The Postsecondary Education Readiness Test (PERT) is Florida’s college placement test in Mathematics, Reading and Writing. Each subject is an untimed, computer-adaptive test of 30 multiple-choice questions, scored from 50 to 150. It is not pass/fail: your scores decide which courses you start in.
Test Ninjas Research · Updated November 5, 2026 · 14 min read
Every question is multiple choice, and the public samples in the study guide have four answer choices, A to D. Writing has no essay. Each subject produces its own score, and you may not need all three: ask your college which subjects it requires.
See the format with today’s free question.
One PERT-style question a day, with a full explanation. No account needed.
The study guide gives a skills list and sample questions for each subject: 7 skill items for Mathematics, 10 for Reading and 14 for Writing. Each table below is our grouping of the study guide’s skill list, with the free lesson that teaches each group. The tables show the range of what can appear, not how many questions each skill gets: no official source publishes that weighting.
Mathematics
PERT Mathematics: our grouping of the study guide’s skill list
Skill area
What it covers
Free lessons
Arithmetic and expressions
Evaluating expressions, standard arithmetic, order of operations, percents and exponents
Sample Math question · Medium · Interpreting and modeling systems
A container holds 30 coins, all nickels or dimes, worth $2.10. How many dimes are there?
A.6
B.12
C.18
D.24
Answer: B (12)
How to solve it
Name the unknowns: x nickels and y dimes. Work in cents so there are no decimals: x + y = 30 and 5x + 10y = 210.
Substitute x = 30 − y into the value equation: 5(30 − y) + 10y = 210, which simplifies to 150 + 5y = 210.
Solve: 5y = 60, so y = 12 dimes and 18 nickels.
Check the value: 12 × 10 + 18 × 5 = 120 + 90 = 210 cents, or $2.10. The answer is B. Choice C, 18, is the number of nickels, so reread what the question asks before you submit.
Why it works: Use cents: 5x + 10y = 210 and x + y = 30. Subtract 5(x + y) = 150 from the value equation to obtain 5y = 60, so y = 12 dimes. The remaining 18 nickels complete the count.
Reading
PERT Reading: our grouping of the study guide’s skill list
Skill area
What it covers
Free lessons
Main idea and summary
Central idea, accurate summary and the details that support it
Sample Reading question · Medium · Reading summary
What a Catalog Cannot Show
An online plant catalog lets a buyer compare leaf shape, bloom color, and listed height without leaving home. Those details are useful, but a plant also grows in a particular place. A description of “full sun” does not tell the buyer whether an afternoon wall reflects extra heat or whether a nearby tree casts shade in spring.
Before ordering, a gardener can observe the intended site at different times of day. Soil that looks dry on top may retain water beneath the surface. A plant described as drought-tolerant may still need regular watering while its roots become established. Matching a label to a location therefore involves more than finding a pleasing picture.
This does not make catalogs misleading by nature. A catalog must describe plants for many readers, while a garden has local conditions. General information and local observation answer different parts of the decision.
A careful buyer uses the catalog as a starting point, checks its growing requirements against the site, and allows for changes over the seasons. The most attractive purchase is not necessarily the plant that will thrive where the buyer intends to put it.
Which summary preserves the author’s qualification?
A.Catalog information is most useful after local observation has replaced its growing labels.
B.Site conditions matter chiefly for watering, while sunlight labels determine placement.
C.Catalogs help buyers, but local conditions must inform a planting choice.
D.Catalog requirements and local observations usually compete rather than complement each other.
Answer: C (Catalogs help buyers, but local conditions must inform a planting choice.)
How to solve it
The question asks for the summary that keeps the author’s qualification, so find where the author limits the main claim.
Paragraph 3 says catalogs are not “misleading by nature”: they help, but they cannot describe a buyer’s particular site.
Choice C keeps both halves: catalogs help, and local conditions must shape the choice.
A and D make catalogs and observation rivals, but the passage says they “answer different parts of the decision.” B shrinks site conditions to watering alone.
Why it works: The author says catalogs are useful and not misleading by nature, but they cannot describe a particular garden, so C keeps both the help and the limit. A goes too far: the catalog is a starting point to check against the site, not something observation replaces. B narrows site conditions to watering, yet the passage shows that a “full sun” label cannot reveal reflected heat or spring shade. D calls the two sources rivals, while the third paragraph says they answer different parts of the decision.
Writing
PERT Writing: our grouping of the study guide’s skill list
Skill area
What it covers
Free lessons
Focus and support
Thesis, staying on topic, relevant support and logical order
Draft: Labels at the Food Pantry
[1] The pantry should revise its shelf labels to help visitors locate food they can use.
[2] Volunteers report repeated questions about which cans contain added salt.
[3] Clear categories and readable print could reduce those questions while leaving volunteers available for other assistance.
[4] A label cannot guarantee that a food suits every medical need, so visitors should still check package information.
[5] Volunteers sometimes wear matching shirts during neighborhood events.
[6] We should test a few revised labels and ask visitors whether the categories are understandable.
Which sentence should be deleted to improve focus?
A.Sentence 2
B.Sentence 4
C.Sentence 5
D.Sentence 6
Answer: C (Sentence 5)
How to solve it
Sentence 1 states the draft’s claim: the pantry should revise its shelf labels so visitors can find food they can use.
Test each choice against that claim. Sentence 2 gives the reason, sentence 4 adds a needed caution about labels, and sentence 6 proposes a trial of the new labels.
Sentence 5, about volunteers’ matching shirts, says nothing about labels. Deleting it improves focus, so the answer is C.
Why it works: Matching shirts do not develop shelf information. The question reports, caution, and trial directly support the labeling proposal.
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How adaptive, untimed testing works
The PERT is computer-adaptive: the next question is chosen from your answers to earlier ones. You won’t be told which 5 are unscored, so treat every question as if it counts, and don’t try to judge your score from how hard a question looks.
You must answer each question before you can move on, and once you submit an answer you cannot go back to change it. Miami Dade College notes that you can still change your choice while the question is on screen. That makes the last few seconds on each question your only review time. Build the habit now: work the problem, compare every choice, check your answer, then submit.
No subject has an official time limit, but the testing center still has opening hours and a latest start time. Colleges’ own estimates range from about two hours to more than three for all three subjects; the PERT test dates guide lists them by college. Some colleges set rules about sessions too. Valencia and Palm Beach State require all sections on the same day, Indian River State College tests in one session with no breaks, and Valencia gives Reading and Writing before Math when you take all three.
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Calculator rules
You can’t bring your own calculator unless an approved disability accommodation allows one; an on-screen calculator appears only on some math questions. Reading and Writing have none. Plan to do most arithmetic by hand, including fractions, negatives and exponents.
Order of entry: The study guide describes a standard four-function calculator that performs operations in the order you enter them. On a calculator that works in the order you enter the keys, 2 + 3 × 4 gives 20, not 14. Work a grouped calculation one step at a time.
For the accommodation exception, Broward College states that a handheld calculator is not allowed unless an approved accommodation allows one, and the 2015 FDOE FAQ described handheld four-function calculators on designated items for students with IEP or 504 plans. If you need one, arrange it through the college’s accessibility office before test day (see accommodations).
Our free Math practice test follows the same pattern: the four-function calculator opens only on two designated applied questions, and every other question says no calculator is available.
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Scoring and cut scores
Each subject has 25 operational questions that produce your score and 5 field-test questions used to build the question bank. Each subject is scored on a scale from 50 to 150. Because the test is adaptive, the score is not a percent correct, and no official conversion from a number of right answers to a PERT score is published.
Rule 6A-10.0315(3), F.A.C., sets these standard scores. Each subject is judged on its own; the three are never averaged. If you have more than one score, the rule uses your highest. If you are not exempt, a score below the standard in a subject means you enroll in developmental education in that subject, and the college must explain all of its developmental options so you can choose one.
Meeting the standard does not open every course. Colleges set their own rules for College Algebra and higher: Santa Fe College, for example, requires additional placement testing for PERT Math scores of 123 or higher. PERT scores explained walks through one college’s full placement chart. Read more in what a good PERT score is, and compare your official scores with the cut scores in the score calculator.
You do not need to send PERT scores to a Florida College System institution, because its testing center can look them up. Scores are generally valid for two years; PERT scores explained covers the details.
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Registration and fees
Before you book, ask whether you need the PERT at all. Students who entered 9th grade in a Florida public school in 2003–04 or later and earned a Florida standard diploma are exempt from placement testing, and so are active-duty service members. Colleges also accept other approved tests (ACCUPLACER, SAT, ACT and CLT) and alternative methods such as high school coursework (a 3.0 unweighted GPA plus a B or better in a listed math or English course). Ask your college which measures it accepts; what a good PERT score is explains the exemptions in full.
There is no national or statewide PERT test date. Each college testing center schedules its own sessions and sets its own fees, so registration means contacting the center at the college that will use your scores. The four examples below show how much the rules differ.
PERT booking and fees at four Florida colleges (checked November 5, 2026)
College
Booking
First attempt
Retake
Valencia College
Appointment
Free for new applicants who paid the application fee
$10 per subject; 1-day wait; 3 attempts per section within two years
Miami Dade College
Appointments first; walk-ins if seats are free
Listed on Miami Dade’s testing fees page
$10 for Miami Dade and high school students; 2 attempts per subtest before a course in that subject
Fees and policies change, so confirm them on the college’s own page. The PERT test dates and registration guide has a longer table covering more colleges, remote options and accepted IDs.
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Test day
Bring a valid, physical photo ID. Valencia, Seminole State and Indian River State College reject photos, copies or electronic IDs. Most centers accept a driver license, a state or federal ID or a passport, and some take a college student ID or, for high school students, a high school ID. Check your center’s list before you go.
Expect to store your belongings. FSCJ allows no personal items and supplies all testing materials, and Santa Fe provides paper and pencil. Arrive on time: Indian River State College makes late arrivals reschedule, and Valencia may do the same. Santa Fe asks walk-ins to arrive at least 2 hours before closing.
On campus, scores usually come right away. Santa Fe says scores appear immediately and FSCJ prints a score report when you finish. The PERT test day checklist covers the night before, check-in and what to do during the test.
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Retakes
The state sets no PERT retake fee, waiting period or attempt limit; each college sets its own. Published waits run from no same-day retest (FSCJ, Palm Beach State) to 30 days (Polk State), with 1 day at Valencia and 14 days at Eastern Florida in between. For a college’s own students, listed retake fees run from $4 (Tallahassee State) to $33.50 (Broward, $30 plus a $3.50 online fee). Students testing for another institution often pay more.
Some colleges want proof that you prepared. Miami Dade College offers a test-prep option before the second attempt, and Eastern Florida requires proof of remediation before a fourth. Ask whether you can retake only the subject you need. The PERT retake policy guide compares colleges and gives a plan for the weeks before a retest.
09
Accommodations
Florida law requires public colleges and universities to provide appropriate changes to test materials or procedures for students with disabilities (section 1008.30(1), Florida Statutes). Requests go through the college’s disability or accessibility office, and you need to make them before you test. Miami Dade College routes requests through its ACCESS office, and Broward through its student accessibility office.
Accommodations can change the format as well as the setting. Eastern Florida State College, for example, offers a paper version of the PERT for students with documented accommodations. A handheld calculator also requires an approved accommodation.
Contact the accessibility office as soon as you know you will test. Ask what documentation it needs and how long approval takes.
Ask about the specific arrangements you use in school, such as a paper format or a handheld calculator, and ask which arrangements the center can provide for the PERT.
Once approved, tell the testing center when you book, and confirm the approved arrangements will be in place on your date.
If a problem with your accommodation comes up during the test, tell the proctor before you answer the next question.
Untimed testing removes the time pressure but not other access needs. If you will use a paper format or a handheld calculator, practice that way too: work our practice test questions on paper with the calculator you have been approved to use.
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How to prepare
Start with a baseline. Take the free 30-question practice test in each subject you need. It moves forward only, like the real PERT, and the results group your misses by question type and skill. The count is not a PERT score, but it shows where to spend your time.
Then work from the weakest skill up. In Mathematics, fix arithmetic with negatives and fractions before multistep algebra, because almost every later topic depends on it. In Reading, practice pointing to the sentence that proves each answer. In Writing, read every choice in the full sentence or draft before you decide. Each skill table above links the matching free lesson, and the question bank builds sets by subject and difficulty.
Most PERT rules are local. High school students have extra steps: FSCJ, for example, requires a current referral from your school or dual-enrollment coordinator, and Broward College does not offer the PERT to prospective dual-enrollment applicants, so start with your school counselor. Everyone should ask the college that will use the scores these questions before booking:
Do I need the PERT, or does an exemption, another test score or my high school record already place me?
Which subjects do I need, and must I take them all on the same day or in a set order?
How do I book, what does it cost, and is a remote option available?
Which IDs do you accept, and what can I bring into the room?
What score does my intended course need, especially if it is College Algebra or higher?
What are the retake wait, fee and attempt limit, and do you require preparation before a retest?
How do I request accommodations, and how much lead time does approval take?
If I tested at another college or in high school, can you use those scores?
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Placement and diagnostic tests
The PERT system has two kinds of test in each subject. The placement test produces the 50–150 score that sets your course. The PERT Diagnostic identifies, by skill, what you have not yet mastered. It does not replace a placement score: in 2015 FDOE described it as an optional extra test for students below the cut score, used to target instruction. Seminole State, for example, charges $10 for the Diagnostic and requires it, as part of its PERT Review Program, before a retest.
13
Frequently asked questions
No. Colleges’ own estimates range from about two hours to more than three for all three subjects; there is no official time limit. The testing center’s hours still apply.
Each subject has 30 multiple-choice questions, so all three subjects total 90. In each subject, 25 questions are scored and 5 are unscored field-test questions. You won’t be told which 5 are unscored, so treat every question as if it counts.
No. You must answer each question before moving on, and you cannot change an answer after you submit it. You can change your choice while the question is still on screen.
No. PERT Writing is all multiple choice: revising short drafts and editing sentences.
The PERT is not pass/fail. Florida’s college-ready scores are Reading 106, Writing 103 and Mathematics 114 under Rule 6A-10.0315, F.A.C., and a lower score places you in developmental education in that subject.
You can’t bring your own calculator unless an approved disability accommodation allows one; an on-screen calculator appears only on some math questions.
FDOE says scores must be no older than two years to be used for placement, and colleges such as Miami Dade, Broward and Indian River State treat them as valid for two years. See PERT scores explained for details.
Colleges commonly count and charge retakes per subject or section: Valencia charges $10 per subject and Palm Beach State $10 per section. Each college sets its own waiting period, fee and attempt limit, so ask the one that will use the score.
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Sources
PERT rules are set by Florida law and by each college. These are the pages this guide relies on; your testing center’s current instructions take priority.