Science Mathematics and Statistics

The UNSW School Mathematics Competition

UNSW School Mathematics Competition 2024

If your school has participated in the recent past, your school should receive a formal invitation letter from the School of Mathematics and Statistics, UNSW Sydney.

If your school has not participated in the recent past but would like to participate, then please email our competition team.

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2025 Competition Timeline and Key Dates
19 March 2025 Competition promotional materials are emailed and posted to participating schools on 19 March 2025.
7 May 2025 Student entries are finalised by early May. All schools who wish to participate need to enter their students before 7 May 2025, which is the competition closing date.
4 June 2025 The competition will take the form of a three-hour examination which will be held on Wednesday 4 June 2025 from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm.
12 September 2025      

Friday 12 September - Prize Giving Ceremony at UNSW, Sydney

General information 

The UNSW School Mathematics Competition has been run each year since 1962. It is open to participation by secondary school students in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. It is run in two divisions: Junior, up to and including Year 10, and Senior, Years 11 and 12.

The competition is designed to assess mathematical insight and ingenuity rather than efficiency in tackling routine examples. Students are encouraged to enter the competition if they are able to make some progress towards the solution of at least one of the past problems (see past competitions below).

The competition is a three-hour open-book exam. Entrants are allowed to take any books and materials, but not computers with Internet connections, into the examination.

Each year, about 700 students participate, 300 in each division, and prizes and/or certificates are awarded to about 60 in each division. 
2024 Junior Division 1st Prize winner Jayden Pan with Prof. Andrew Francis

Related scholarships and awards

The Beautiful Mind Scholarship - UGCA1392 ($5000 per year)

Awarded to two recipients each year who must have completed the HSC (or equivalent) in the year prior to the year of the award. Applicants will be assessed on academic merit, based on the UNSW Annual School Mathematics Competition results in the year prior to the awarding of this Scholarship.

Students who have been awarded a Distinction or above in the competition should apply directly to the Head of School, School of Mathematics and Statistics, stating which Bachelor of Science degree they would be pursuing at UNSW. Applicants must be commencing full-time study in Stage 1 of a Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Science (Advanced), Bachelor of Science (Advanced Mathematics), Bachelor of Science (International) degree in the Faculty of Science.

The Michael Dorrell Award in Mathematics - UGCA1200 ($5000 total)

The purpose of the Award is to encourage two exceptional students, identified as recipients of The Beautiful Mind Scholarship, to undertake study at UNSW. This scholarship is sponsored by Michael Dorrell, Senior Managing Director at Stonepeak Partners, New York. Michael has been investing in the infrastructure space for over a decade, and has one of the most successful investment track records in the North American infrastructure investment sector.

Past competition questions, solutions and winners