Science Olympiad - Competition Levels

Competition Levels

Science Olympiad competitions occur at the regional, state and national level. Normally, the top few teams advance from the regional level to state competition, the exact number depending on how many regions there are and how many teams compete. For example, the regional Science Olympiad competition in Albany, New York will typically send the top three finishing teams to the New York state competition. However, an additional team or teams can be sent to the state competition if one of the top three has been victorious (or has gone to the state competition) multiple times in a row. In most states, the top team advances from state to the national competition. Some states with a larger number of teams are allotted a second spot at the national competition to represent their larger participation. About 120 teams compete at the national level each year (60 from Division B and 60 from Division C); the number has changed over the years to accommodate growing participation.

Many states also hold invitational tournaments. These competitions serve as "practice rounds" for qualifying tournaments, and are hosted by individual middle schools(View the portion titled invitational),high schools and/or colleges. These are also often organized by schools themselves and usually occur some time in January or February. Teams can participate in invitationals from multiple states depending on availability. At some invitational, only a few events are held. However, many invitational tournaments mimic regional and state competitions in their competitive intensity. For example, Solon Middle School holds an invitational each year that fields about 45 teams, including 6-7 past national qualifiers. In this way, many teams get a lot of practice through invitationals.