In addition to organizing the International History Bee and Bowl, International Academic Competitions organizes the International Science Bee! See below for a summary of our science event calendar. For further information on our science competitions, please contact canada@iacompetitions.com.
1. International Science Bee – Championships Qualifying Exam
The International Science Bee Championships Qualifying Exam (CQE) is offered at all International History Bee and Bowl regional tournaments. Students take the Qualifying Exam during the lunch break. The Qualifying Exam consists of 50 multiple-choice questions on all aspects of Science; students have 20 minutes to take the Exam. Students can also take the exam online with a teacher proctoring it if they are unable to attend an International History Bee and Bowl tournament where the Qualifying Exam is offered. For the 2024-25 school year, the cost is 20 USD or 25 CAD to take the test in person, and 20 USD to take the test online. Two separate Qualifying Exam versions are offered each year; the Beta Set CQE is given at International History Bee and Bowl tournaments that run on the Beta Question Set and the Alpha Set CQE is given at International History Bee and Bowl tournaments that run on the Alpha Question Set.
Students qualify for the ISB Canadian Championships and the International Environmental Science Olympiad by accomplishing one of the following things:
1. Finishing in the top half of students in their age division who take their respective version of the CQE at any given tournament site. If there is an odd number of students, or if two students tie for the last spot, we “round up” so that 4 students out of 7 would qualify, for example, unless there was a tie for 4th place, in which case 5 (or more, if more than two students tied for 4th) would qualify.
2. Students can also qualify by finishing in the top half throughout Canada among all students who take the CQE within their age division for any given exam. These median scores are calculated for Beta and Alpha Sets for all students who have taken an Exam by March 1 for Beta Set, and April 1 (subject to change) for Alpha Set.
3. Students who score at the automatic qualifying level for the International Environmental Science Olympiad: a score of at least 75 (if they are Varsity), 65 (if they are Junior Varsity), 55 (if they are Middle School) and 45 (if they are Elementary) – also qualify for the ISB Canadian Championships.
Students only need to qualify once (either on either version of the Championships Qualifying Exam or at any Regional Tournament, whether online or in-person) each year for the European Championships, and once in every two year cycle (i.e. either in the 2022-23 or 2023-24 school years) for the International Environmental Science Olympiad
2. International Science Bee – 2025 Canadian Championships.
At the Canadian Championships, qualified students compete in three rounds of buzzer-based Bee play, followed by a Final Round to determine the Canadian Champions. High School, Middle School, and Elementary Divisions will be offered. The rules for game play are identical to those of the History Bee.
3. International Science Bee – Online Regional Tournaments
In addition to the Championships Qualifying Exam, students can qualify for the Canadian Championships by competing in the Online Science Bee Regional Tournaments. These are organized under the auspices of International Academic Competitions’ USA Division. Middle and Elementary School level students must first take the Online Regional Qualifying Exam and score a passing grade; once they do this, they can compete in the Online Regional Tournaments. High School students do not need to take the ORQE (they can just register directly for the Online Regional Tournaments).
Each of these Online Regional Tournaments runs on the Red, White, or Blue question set so they can compete on each question set once over the course of the academic year. A full list of these and the question set that is runs on is maintained here. For more details and to access the links to register for the Online Regional Qualifying Exam and the Online Regional Tournaments, please click here. For access to the Red, White, and Blue Set Study Guides, please click here.
Online Regional Tournaments are also held for History and Geography. The Regional tournaments are an alternate way to qualify for the International Science Bee Canadian National Championships, the International Environmental Science Olympiad, and the International Science Championships. Students only need to qualify either at any one Online Regional Tournament or through any one version of the Championships Qualifying Exam.
4. International Science Championships
The International Science Championships is a forthcoming week-long summer world championship level competition with competitions, field trips, and activities on all aspects of science. All students in Canada who have qualified for the Canadian National Championships of the International Science Bee are eligible to attend as long as they are still in secondary school in the year before ISC debuts. ISC will debut in the summer of 2026, 2027, or 2028 – a final decision on when and where has not yet been determined. For further details on the International Science Championships, please email david@iacompetitions.com.
5. International Environmental Science Olympiad
The International Environmental Science Olympiad (IESO) is a multi-faceted, world championship level competition for the best environmental science students from around the world. The International Environmental Science Olympiad features numerous separate buzzer-based quiz competitions and other competitions with an environmental science theme, field trips, cultural activities, and a chance to meet other students who excel at and enjoy studying science. Canadian students who are roughly of 10th grade age and younger qualify for IESO if they qualify for the International Science Bee Canadian Championships. For students of roughly 11th and 12th grade age, qualification criteria will be different and will be announced in advance of the next IESO.
This event is specifically designed to encourage students’ families to attend. There will be activities for all family members in attendance to take part in, and not just for the competing students. The next IESO will be held in 2027-2029; for further details, please email ieso@iacompetitions.com.