards to hefty scholarships.
The next AMATYC Math Competition is expected to be in fall next year. To learn more about the AMATYC competition schedule, visit https://amatyc.org/page/StudentMathLeague.