About USNCO/IChO
"The U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad is a multi-tiered competition designed to stimulate and promote achievement in high school chemistry. It is sponsored by the American Chemical Society. Each year, four students are chosen to represent the USA in the International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO), which is hosted every year in July in one of the participating countries." - USNCO
"The International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) is an annual competition for the world’s most talented chemistry students at the secondary school level. Nations around the world send a team of four students, who are tested on their chemistry knowledge and skills in a five-hour laboratory practical and five-hour written theoretical examination." - About IChO
USNCO Site: www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/students/highschool/olympiad.html
IChO Site: www.iuventa.sk/sk/Olympiady/web/Registracia.alej?ReturnUrl=845259
"The International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) is an annual competition for the world’s most talented chemistry students at the secondary school level. Nations around the world send a team of four students, who are tested on their chemistry knowledge and skills in a five-hour laboratory practical and five-hour written theoretical examination." - About IChO
USNCO Site: www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/students/highschool/olympiad.html
IChO Site: www.iuventa.sk/sk/Olympiady/web/Registracia.alej?ReturnUrl=845259
Exam Structure
Round 1: Local Competition
Round 2: National Exam
Round 3: Olympiad Study Camp
Round 4: IChO
Multiple Choice Exam Topic Organization (for local and national)
Questions Topic
1 – 6 Stoichiometry/Solutions
7 – 12 Descriptive/Laboratory
13 – 18 States of Matter
19 – 24 Thermodynamics
25 – 30 Kinetics
31 – 36 Equilibrium
37 – 42 Oxidation - Reduction
43 – 48 Atomic Structure/Periodicity
49 – 54 Bonding/Molecular Structure
55 – 60 Organic/Biochemistry
- Open to all high school students
- Nearly 16,000 students take it
- Held every March
- Over 70% of Local Sections use the USNCO Local Section Exam written by the ACS USNCO Exams Task Force, but sections can use their own exams/methods to nominate students for Round 2
- 110 minutes long, consists of 60 MCQ
- Non-programmable calculators allowed
Round 2: National Exam
- Open to students nominated by their respective Local Sections based on performance
- Held in April
- Over 1,000 students take it
- A maximum of two students from the same school can take the National Exam
- 4 hours, 45 minutes in total
- 3 Parts:
- Part I:
- Multiple Choice
- 90-minutes
- 60 multiple choice questions
- Covers broad chemistry topics
- Part II:
- Problem Solving
- 105 minutes
- 8 written questions
- Covers chemical theories and models
- Part III:
- Lab Practical
- 90 minutes
- 2 laboratory practicals
- Involves problem solving in the laboratory
- Part I:
- Top 100 scorers receive a certificate with Honors
- Top 50 scorers receive a certificate with High Honors
- Top 20 scorers are invited to attend Round 3
Round 3: Olympiad Study Camp
- Top 20 scorers are invited to attend Study Camp
- Held in June
- Two weeks long
- Receive rigorous coaching from mentors and faculty
- The four best-performing students are selected to be a part of Team USA at the IChO
Round 4: IChO
- Consists of trip to IChO host country
- Held late July/early August
- Five-hour lab practical and five-hour written theoretical exam
- Top 10% of scorers receive gold medals, the next 20% receive silver, and the next 30% receive bronze
Multiple Choice Exam Topic Organization (for local and national)
Questions Topic
1 – 6 Stoichiometry/Solutions
7 – 12 Descriptive/Laboratory
13 – 18 States of Matter
19 – 24 Thermodynamics
25 – 30 Kinetics
31 – 36 Equilibrium
37 – 42 Oxidation - Reduction
43 – 48 Atomic Structure/Periodicity
49 – 54 Bonding/Molecular Structure
55 – 60 Organic/Biochemistry
2021-2022 Important DatesTBD
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ResourcesChemistry Olympiads Discord Server (CODS) Links:
Discord Server: discord.gg/chemistry CODS Site: chem.isodn.org/ CODS Guides: chem.isodn.org/guides CODS YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCyO5Wn2qKDRYWC-F5EfN2kA Practice Exams: USNCO Practice Local and National Exams: www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/students/highschool/olympiad/pastexams.html Textbooks: docs.google.com/document/d/1hjzk7Y4WWlSB3tvfkrmp8xrYaYBSDgkveKjbJOx_qy8/edit?usp=sharing Other Materials: UC Irvine Open Chemistry Course: ocw.uci.edu/collections/open_chemistry.html Khan Academy: www.khanacademy.org/science/chemistry ChemLibre: chem.libretexts.org/ USNCO Coaching Sessions (scroll to the bottom of the page): www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/students/highschool/olympiad/usnco-support-programs.html Competition Chemistry Website: www.mit.edu/~anugrah/chem.html WWP Chem Olympiad Website: sites.google.com/view/wwpisoclub/chemistry-olympiad?authuser=0 |