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International Chemistry Olympiad Selection Programme in Taiwan, China

國際化學奧林匹亞競賽

🌐 Key Websites

📖 Overview

Key Facts

  • Official name: 國際化學奧林匹亞競賽 (International Chemistry Olympiad Selection Programme)
  • Organizer: Department of Chemistry, National Taiwan Normal University (國立臺灣師範大學化學系), commissioned by the Ministry of Education (教育部) through the K-12 Education Administration
  • IChO since: 1992 (24th IChO, Pittsburgh, USA)
  • IChO team name: Chinese Taipei
  • IChO hosting: 2005 (37th IChO, Taipei); 2027 (59th IChO, Taipei)
  • Medals: 72 gold, 56 silver, 11 bronze — one of the strongest-performing delegations in IChO history

The chemistry olympiad in the Taiwan region of China is a selection programme that identifies and trains the four-member team representing Chinese Taipei at the International Chemistry Olympiad. The programme is organized by the Department of Chemistry at National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) under the commission of the Ministry of Education and has operated continuously since the first participation of Chinese Taipei in the IChO in 1992. With 72 gold medals accumulated over 34 participations, Chinese Taipei ranks among the top-performing delegations in IChO history. The Taiwan region hosted the IChO once before — the 37th IChO in 2005, held in Taipei — and will host the event again when the 59th IChO returns to Taipei in 2027.

🎯 Competition Format

The selection follows four progressive stages across the academic year. Registration for the preliminary round is handled exclusively by schools or local education authorities; individual registration is not accepted.

  • 1⃣ Preliminary (初選)

    • A 2-hour written examination covering high-school chemistry
    • Held in November each year (registration in September–October)
    • Administered simultaneously at ~10 regional test centres
    • Around 1,000–2,000 students participate
    • Top 30% receive excellence certificates
    • Approximately 54 students advance (~44 by exam + ~10 direct-entry via prior national competition awards)

  • 2⃣ Winter Training Camp + Secondary Selection (冬令營 + 複選)

    • A 10–14 day training camp held in January
    • Daily schedule: 8 hours of university-level lectures (organic chemistry receives double time to align with international syllabus)
    • Top 27 students receive university recommendation privileges (大學推薦入學資格)
    • Top 12 students advance to the selection camp

  • 3⃣ Selection Camp / Final (選拔訓練營 / 決選)

    • A 3-week camp held in April
    • Advanced laboratory training at NTNU and National Cheng Kung University (NCKU)
    • Final assessment in IChO format: 5-hour theoretical + 5-hour practical
    • 4 representatives (+ 2 alternates) selected for the IChO delegation

  • 4⃣ Pre-competition Training (個別培訓)

    • May–June (~4 weeks)
    • Independent problem-solving, past IChO papers, experimental preparation problems
    • Individualized coaching for the four team members

Gender Quota

The programme enforces a gender diversity rule: at least one-third of spots at each selection stage are reserved for the underrepresented gender, ensuring balanced participation.

🏆 Student Outcomes

Under the Ministry of Education regulation 《參加國際數理學科奧林匹亞競賽及國際科學展覽成績優良學生升學輔導辦法》, top performers receive significant university-admission benefits:

IChO Medal Benefit
🥇 Gold Direct admission (保送) to any university department, or to science/engineering/medical/agricultural colleges
🥈 Silver / Bronze / HM Direct admission to designated colleges, or recommended admission (推薦入學) to specific departments
All medalists Scholarships of NT$50,000–200,000 depending on medal level
Top camp finishers (non-IChO) Strong advantage in university 特殊選才 (special talent selection) admissions

Additionally, top performers receive support for overseas study, including scholarships for admission to top foreign graduate programmes in science. Approximately 50% of alumni pursue chemistry at university, with others entering medicine, electrical engineering, or related fields. Most chemistry-track alumni go on to earn doctorates and join academia or industry globally.

~50% of chemistry olympiad alumni pursue chemistry at university; others enter medicine, electrical engineering, or related fields. Most chemistry-track alumni go on to earn doctorates and join academia or industry in Japan, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and beyond.

李祐慈 (Li Yu-Tzu): IChO alumnus who earned a doctorate at MIT and returned to Taiwan as a professor at NTNU — now serving as the team leader and coach for the current IChO delegation.

🏫 Strong Schools

The following schools have been consistently represented on recent IChO delegations:

School City
建國中學 (Jianguo High School) Taipei
台南一中 (Tainan First Senior High) Tainan
台中一中 (Taichung First Senior High) Taichung
高雄中學 (Kaohsiung Senior High) Kaohsiung
竹科實中 (Experimental HS, Hsinchu) Hsinchu
武陵高中 (Wuling Senior High) Taoyuan
嘉義高中 (Chiayi Senior High) Chiayi

Taipei's 建國中學 (Jianguo High School) is the most consistently represented school, though the programme draws finalists from schools across the island — from Taipei in the north to Kaohsiung in the south.

📜 History

  • 1992: The Taiwan region (Chinese Taipei) made its IChO debut at the 24th IChO in Pittsburgh, USA. The inaugural team of four won 1 gold, 1 silver, and 1 bronze, establishing as a competitive delegation.
  • 1992–2019: Chinese Taipei built one of the strongest cumulative medal records in IChO history, consistently winning medals in nearly every year.
  • 2005: Hhosted the 37th IChO in Taipei — the first time Chinese Taipei served as IChO host.
  • 2020–2021: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the team competed remotely at the Istanbul (2020) and Osaka (2021) IChO editions, winning 2 gold + 2 silver and 3 gold + 1 silver respectively.
  • 2022: At the 54th IChO in Tianjin, all four team members won gold medals — the only year in Chinese Taipei's history with a clean sweep — and the delegation was ranked 1st globally.
  • 2023–2026: The team continued its dominant run, winning 3 gold + 1 silver in three of four years (2023 Zurich, 2025 UAE, 2026 Tashkent), and 2 gold + 2 silver at the 2024 Riyadh IChO (ranked 5th globally).
  • 2027: Taiwan will host the 59th IChO in Taipei (19–28 July 2027) — the second time the region hosts the IChO, 22 years after the 37th IChO in 2005. The bid is backed by the Ministry of Education and the National Science and Technology Council (國家科學及技術委員會).

🏅 IChO Performance

IChO Medal Record (1992–2026)

🥇 72 Gold · 🥈 56 Silver · 🥉 11 Bronze · 🎗 0 Honorable Mentions

Chinese Taipei has one of the highest gold-medal-per-participation ratios in IChO history, with an average of over 2 gold medals per year across 34 participations. The team has never returned from an IChO empty-handed.

Past Exams Archive

Year 1st Round Solution Others
2026 Link Link
2025 Link Link
2024 Link Link
2023 Link Link
2022 Link Link
2021 Link Link
2020 Link Link
2019 Link Link
2018 Link Link
2017 Link Link
2016 Link Link
2015 Link Link
2014 Link Link
2013 Link Link
2012 Link Link
2011 Link Link Final Theory Final Experiment
2010 Link
2009 Link Round2 Theory Round2 Experiment
2008 Link Link
2007 Link
2006 Link