AIME, the American Invitational Mathematics Examination, is the invitational stage for students who earn qualifying performance on AMC 10 and/or AMC 12. It is substantially more difficult than the AMC multiple-choice competitions and uses integer answers from 000 to 999.
For 2027, the MAA has announced a significant administration change: AIME will be delivered at Pearson testing centres in the United States and Canada on 5 or 6 February 2027. The competition remains 15 questions across three hours, but is split into two 90-minute computer-delivered parts, with eight questions in the first part and seven in the second.
The MAA also announced that eligible students scoring at least 100 on AMC 10 or 85 on AMC 12 will qualify to register for the 2027 AIME. Qualification policies can change, so this threshold should not be copied forward into future years without checking.
What changes from AMC to AIME
The answer choices disappear. Guessing becomes largely irrelevant. Problems demand longer chains of reasoning, stronger number theory, algebra, combinatorics and geometry, and better control of partial progress.
Preparation
- Stop measuring progress only by how many problems are completed.
- Study why an idea unlocks a problem, not only the final solution.
- Build number theory and combinatorics deliberately.
- Practise staying with one difficult problem for longer.
- Use error logs that capture the first failed decision, not only arithmetic slips.
Pathway
AIME sits between the AMC 10/12 stage and the U.S. national olympiad route. It is an excellent example of why competition Mathematics should be organised as a progression of mathematical demands rather than as a collection of harder worksheets.
Official source checked 26 September 2026: MAA Invitational Competitions and the MAA’s August 2026 announcement for AIME 2027.
World Mathematics route: return to the World Mathematics Atlas for the wider map across competitions, school Mathematics, examinations, mathematical objects and university routes.
AIME: prepare integer-answer problem solving after AMC qualification
AIME is a different performance environment from AMC
Problems require integer answers rather than multiple-choice selection, so elimination from answer options disappears and complete internal verification becomes more important.
Qualification is through current MAA rules
Students reach AIME through qualifying AMC performance under the relevant year’s procedures. Do not publish a permanent cut-off.
Number theory is high leverage
Congruences, divisibility, Diophantine equations and prime factor structure appear frequently in olympiad-style preparation.
Combinatorics needs exact counting
Without options to guide estimation, double counting and missed cases become especially costly.
Geometry rewards structural recognition
Similarity, cyclicity, power, coordinates and transformations can all appear. Diagram accuracy and proof-quality reasoning support correct integer results.
Algebra should be flexible
Symmetry, factorisation, substitutions, polynomials and sequences often compress apparently complicated expressions.
Answers need range/format discipline
AIME answers use the contest’s required integer format. Students should verify the current official answer-entry instructions.
Timed practice comes after deep work
First learn to solve difficult problems without a clock, then build selection and pacing.
Reconstruct solutions
Reading an elegant solution is not enough. Close it, reproduce the decisive argument and solve a variation.
Score interpretation is contextual
One AIME result is evidence about one contest day, not a complete measure of mathematical potential.
Bridge to proof
Although AIME records answers, preparation should include written reasoning because proof-oriented olympiads require the next level of communication.
Use official MAA sources
Current dates, qualification and administration belong to MAA.