WUCT General Information

ELIGIBILITY

Students who are enrolled in high school (grades 9-12) are eligible to participate in WUCT. Teams are composed of 6 students and must be accompanied by a coach (a teacher or parent chaperone). Coaches will oversee the team's registration and will serve as a point of contact for important information. Registration will be done on a rolling basis until registration closes on March 1, 2025. We will cap the number of entries at 300 competitors (≈ 50 teams), but we will begin a waitlist if that number is passed. More information on the waitlist can be found below.

The first 300 competitors that register will be guaranteed a spot. Additional competitors that register will be waitlisted. If a spot opens up, waitlisted competitors will be informed of the opening by March 15th, 2025, at the latest.

You will have until March 1, 2025 to register a new team for our April 5, 2025 competition. You will then be able to change information about the team until March 15th, 2025 for a $10 additional fee. After that, no changes can be made. If any team attempts to change their team’s profile within the last 2 weeks before the competition (e.g., by showing up on competition day with new teammates), WE WILL NOT ALLOW THE CHANGES TO BE PROCESSED AND THE NEW TEAMMATES WILL NOT BE ABLE TO COMPETE. Our grading system, which significantly expedites the process of scoring, depends on matching people’s names and codes. The system will not grade any exams if any name or code does not align with our pre-set association. If one or more members drop from a complete team within the 2 weeks before the competition, the rest of the team will be considered an incomplete team. As a result, they will still be able to compete, but may not be able to take all exams (i.e., the topics exam, which is completed in pairs) or may be at a disadvantage if they do take the exams. The WUCT committee will evaluate these cases, should they arise, and communicate directly with the team.

We reserve the right to void all exams and revoke your team’s eligibility if these rules are not followed.

Traditional Teams

Most teams participating at WUCT represent a high school. A high school can send up to 2 teams, with 6 students in each team.

Schools may choose to put each team in either of WUCT's two divisions. Please note that for every team of 6, we will require an additional adult contact besides the coach.

Mixed Teams

Mixed teams are defined as full teams of 6 students that are composed of students from different high schools. Historically, chemistry olympiad organizations (including, but not limited to, online tutoring organizations, chemistry olympiad organizations, chemistry olympiad discord groups, etc) have attempted to form mixed teams for WUCT. While we really appreciate this effort to encourage students' interest in WUCT and chemistry, we will only be able to accommodate up to 2 mixed teams from a single organization. If any student from such groups attends a school that already has registered a team for WUCT, an explicit explanation from the science teacher or the coach of that team is REQUIRED. Otherwise, that student will not be allowed to compete on the mixed organization team.

Incomplete Teams and Individuals

Individuals and incomplete teams (defined as teams composed of less than 6 students) can register for WUCT 2025! The registration fee for individuals and incomplete teams will be $20 per person. To pay this fee, individuals and incomplete teams who register will receive a special link by email after they register.

WUCT will try to match any registered individuals with incomplete teams to create full teams of 6 students. Students from the same high school will be kept on the same team, with the rest of the team being filled by individuals in the order individuals register. In addition, we will also be forming teams of 6 among registered individuals. Please keep in mind that teams will need at least one adult from each component school to accompany them to WUCT. All registered individuals and incomplete teams will be notified of their team by early March 2025.

If we are unable to form a complete team of 6 for you or your incomplete team, you will still be eligible to participate in the tournament. However, as certain exams are designed for pairs or groups of 6, you may be at a disadvantage.

Any other exceptions to the rules will be considered on a case-by-case basis. If you have a question on your team’s eligibility, please do not hesitate to contact us at wuct@su.wustl.edu.

REGISTRATION GUIDELINES

Only one registration form should be submitted per team. The registration fees for 2025 are listed below. Look out for an email from us regarding payment!

The registration deadline is March 1, 2025, with a cap at 300 competitors (≈ 50 teams). After 300 competitors have registered, any additional competitors will be placed on a waitlist and informed by March 15th of their status.

The standard registration fee is $120 per team ($20 per competitor).

Changes made between March 1st and March 15th will incur a $10 fee.

EVENT OVERVIEW

WUCT is a day-long event, with all teams checking in at approximately 7:15 AM and an awards ceremony ending at approximately 6:00 PM (times are in CDT). A more detailed schedule will be posted in the weeks leading up to event day.

Exam Rounds

WUCT features 4 examination rounds, each an hour long. They serve to develop individual chemistry skills, expose students to the real-world application of chemistry, and promote collaboration.

  1. Individual Round (60 minutes)
    Teams will split up as 6 individuals and the top 10 students will be awarded.
  2. Topics Round (60 minutes)
    During this round, WUCT features 3 different exams, each involving a unique application of chemistry. Teams will split into 3 pairs of students, with each pair taking a different topic. Pairs earning the top 5 scores in each topic will be awarded.
  3. Team Round (60 minutes)
    All six members of a team will work together on a challenging exam that promotes critical thinking and teamwork. The top 5 teams will be awarded.
  4. Breaking Bonds Round (60 minutes)
    Breaking Bonds is a fast-paced, live-scored round where teams tackle sets of 3 problems, one at a time. The problems are scored on a simple correct/incorrect basis (i.e., no partial credit) and points are awarded according to the difficulty of the set. Bonus points are awarded for correctly answering all three questions on a packet. The top 5 teams will be awarded.

Additionally, there is an award for overall performance, titled the Director’s Award. For more information on the exams, the material covered and the scoring algorithm, please refer to the Awards section (note: this is subject to change).

Enrichment Activities

During the Individual and Topic Rounds, coaches that attend WUCT are invited to attend a series of workshops hosted by faculty from Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL). Previous years featured interactive workshops regarding Peer-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) and speakers from WUSTL’s Chemistry and Education Department.

Additional programming may be held for teams during the lunch break between Topics and Team Round or during the intermission between Breaking Bonds and the Awards Ceremony. Previous years featured STEM teacher panels and chemistry demonstrations from WUSTL’s Chemistry Department.

Recreation & Exploring Campus

WUCT will be hosting fun activities during the lunch break and in the break before the Awards Ceremoney to allow teams to meet each other and explore Washington University's picturesque campus. More details will be announced later, but possible programming includes guided tours, trivia challenges, raffles, and more!

Provisions

Teams will be provided with a welcome packet with a personalized schedule that includes all of the materials necessary for a successful WUCT.

INFO ON WUCT's TWO DIVISIONS


Rationale for Two Divisions

  • Increasing Participation from a Broader Spectrum of Schools: Many schools with varying levels of resources and chemistry preparation may hesitate to compete in a single division. By establishing two divisions, we aim to increase participation from underrepresented regions, smaller schools, and those with limited access to advanced chemistry education.
  • Expanding Diversity in Academic Backgrounds: Splitting WUCT into two divisions ensures that students with different academic backgrounds can compete fairly. This approach supports WUCT's mission to focus on real-world problem-solving and teamwork in chemistry regardless of academic preparation, giving all participants the chance to succeed.
  • Encouraging Team Engagement and Growth: Two divisions of WUCT provide a more balanced competition and creates a positive learning experience for all teams, allowing them to engage fully.

Structure of Two Divisions

  • Division Avogadro
    • Division Avogadro will constitute teams with limited or no experience in AP Chemistry, Science Olympiad, or other similar competitive chemistry programs.
  • Division Arrhenius
      Division Arrhenius division will constitute teams with significant exposure to AP Chemistry, upper-level chemistry coursework, Science Olympiad, and/or other advanced chemistry competitions.
  • The exam questions will be completely identical for both divisions but students will only be compared to those within their division. Breaking Bonds scoring will not be separate, however.
  • The WUSEA exec team will determine the division placement for each team based on the demographic information provided on the registration form and scores from previous years (if available). We will evaluate a team’s ability from various perspectives before making a collective decision. However, if one team would like to switch to the other division, please email wuct@su.wustl.edu. The deadline to switch divisions will be the same as the registration deadline, March 1st, 2025.
  • Note: If you choose to switch to the other division, your ENTIRE team will be switched as well, so please make sure to discuss this decision with your teammates and coach beforehand.

Awards

  • Since all teams will compete with each other during Breaking Bonds, the awards for Breaking Bonds will stay the same as in previous years, and awards for Individual, Topic, and Teams rounds will be separated into two divisions.
  • Scores will come from the number of raw points competitors score on each exam.
  • Please note that there will be no ties. If two teams or students achieve the same score in a round, the WUCT grading team will analyze the performance on each question of the relevant exam to determine the most difficult question on that specific exam. The individual or team with the best score on that question will be given the higher ranking. In the event that each team has the same score on the hardest question, the second hardest question will be used to break the tie, and so on. For Breaking Bonds, ties will be broken in favor of team that completed a greater number of problem sets from the "Hard" category.
  • Here is a breakdown of award distribution for WUCT 2025:
    • Individual Round: Individual competitors with the top five raw scores on the individual exam will be awarded 1st-5th place Individual Awards within each division.
    • Topic Round: For each topic exam, the three pairs with the highest raw scores for that specific topic exam will be awarded 1st-3rd place Topic Awards within each division. Pairs with raw scores ranked 4th and 5th place will receive honorable mentions.
    • Teams Round: Similar to the Topics Round, the three teams with the highest raw scores on the team exam will earn 1st-3rd place Team Awards within each division. Teams with raw scores ranked 4th and 5th place will receive honorable mentions.
    • Breaking Bonds: The five teams with the highest raw points scores from the Breaking Bonds round will earn 1st-5th place Breaking Bonds Awards.
    • Director's Awards: There will be one Director’s Award for each division. The Director's Award is the highest honor awarded at WUCT. To determine the recipient of this team award, different weights are given to each of the following: the sum of each team member's raw inidividual exam score, the raw team exam score, the sum of the three topic exams scores for the team, and the team's raw breaking bonds score. The weights assigned to each of these values is shown below. The team with the highest calculated weighted sum will win the Director's Award!
      • Individual Round: 15%
        The individual exam scores for each member of the team will be summed, and this sum will be given a 15% weight.
      • Topic Rounds: 15%
        The raw scores from the three different topic exams taken by a team will be summed, and this sum will also be given a 15% weight.
      • Team Round: 40%
        The raw team exam score for the team will be given a 40% weight.
      • Breaking Bonds: 30%
        The Breaking Bonds score for the team will be given a 30% weight. In the event of a tie after calculating the weighted sum of all the exam scores, the team with the highest Breaking Bonds score will be the winner.

FAQs

  • 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?
  • 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!

EXAMS

The tournament will consist of an individual round, a topic round, a team round, and a relay-style (“Breaking Bonds”) round. Every student will take the individual exam alone, work in a pair on one of the three topic exams, and then work with the entire team during the team exam and Breaking Bonds round.

Each exam or round is 60 minutes long. Necessary equations, constants, and a periodic table will be provided.

Teams and individual students will also be provided with identification numbers during check-in that must be written on the top cover page of every exam to be graded. Do NOT write your name on the exam. This is to ensure that the graders are fully impartial throughout the grading process.

Please also review our Cheating Policy, which is found above.

Individual Exam

Questions consist of multiple parts that may require numerical answers, short written justifications, or sketches. Correct answers with reasonable supporting work will receive full credit, while correct answers without work will not receive full credit. If more than one answer is given when only one answer is asked for on the question, that question will be marked as completely incorrect.

While team members may be placed together in the same exam room, they are not permitted to communicate with other team members or their coach in any way during the individual round.

Topic Exams

The topic exams resemble the individual exam, with each question containing multiple parts that may ask for numerical answers, written justifications, or sketches. However, each topic exam will focus its questions around a specific application of chemistry. During the topic round, teams will split themselves into groups of 2 students, and each pair will work together on one of the three topic exams.


  • Chemistry of Science Fiction

    This exam will explore the various phenomena we all know and love from science fiction comics and movies, all while following the story of the interstellar travels of a group of space explorers. Strap in for a thrilling ride as we take you through the chemistry of science fiction!

  • Chemistry of Illumination

    This exam will have students apply their knowledge to a wide range of concepts linked by the chemistry of light (in many forms) and color. Hopefully this exam will shine a light on the fascinating photo-processes happening all around us!

  • Chemistry of Wacky Elements

    This exam will present students with the most unusual, the rarest, and the most wacky array of elements they’re ever likely to come across. Elements on the periodic table that never get to be in the spotlight and elements we’ve purely made up for the fun of it will take center stage for this topics exam!


Team Exam

During the team round, team members will work together to complete the exam. The exam itself will be in the same format as the individual and topic exams. Students are not permitted to communicate with their coach in any way during this time, but they are encouraged to collaborate among themselves to work through the problems. Make sure to reference our 'Info on WUCT's Two Divisions' section for more details on the team exam this year!

Breaking Bonds

Competitors will work as a team during the Breaking Bonds round. Each team will choose one packet of 3 questions of a certain level of difficulty (easy, medium, hard) at a time. These questions will only require numerical or one word answers, and work will not be taken into account. The questions will either be completely correct or incorrect. Upon completion of the questions, the entire packet will be turned in and a new question set can be chosen, at any difficulty level. These questions will be drawn from a broad range of general chemistry topics.

The number of points earned will depend on the packet difficulty level, with 7 points per correct answer on hard packets, 3 points per correct answer on medium packets, and 1 point per correct answer on easy packets. Bonus points will be available for completing an entire packet correctly. Scores and rankings for each team are shown live during this round, as well as the difficulty of the packets being attempted.

EXPECTATIONS

As with any national tournament, competitors are expected to respect all competition rules and any safety protocols instituted by the university.

Cheating Policy

The purpose of this competition is to allow participants to demonstrate their chemistry knowledge and their scientific problem-solving skills. Attempting to improve one’s own performance or gain an advantage on any examination by dishonest means, such as by accessing prohibited resources during the exam, will be considered cheating. Our proctors have been extensively trained to take note of any suspicious behavior.

Cheating of any sort will not be tolerated. If an individual or team is caught cheating, they and their entire team will be disqualified from the competition.

We reserve the right to make changes to this policy as we see fit.

Emergencies

Each team is responsible for addressing their members' health concerns during the tournament. While volunteers will be on hand, they may not have the experience necessary to deal with the situation. In the event of an emergency, please call 911 or alert the appropriate authorities. In the case of a medical emergency, call Washington University’s Emergency Support Team at (314) 935-5555. If calling from a campus phone, dial 5-5555. To report any suspicious or criminal activity, please contact Washington University’s Police Department at the same number, (314) 935-5555.

WHAT TO BRING

The only things students need with them on tournament day are a pencil, eraser, approved calculator, and their chemistry knowledge!

Students will be allowed to use a non-programmable calculator for all rounds in the competition. Calculators will be checked to ensure they are not programmable. Examples of allowed calculators include TI-30, TI-34, etc. Prohibited calculators include, but are not limited to, TI-83, TI-84, and TI-nSpire.

Competitors will be given a reference sheet with all necessary equations and constants, a periodic table, and any needed scratch paper. No other resources, including notes, protractors, compasses, etc., will be permitted. No electronic devices, with the exception of approved calculators, are allowed during the exams.

WUCT 2025 Reference Sheet

HOW SHOULD I PREPARE FOR WUCT?

The goal of WUCT exams is to test your ability to apply your chemistry knowledge and problem-solving skills to challenging problems that focus on real-world and advanced applications of chemistry. Past exams can be found on the Archives pages. The best way to prepare for WUCT is to study our topics using a chemistry textbook, your class notes, or other online resources (some good resources are linked below). We write our own exams and receive editorial help from WashU professors and graduate students from the Department of Chemistry. While it can be helpful to study using other competitions’ test material and other online resources, you will find that our questions are very different and will challenge you in a novel way. Make sure to get a good night’s sleep beforehand, eat a good breakfast, and keep your mind clear so you can focus on the problems in front of you.


Good Web-based Resources to use in your preparation (find more by searching for "AP Chemistry reviews"):

SCHOLARSHIPS

We do offer financial assistance to participants demonstrating financial need. Please contact WUCT (wuct@su.wustl.edu) for this process.