4 Important Information Regarding Maths Olympiad for Karnataka Board Students

Originating at the regional or state level and finally ending in a World Championship, the Mathematical Olympiad is a problem solving competition usually held in between students from classes IX to XII. In India, the Mathematical Olympiad Programme is organized by the Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBCSE), on behalf of the National Board of Higher Mathematics (NBHM) of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). The Mathematical Olympiad is generally held in four stages such as Regional Mathematical Olympiad (RMO), Indian National Mathematical Olympiad (INMO), International Mathematical Olympiad Training Camp (IMOTC) and finally the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) which is a World Championship usually held in different countries annually. Karnataka is one of the 25 regions in which Regional Mathematical Olympiads are held in India. With the brightest candidates participating in the Regional Mathematical Olympiad in the Karnataka region, it is undoubtedly one of the most toughest exams for the participating students. Students appearing in Regional Mathematical Olympiad from Karnataka Board of Secondary Education should have a clear idea about the exam as it will help a great deal while preparing for the exam. Given below are 4 important information regarding Regional Mathematical Olympiad that students studying under KSEEB will find useful while appearing for the exam:

1. Eligibility:

To be eligible for Regional Mathematical Olympiad, Karnataka region, you must be a student of standard IX, X, XI and XII residing in Karnataka and having maths as one of the subjects in your school syllabus. With the discretion of the regional coordinator, exceptionally bright students from standard VIII can also apply.

2. Registration Procedure:

To register for Regional Mathematical Olympiad for the Karnataka region, you will have to follow certain steps that are mentioned below:
  • Firstly, you will have to keep in mind that to register for Regional Mathematical Olympiad, you will normally have to do it through the head of your institution
  • Each student is usually charged a registration fee of Rs. 100/-
  • If in any case your institution is not willing to register, you can apply directly by sending a demand draft in favour of Indian Statistical Institute payable at Bangalore to the regional coordinator along with all your details such as name, class, name of school, parent's name, postal address, phone number, center chosen, etc.
  • In case your institution is willing to register, then the Head of the institution is required to send the list of all the candidates to the regional coordinator along with their names, class and choice of centres. The registration fees is required to be sent as a single crossed demand draft in favour of Indian Statistical Institute payable at Bangalore

3. Syllabus:

The syllabus is usually set from pre-degree mathematics for both Regional, National as well as International Mathematical Olympiad. It covers areas which include geometry, integers, trigonometry, quadratic equations, coordinate geometry, linear equations, factorisation of polynomial, permutations & combinations, inequalities, elementary combinatorics, finite series and complex numbers, probability theory and number theory, elementary graph theory, etc. Calculus and statistics are not included in the syllabus. Although all the problems given in the Maths Olympiad involve high level of difficulty, still, you will face harder questions as you move from RMO to INMO to IMO.

4. Study Material:

Solving previous year's Mathematics Olympiad question papers can give you a good perspective about the type of questions that are generally set in the RMOs, INMOs and IMOs. Also, you can look for online study materials like the ones provided in Meritnation.com which are not only easy to prepare from, but are also given in quite systematic and sophisticated manner. Some of the books that you can use for the preparation of Maths Olympiad are given below:
  • Problem Primer for the Olympiads by C.R. Pranesachar, B.J. Venkatachala & C.S. Yogananda
  • An Excursion in Mathematics by M.R. Modak, S.A. Katre and V.V. Acharya
  • Challenge and Thrill of Pre-College Mathematics by V. Krishnamurthy, C.R. Pranesachar, K.N. Ranganathan and B.J. Venkatachala
  • Problem Solving Strategies by Arthur Engel

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