HSG Mathematics A exam: a promising approach

"Do not worry about your difficulties in mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater." – Albert Einstein

Update October 2026: Since the autumn semester 2026 the course is called «Mathematics with Statistics A». The strategy still applies; check which topics come up in your exam against the most recent past papers.

For many students, the maths exam in the HSG assessment year seems almost impossible to overcome: too many topics, too many formulas and too much variety in the exercises – these are just a few of the difficulties we regularly hear about from students. Nevertheless, we believe the Mathematics A exam is one of the more manageable exams in the assessment year. With a suitable approach, you can achieve a good grade. And no, the strategy is not to always tick answer b) :-)

We at the Coaching Institute always advise our students to focus on about 6-7 topics, although of course it has to be decided individually which topics are manageable for each student. Here's an example of topics that many students choose:

1. Mathematical logic (a must)
2. Limits of sequences and series
3. Limits with L'Hôpital
4. Financial mathematics (also a must)
5. Domain of functions of several variables (shapes)
6. Taylor polynomials (usually without the remainder term)
7. Homogeneity

The advantage of this strategy is that you have enough time to prepare for the selected topics. Ideally, for each chosen topic you solve all the exercise types from the exams of recent years, so you get used to the variety of exercises within a topic.

In the exam itself you can then selectively solve the exercises you've prepared for, so you're sure to score the points – of course, it may happen that you can't solve some of the exercises, which is why it's important to prepare for a few more topics than you need (6-7 should be enough).

It's also important to make sure you have enough time in the exam to put a cross everywhere, so ideally you should start with the multiple-choice questions and only then move on to the open questions.

We wish you every success in the upcoming Mathematics A exam and hope this strategy helps you!

We at the Coaching Institute prepare you in the best possible way for the HSG maths exams. Here you can find out more about our offer.

If you're interested, feel free to contact us with no obligation

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