Frequently Asked Questions About MCM and ICM
This section answers your basic questions about the MCM and ICM contests.
If you have questions that are not addressed here, you can also consult our Contest Instructions page which give more in depth details on the contest.
Q How many teams can an institution sponsor?
Q How many teams can an advisor sponsor?
Q Can a student with an associate's degree participate?
Q Is the registration fee $100 per team or $100 per institution?
Q Can I use a school purchase order to pay the registration fee?
Q Can teams participate without paying the registration fee?
Q When do the team members need to be named?
Q Where and when do we find the problems?
Q How many copies of the solution paper must be submitted?
Q Can I bundle more than one paper in a package when sending them to you?
Q Where do I mail my team's solution packet?
Q How important is the summary sheet?
Q Can teams send a disk?
Q When must we mail the solution papers?
Q Who are the judges?
Q What are the judging criteria?
Q When will the contest results be available?
Q Whom do I contact if I have a question?
Q Who can act as an advisor?
Q What are the differences between the designations?
Q Can teams request that a paper be rejudged?
Q Can students from a different school be on the same team?
Q Can high school students participate in MCM or ICM?
Q Can a graduate student participate in MCM or ICM?
Q How many teams can an institution sponsor?
A The MCM contest allows Unlimited teams per institution, with Unlimited teams per department. The ICM contest allows Unlimited teams per institution.
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Q How many teams can an advisor sponsor?
A An advisor can sponsor two teams.
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Q Can a student with an associate's degree participate?
A Yes, if they are currently enrolled in a four-year institution. A Bachelor’s degree or above is not allowed.
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Q Is the registration fee $100 per team or $100 per institution?
A $100 per team.
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Q Can I use a school purchase order to pay the registration fee?
A No, registration fees are only payable online via Visa or MasterCard.
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Q Can teams participate without paying the registration fee?
A No.
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Q When do the team members need to be named?
A Team members can be named up to 2pm EST on Thursday February 18, 2010.
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Q Where and when do we find the problems?
A Problems will be posted at the MCM web site at http://www.comap.com/undergraduate/contest/mcm at 8pm EST on Thursday February 18, 2010. In case you can not access this site they will be also posted on a mirror site at http://www.comap-math.com/mcm.
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Q How many copies of the solution paper must be submitted?
A Two copies of the solution paper with the summary sheet attached must be submitted.
You are now required to include an electronic copy of your team’s solution papers. Please enclose a CD-ROM with a PDF or Word file of your paper. DO NOT include programs or software on these disks as they will not be used in the judging process.
If you have more than one team it is recommended that you add all your teams to a single CD-ROM and label it with contest, year, and team control numbers.
Example: Contest Year Control Numbers
2009 MCM/ICM 10004, 10005
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Q Can I bundle more than one paper in a package when sending them to you?
A It is recommended to bundle all your papers in a single package when mailing to COMAP.
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Q Where do I mail my team's solution packet?
A After you have prepared your team's solution packet, mail it to
MCM/ICM Coordinator
COMAP, Inc.
175 Middlesex Turnpike., Suite 3B
Bedford, MA 01730
USA
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Q How important is the summary sheet?
A The summary sheet is very important. It is unlikely the judges will read much beyond a poorly constructed summary.
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Q Can teams send a disk?
A You are now required to include an electronic copy of your team’s solution papers. Please enclose a CD-ROM with a PDF or Word file of your paper. DO NOT include programs or software on these disks as they will not be used in the judging process.
If you have more than one team it is recommended that you add all your teams to a single CD-ROM and label it with contest, year, and team control numbers.
Example: Contest Year Control Numbers
2009 MCM/ICM 10004, 10005
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Q When must we mail the solution papers?
A Papers should be mailed in time to arrive at COMAP no later than 5 pm on Friday March 5, 2010. COMAP cannot reply to queries as to the status a paper's arrival. We recommend that papers be sent via a carrier that allows packages to be tracked. Advisors can also login to the MCM web site to verify that COMAP has received their team's paper.
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Q Who are the judges?
A The judges are mathematicians, math educators, and others who are in fields directly related to mathematics.
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Q What are the judging criteria?
A Please look at the Contest website under Teams prepare solutions. A list of guidelines details what the judges are looking for.
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Q When will the contest results be available?
A They will be available April 15, 2010 and will be posted on the website.
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Q Whom do I contact if I have a question?
A Please send your questions to mcm@comap.com.
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Q Who can act as an advisor?
A Any faculty member at the institution can be an advisor. The advisor must
be willing to enforce the rules and work with both the institution's
administration and the contest administration to insure fairness and proper
academic integrity and development. At no time can a student act as the team advisor.
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Q What are the differences between the designations?
A Unsuccessful Participant - The team's report did not adequately respond to the requirements of the contest problem and or the team was found to be in violation of the contest rules.
Successful Participant - The report responded to the requirements of the
contest problem and communicated those results to the judges.
Honorable Mention - The team's report contained elements that were judged
to contain good progress in modeling and problem solving.
Meritorious - The team's report was judged to be excellent in many aspects
of modeling and problem solving. The report showed elements of modeling,
problem solving, and communication that are exemplary for the scope of the
contest.
Outstanding Winner - The team's report was judged to be at the highest
level in terms of modeling, solving the contest problem, and communicating
the solution. These reports are generally published and used as examples of
outstanding student work.
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Q Can teams request that a paper be rejudged?
A Papers can not be rejudged for any reason but you do have the option to request a Judges Commentary written specifically about your team’s paper.
You must request this during the sign up process and there is an additional $100 fee for this service.
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Q Can students from a different school be on the same team?
A No, students from different schools may not compete on the same team. Students must all be enrolled at the same school at the time of the contest.
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Q Can high school students participate in MCM or ICM?
A Yes, the contest is open to all high school students.
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Q Can a graduate student participate in MCM or ICM?
A No, A Bachelor’s degree or above is not allowed.
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