A “cheat sheet” for the best‑known international academic contests

that-tree · July 6, 2025, 5:44pm

Below is a summary about some of the most prestigious and popular international academic competitions. Please note all Olympiads require going through your national selection process first.

For the selection process in USA, please check USA selection process for the major international academic competitions
For Canada: Canada’s Selection Process for International Olympiads
For Mexico: Mexico’s Selection Pathways for International Olympiads
For China: 中国主要国际奥赛选拔流程（含官网）
For Japan: 日本における国際オリンピック選考プロセス
For South Korea: 대한민국 국제올림피아드 선발 과정 (수정본)

Mathematics Olympiads

Contest	Full Name	Official Site	Eligibility	Typical Schedule
IMO	International Mathematical Olympiad	imo-official.org	≤ 20 yrs old, pre-university; 6 students per country	Early–mid July (2025: July 13–22, Saudi Arabia)
EGMO	European Girls’ Mathematical Olympiad	egmo.org	Girls ≤ 20 yrs; 4 students per country	April (2025: April 11–17, Prishtina, Kosovo)
IMC	International Mathematics Competition for University Students	imc-math.org.uk	Undergraduate students; university teams	Late July – early August (2025: July 28 – August 3, Bulgaria)

Natural & Formal Science Olympiads

Contest	Full Name	Official Site	Eligibility	Typical Schedule
IPhO	International Physics Olympiad	ipho-unofficial.org / ipho2025.fr	≤ 20 yrs; up to 5 students per country	Mid July (2025: July 18–24, Paris, France)
IChO	International Chemistry Olympiad	ichosc.org	≤ 20 yrs; 4 students per country	Early–mid July (2025: July 5–14, Dubai, UAE)
IBO	International Biology Olympiad	ibo-info.org	≤ 20 yrs; 4 students per country	Mid–late July (2025: July 20–27, Quezon City, Philippines)
IJSO	International Junior Science Olympiad	ijsoweb.org	≤ 15 yrs on Dec 31; 3–6 students per team	Late November – early December (2025: Nov 23 – Dec 2, Sochi, Russia)
ISEF	International Science and Engineering Fair	societyforscience.org/isef	~14–19 yrs old; national fair winners with individual/team projects	Mid May (2025: May, Columbus, Ohio, USA)
IESO	International Earth Science Olympiad	igeoscied.org	≤ 18 yrs (as of July 1); 4 students per country	Early August (2025: August 7–17, Jining, China)
iGeo	International Geography Olympiad	geoolympiad.org	16–19 yrs old; 4 students per country	Late July – early August (2025: July 26 – August 1, Bangkok, Thailand)

Computing, Language & Logic Olympiads

Contest	Full Name	Official Site	Eligibility	Typical Schedule
IOI	International Olympiad in Informatics	ioinformatics.org	≤ 20 yrs; up to 4 students per country	Late July – early August (2025: July 27 – August 3, Sucre, Bolivia)
ICPC	International Collegiate Programming Contest	icpc.global	University students; 3-person teams; one per university	Shifts yearly (2025 Finals: August 30 – September 4, Baku, Azerbaijan)
IOL	International Linguistics Olympiad	ioling.org	≤ 20 yrs; up to 2 teams of 4 per country	Late July (2025: July 21–26, Taipei, Taiwan)

Humanities and Language Olympiads

Contest	Full Name	Official Site	Eligibility	Typical Schedule
IPO	International Philosophy Olympiad	philosophy-olympiad.org	High school students ≤ 20 yrs; essay competition; 2 per country	Mid May (2025: May 15–18, Bari, Italy)
IEO (SOF)	International English Olympiad (by SOF)	INTERNATIONAL ENGLISH OLYMPIAD (IEO) \| Science Olympiad Foundation	Grades 1–12; school-level participation; 2 exam rounds	Round 1: Nov/Dec; Round 2: Jan (School-based, not hosted abroad)