International Olympiad Foundation® (IOF)

Chemistry Olympiad

Chemistry Olympiad Qualifier(COQ) is a UAE level Chemistry Olympiad that is conducted annually by International Olympiad Foundation(IOF®).  IOF® is the official representative for International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) & International Earth Science Olympiad(IESO)  in UAE.

Chemistry Olympiad Qualifier ®

Exam Date:

September to October

Syllabus: For the Initial Qualifiers (Round 1/2), Syllabus will be a mix of all the Curriculum for a particular Grade/ Year.

Students are supposed to follow their own school curriculum for the same.

Syllabus varies for each International Competitions.( Details can be found against the same below)
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Eligible Grades Grade 11/ Year 12 to Grade 12/ Year 13

Qualification procedure

General Rules

  1. Student should register for the current grade/year in which he/she is studying at the time of application.
  2. Students can apply for a higher grade/ year at the time of application as well. But in that case all the records would be updated accordingly.
  3. Any student who is found competing in a lower grade would be disqualified automatically
  4. You must qualify the Chemistry Preliminary Olympiad qualifier (Round 1 ) that will be conducted during the period from September to October. The Preliminary Olympiad qualifier is Multiple choice question test consisting of 30 questions from Chemistry. Exam syllabus is a mix of all the curriculum for a particular grade/year. The Preliminary Olympiad qualifier can be taken in UAE in all the Emirates(Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Ras Al Khaimah, Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah)
  5. If shortlisted in Preliminary Olympiad qualifier, you must appear for final qualifier (Round 2) to be held during the Period from Mid of November to Mid of December.  The final Olympiad qualifier is objective test consisting of 45 questions from Chemistry. The final Olympiad qualifier can be taken in UAE in all the Emirates (Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Ras Al Khaimah, Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah)
  6. International Olympiad foundation will shortlist the students based on the qualifiers for IChO.
  7. Age criteria for each International Competition is decided by the respective organising committee. IOF doesn’t have any control over this process. Please visit the respective International Competition websites for more information
  8. Students from senior grades will be given preference over junior grades for selection to IChO. The preference from high to low for selection will be as Grade 12/Year 13, Grade 11/Year 12.

International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO)

  • Candidate must undergo the selection process conducted by International Olympiad Foundation
  • The competitors are secondary school students or recent graduates who have not started university education. The graduation date of participants must not be earlier than the most recent graduation before July 1st of the competition year
  • Competitors must be under 20 year of age on the 1st of July of the year of the competition
  • The competitors must be passport holders of the country they represent or have taken part in the secondary school educational system of this country for more than one academic year
  • 4 students form an IChO National Team. Students will be shortlisted from Round 2 qualifiers to be a part of the National Team training. Best 4 candidates will be selected for the National Team based on their performance during the training sessions.
  • Please visit https://www.ichosc.org/ for more details

International Mendeleev Chemistry Olympiad (IMChO)

  • Candidate must undergo the selection process conducted by International Olympiad Foundation
  • Age should be less than 19 years as on 1st July of the competition year
  • Must be student studying in a school or completing a school in UAE and not enrolled into any University/College
  • A Student cannot compete in more than one IMChO
  • 4 Grade 11/Year 12  students shortlisted from Chemistry National Qualifier will form an IMChO National Team.Students will be shortlisted from Round 2 qualifiers to be a part of the National Team training. Best 4 candidates will be selected for the National Team based on their performance during the training sessions.

International Earth Science Olympiad (IESO)

  • Candidate must undergo the selection process conducted by International Olympiad Foundation
  • Age should be less than 19 years as on 1st July of the competition year
  • Must be student studying in a school or completing a school in UAE and not enrolled into any University/College
  • A Student cannot compete in more than one IESO
  • 2 Grade 11/Year 12  students shortlisted from Chemistry National Qualifier will form an IESO National Team.
  • Please visit “https://www.ieso-info.org/ for more details