British Informatics Olympiad
The British Informatics Olympiad (BIO) is an annual competition in computer programming for secondary schools and sixth form colleges. Any student who is under 19, in full time pre-university education and resident in mainland Britain, is eligible to take part and may win prizes including an expenses-paid trip to the prestigious International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI). The first stage of the BIO is a three-hour exam, taken at school, in which students solve problems with the aid of a computer. These are marked by a teacher and submitted for moderation. Based on the results of this exam, the top 15 competitors are invited to the BIO final in Cambridge during the Easter holidays. The best four make up the team to represent Britain at the IOI.
The BIO is a non-profit making organisation founded in 1995, aiming to encourage students to take an active interest in information technology, to allow them to meet and exchange ideas, and to give the best the chance to compete at the International Olympiad in Informatics. In order to make the BIO as inclusive as possible, it is free to enter. This can only be achieved thanks to the aid of commercial sponsorship. We are always keen to hear from companies and organisations interested in supporting the BIO. Other competitions A similar competition in computer programming exists for students in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. About 85 countries participate in the IOI; many national competitions have Internet pages which may be found through the International Olympiad in Informatics. A number of other programming competitions take place world-wide, including the ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest for university students. Informatics is only one of several International Science Olympiads. Similar competitions exist in Maths, Physics, Chemistry and Biology, and were formed as a result of UNESCO initiatives.
BIO 2024 will take place December 2023 - January 2024 and March/April 2024. The competition is open to all students in full-time pre-university education in mainland Britain, and involves solving problems against the clock, using nothing more than pen, paper and a computer. The BIO consists of three stages. The first is a 3-hour test, the British Informatics Olympiad, which takes place in schools during December and January. This involves solving a range of problems using a computer. The second stage is the final, which will be held in Cambridge in March/April 2024. The top four finalists will make up the team to travel to the 2024 International Olympiad in Informatics, hosted by Egypt. As well as the possibility of winning a medal the team will enjoy VIP treatment and get to socialise with contestants from 90 different countries that will take part. We will also be selecting the national team for the European Girls' Olympiad in Informatics, hosted by The Netherlands. If you have sent an enquiry about your registration for BIO 2024 but not received a reply, or are expecting the paper but have not yet received it, please read our additional information. See the links below for information about BIO 2024.
>Eligibility The British Informatics Olympiad (BIO) is open to students under 19 years of age and studying full-time at an establishment of Secondary or Further (not Higher) Education in mainland Britain. Entries are co-ordinated by the Head of Information Technology, Computing or another member of staff at the school or college (teacher in charge). A similar competition exists for students in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Entering the BIO The teacher in charge of the BIO must enter the competition by filling in the on-line application form, and specifying an approximate number of students who will take the first round of the BIO. BIO 2024 Timetable November (2023) - 5 January (2024) Schools and colleges register 4 December (2023) - 12 January (2024) Students take the first round exam in school March/April (2024) Final round at Trinity College, Cambridge Summer vacation (dates to be announced) Training weekend September (2023) International Olympiad in Informatics Structure of the first round The first round of the BIO consists of a 3-hour paper, with three questions, to be taken in school. Each question is to be solved by writing a computer program, on any type of computer and in any language; the questions will be supplemented by written problems. The exam will be taken on a day of the school's choosing, but marks must be submitted electronically by 15 January if they are to be considered for the final. Answers consist of the student's computer programs (which should be stored electronically), the written answers to the problems, and the results of the tests specified in the marks scheme. The answers are to be marked by the teacher in charge. Marks should be submitted on the form which will be described on the marks scheme. All answers should be retained by the teacher in charge and may, for moderation, be required at short notice by the BIO organisers. Structure of the final The final will take place in Cambridge during the Easter holiday, 2024. The best 15 competitors in the first round of the BIO will be invited to take part. Food and accommodation will be paid for by the BIO. The final will consist of a series of written and programming problems. The machines used for the final are expected to be running Linux. The programming language available will be C/C++. There will be an opportunity for students to use the contest environment prior to contest. The four winners of the BIO and a team reserve will be selected at the final, and will be announced at a presentation ceremony on the last day. International Olympiad in Informatics The four winners will form the team to represent Britain at the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI). In the event of one of these being unable to attend IOI 2024, a reserve will be substituted at the organisers' discretion. The IOI will take place in Egypt in September 2024. All expenses of travel (with the UK and between the UK and the IOI), food and accommodation will be covered by the BIO and IOI, although team-members are advised to bring their own pocket money. The team will be accompanied by at least two team leaders. The team members will compete as individuals against approximately 350 students from 90 countries, solving problems using computers; the best students will receive gold, silver or bronze medals.
Below are listed countries that participated in previous IOIs (International Olympiad in Informatics). Many of these countries organize a national olympiad in informatics, which help train and select pupils for participation in the IOI. There are also numerous other informatics competitions. If a country appears without link in the list below, this does not mean that there is no national informatics competition. However, it may be harder to get in touch with the organizers. One place to try is the Ministry of Education, because they receive the official invitation to participate at the IOI, and they are most likely to know about a national informatics competition. Another place to look is at the list of delegation leaders of a recent IOI. Finally, you could send a request to the IOI mailing list. (ISO Alpha-3/IOC code: Country name) ALB: Albania ARG: Argentina [old site] (includes archive of competition tasks in Spanish) ARM: Armenia AUS: Australia AUT: Austria AZE: Azerbaijan BGD/BAN: Bangladesh BLR: Belarus (unofficial) The first national olympiad took place in 1988. The national team participates in IOI for last 12 (or 13, maybe) years. The best results are gold medals in 1993, 1994 and 1996 There are three stages of olympiad every year. The national team is chosen during training camp, that consists of 3 stages, 10 days each. The participants of training camp are selected after results of III stage (national). BEL: Belgium BOL: Bolivia BIH: Bosnia and Herzegovina BRA: Brazil (in Portuguese) BGR/BUL: Bulgaria Bulgarian Competitions in Mathematics and Informatics Bulgarian olympiads in informatics CAN: Canada CHL: Chile CHN: China COL: Colombia The WWW Home Page for the Colombian Olympiads (in Spanish), covering Mathematics, Phyisics, and Informatics, maintained by Fernando Vega Salamanca (fvega@uan.edu.co). E-mail: olimpia@uan.edu.co HRV/CRO: Croatia (in Croatian) CUB: Cuba CYP: Cyprus CZE: Czech Republic DNK/DEN: Denmark DOM: Dominican Republic ECU: Ecuador EGY: Egypt EST: Estonia FIN: Finland FRA: France [ national competition ] GAB: Gabon GEO: Georgia DEU/GER: Germany (in German) GRC/GRE: Greek National contest in Informatics HKG: Hong Kong (SAR of China) HUN: Hungary IND: India IDN/INA: Indonesia IRN: Iran IRL: Ireland ISR: Israel ITA: Italy [ Training pages ] JPN: Japan JOR: Jordan KAZ: Kazakhstan KEN: Kenya KOR: Korea, Republic of KWT: Kuwait KGZ: Kyrgyzstan LVA/LAT: Latvia LTU: Lithuania LUX: Luxemburg MAC: Macao (SAR of China) MKD: Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of [ in Macedonian ] MLT: Malta MUS/MRI: Maurtius MEX: Mexico MDA: Moldova MNG/MGL: Mongolia MOZ: Mozambique NLD/NED: The Netherlands NZL: New Zealand NOR: Norway POL: Poland PRT/POR: Portugal (in Portuguese) ROM: Romania (in Romanian; contact) RUS: Russian Federation SCG: Serbia and Montenegro SGP/SIN: Singapore SVK: Slovakia SVN/SLO: Slovenia ZAF/RSA: South Africa ESP: Spain SLK/SRI: Sri Lanka SWE: Sweden (in Swedish) CHE/SUI: Switzerland, ASSO - Association of Swiss Scientific Olympiads SYR: Syrian Arab Republic TWN/TPE: Taiwan (province of China) / Chinese Taipei THA: Thailand TTO/TRI: Trinidad and Tobego TUN: Tunisia TUR: Turkey TKM: Turkmenistan UKR: Ukraine ARE/UAE: United Arab Emirates GBR: United Kingdom GBR: United Kingdom USA: United States of America VEN: Venezuela VNM/VIE: Viet Nam ZWE/ZIM: Zimbabwe
Copyright notice These pages are copyright (c) The British Informatics Olympiad (BIO) and the contributors. Copies may be made freely by persons or organisations involved in the British Informatics Olympiad or the International Olympiad in Informatics, on condition that no changes are made and this notice is included. Distribution for profit is forbidden unless permission is first obtained in writing from the BIO. Legal disclaimer The computer programs to be found on this website are for educational purposes only and come with no warranty, implied or otherwise, as to their fitness for any purpose. The BIO disclaims all liability for damages, costs or injury resulting from the use of any information it publishes. Disclaimer of representation The opinions expressed on the BIO pages are those of the organisers and contributors, and do not represent endorsement by the organisation hosting these pages, the contributors' employers, or the sponsors of the BIO.