FAQ

WUCT as an student organization was founded in 2015 by Harshi Gupta and Abhishek Sethi. With a team of undergraduates, the group ran its first chemistry competition in April 2016.

The 2025 tournament will mark WUCT's 9th year, with students expected from around the nation.

Any high school student in grades 9-12 is eligible to attend WUCT. We recommend students have at least one year of chemistry coursework at the high school level. Exams are written with material covered in AP Chemistry in mind.

• Does my team get to decide which division we are in?
  • No, to ensure fairness among teams, the WUCT team decides on a team’s division placement holistically based on information provided on the registration form and past scores.
• What should I do if I want to compete at a different division from my team’s placement decision?
  • Please email us at wuct@su.wustl.edu to address your concern.
• Can I purposefully change my demographic information so that my team is assigned to the division with less experienced teams? Does this mean a higher chance of winning an award?
  • No, our team will also review your team’s scores from previous years to make the placement decision. We strongly discourage teams from faking their demographic information in the registration form to compete with less advantaged teams as it violates the purpose of having two divisions. The WUSEA team reserves the right to make any changes to a team’s division placement.
• What if I forgot what division my team is in during tournament day?
  • There will be a two-digit number at the end of your individual ID that indicates your division placement.
• Around what time could I expect to hear about my team’s placement decision?
  • We will notify participants mid-March of their placement.
• How will having two divisions impact my experience during WUCT?
  • Logistically and experience-wise, WUCT will remain the same as it has been in the past years! Only in the awards ceremony will there be a distinction in the two divisions. We hope this adds to the experience of teams with limited chemistry background and makes our tournament more accessible to under-resourced schools.
• Who should I contact if I have other questions?
  • Since splitting WUCT into two divisions is newly implemented this year, please feel free to send us an email at wuct@su.wustl.edu for any concerns/questions/suggestions about the WUCT two-division!

More details on WUCTs two divisions can be found here!

While this competition may use a general high school curriculum as a basis for the concepts covered, it expands and explores applications of these topics to different areas of study.

For the topic exams, competitors do not need to have any background knowledge regarding these topics, as we will have students apply general chemistry concepts to these scenarios.

We have sample problems and past exams uploaded on the Archives page. Please note that we do not repeat questions from year to year. This archive is meant to help you gauge how difficult the questions may be.

In order to provide context on the problems competitors may encounter, please feel free to refer to this year's reference sheet: WUCT 2024 Reference Sheet

WUCT will be in-person for the 2025 tournament. COVID guidelines will be announced closer to the day of.

Teams must have all student information completed by March 1, 2024 to be recognized by the regular registration deadline. Student information may be modified up through March 15, 2024 for an additional $10 fee. No changes will be allowed past this date.

Historically, along with donations from sponsors, WUCT uses funds to provide lunch, shirts, prizes, and other materials on the day of the competition.

Refunds for the registration fee are possible if requested by March 6th, 2024. Any late fees incurred will not be refunded.

After you have received an email confirmation of your team's registration, you will receive a link to the payment website, Cashnet. The payment deadline is March 1st, 2024 at 11:59 PM CDT. If you are unable to pay through Cashnet or your school requires an invoice from our organization in order to send a payment, please contact us by email.

If a team pays its fees and then must withdraw, we will give a full refund, so long as we are notified of the withdrawal by March 6th, 2024 at 11:59 PM CDT. No refunds will be issued after this deadline and no late fees will be refunded.

Please give us 1-2 weeks to process your request.

Yes, a full team will consist of six students and one adult coach. The adult coach can either be a teacher or parent, but should preferably be a teacher. We will be hosting faculty-led workshops on competition day to discuss effective strategies and resources for educators that focus on establishing critical thinking and collaboration in their own classrooms. Teams without any adult coach will be ineligible for the tournament.

Please refer to the “Incomplete Teams” section of the Event Info page for our policy on this matter.

We have designed our questions to be approachable for high school students yet still carry real world applications (ie. engineering, biochemistry etc.). We promote an environment where students think critically about problems, collaborate with their teammates and form rigorous justifications for their answers.

Our individual and team rounds will require various problem-solving techniques and strategic approaches that require a deeper understanding of fundamental principles rather than encouraging memorization of chemical ideas and concepts. Unlike Chemistry Olympiad, all but one of our rounds have team members working together to solve questions.

Because of the collaborative nature of the tournament, we expect that students distribute the workload according to different chemistry concepts, resulting a greater in-depth study of each topic.

Throughout the day, we offer interactive faculty-led workshops for teachers that have historically focused on strategies to promote collaboration and critical thinking in their own classrooms. WUCT is currently seeking ways to allow educators to receive accreditation for attendance at these workshops.

Coaches will be able to watch and cheer on their team during the Breaking Bonds Round.

Teachers will have the opportunity to meet other coaches, students, and parents throughout the day and attend any break-time activities of their choosing.

We usually secure an agreement with Drury Inn and Suites in Brentwood, MO to provide discounted rates for teams competing in WUCT. If the agreement is secured for WUCT 2024, after your team registers for the tournament, we will send you a link and the group or corporate code needed to book rooms at the discounted price. Stay tuned to this page for updates!

We do offer financial assistance to participants demonstrating financial need. Please fill out this form to be considered for scholarships to attend WUCT. Please contact WUCT (wuct@su.wustl.edu) if you have further questions!

We welcome questions, comments, and suggestions from students, parents, and coaches. Please email us at wuct@su.wustl.edu. We will get back to you as soon as possible.