CURRENT OPPORTUNITIES
AMO 2026
Format
Registration Deadline (NZ Time)
Eligible Years
Remote online
30 October 2026 at 11:00:00 pm
NZ Years 3-13
Nationwide
Competition Date (NZ Time)
19:00-20:30, Sun 8 Nov 2026
Location
NZ Nationwide
Competition Gallery
Course Information
Optional preparation courses or resources for this round (if available)
Submission and Confirmation
Please check your email address carefully before submitting the registration form.
Once you submit the form, you will receive a confirmation email automatically.
All other important communications (including the Exam Instructions, Results and Certificates, etc) will be sent to the email address you submitted to us. Please check your email inbox and junk mail / spam folder regularly!
What Happens Next?
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Registration Received
We will send you a confirmation email
We may review your registration if required
Eligibility Review
You will receive the Exam Instructions closer to the date
Exam Instructions
Participate and do your best!
Competition Day
Competition Overview
American Mathematics Olympiad (AMO)
The American Mathematics Olympiad (AMO) is an international mathematics competition jointly developed by Southern Illinois University and the Singapore International Mastery Contests Center (SIMCC) to create wider STEM and STEAM learning opportunities for students.
AMO is designed to build enthusiasm for mathematics while helping students develop important mathematical concepts, flexible problem-solving strategies and confidence in tackling unfamiliar challenges. Rather than focusing only on routine calculation, the competition encourages students to recognise patterns, apply logical reasoning, explore multiple methods and solve non-routine mathematical problems.
The competition is open internationally to students from Grades 2–12 and uses age-appropriate papers across different grade levels. AMO questions are informed by the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics and extended specifically for mathematical enrichment and international competition.
A distinctive feature of AMO is that students receive both competition recognition and an individual performance report showing their strengths across different mathematical topics and comparing their performance with students in the same grade internationally.
AMO gives students an opportunity to:
develop enthusiasm and confidence in mathematics;
strengthen flexible mathematical problem solving;
practise applying mathematical concepts in unfamiliar situations;
improve logical reasoning and pattern recognition;
explore non-routine problems beyond standard classroom exercises;
learn different strategies for solving the same problem;
benchmark performance internationally against students in the same grade;
receive a detailed performance and statistical report;
gain formal recognition through awards, certificates and medals; and
potentially qualify for further SIMCC mathematics competitions and programmes.
The competition is designed not only to identify strong students, but also to help participants experience the satisfaction and challenge of solving difficult mathematical problems.
AMO is suitable for students who:
enjoy mathematics and mathematical puzzles;
want more challenge than routine school exercises;
perform strongly in school mathematics;
enjoy logical and non-routine problems;
are comfortable trying more than one approach;
want to develop stronger problem-solving strategies;
are interested in future mathematics competitions;
would benefit from an international benchmark of their performance; or
want to build a stronger foundation for higher-level mathematical enrichment.
Students do not need to be experienced Olympiad competitors. Papers are provided across multiple grade levels, allowing younger students to begin with age-appropriate problem solving while older students encounter progressively more advanced algebra, geometry, probability and trigonometry.
Preparation for AMO should focus on mathematical understanding, flexible strategy and non-routine problem solving rather than memorising isolated tricks.
Students should:
review the official syllabus for their grade level;
practise official AMO sample questions;
strengthen arithmetic accuracy and mental calculation;
revise geometry and mensuration;
practise word problems;
work on number patterns and divisibility;
develop spatial visualisation skills;
practise logic problems and cryptarithms;
become comfortable using diagrams, tables and lists;
try more than one solution method where possible;
practise eliminating incorrect options in multiple-choice questions;
work carefully without a calculator;
attempt timed problem sets; and
review not only incorrect answers, but also whether a more efficient solution was available.
The official sample solutions frequently demonstrate multiple methods for the same problem, such as logical reasoning, tables, algebraic approaches or systematic listing. This reflects an important part of AMO preparation: students should learn that a challenging problem may have several valid routes to the answer.
Students should also practise presenting final answers carefully, particularly in the open-ended sections, where the sample materials frequently use three-digit answer formatting such as
036,018and008.AMO is an individual mathematics competition.
Each grade-level paper contains:
25 questions
90 minutes
100 marks in total
no penalty for incorrect answers
no calculators permitted
The paper is divided into three sections:
Section A
15 multiple-choice questions
3 marks each
45 marks total
Section B
5 questions
5 marks each
25 marks total
Section C
5 open-ended questions
6 marks each
30 marks total
The increasing mark values reflect the progressively greater challenge of the later sections.
AMO provides the following award categories:
Perfect Score
Gold Award
Silver Award
Bronze Award
Honorable Mention
Certificate of Participation
For SIMCC National Competitions, the current award distribution is:
Gold Award — Top 8%
Silver Award — Next 12%
Bronze Award — Next 20%
Honorable Mention — Next 10%
Participation — Remaining participants
Students achieving Gold, Silver and Bronze receive certificates and medals. Perfect scorers receive a certificate and personalised medal, while Honorable Mention and Participation recipients receive e-certificates.
AMO awards also contribute SIMCC Individual Scholarship Points (ISPs):
Perfect Score — 3 ISPs
Gold — 2 ISPs
Silver — 1 ISP
Bronze — 0.5 ISP
Honorable Mention — 0.25 ISP
Each participant also receives access to a performance and statistical report showing topic-level performance, strengths and areas for improvement, together with international comparison data for students in the same grade.
AMO forms part of the wider SIMCC mathematics competition pathway.
Strong performers may become eligible for further international mathematics opportunities, including:
Singapore International Math Olympiad Challenge (SIMOC)
Singapore Math Global Finals (SMGF)
International Junior Math Olympiad (IJMO)
For the current competition cycle, the AMO information pack states that:
the top 40% of AMO winners may be invited to SIMOC;
the top 20% of winners may be invited to IJMO; and
qualifying AMO performers may also receive invitations to SMGF.
These progression criteria are cycle-specific and may change, so students should always check the current qualification rules for each subsequent competition.
AMO is also included within the wider SIMCC scholarship and STEAM competition framework, meaning competition results may contribute toward Individual Scholarship Points and related recognition programmes.
Preparation for AMO should focus on mathematical understanding, flexible strategy and non-routine problem solving rather than memorising isolated tricks.
Students should:
review the official syllabus for their grade level;
practise official AMO sample questions;
strengthen arithmetic accuracy and mental calculation;
revise geometry and mensuration;
practise word problems;
work on number patterns and divisibility;
develop spatial visualisation skills;
practise logic problems and cryptarithms;
become comfortable using diagrams, tables and lists;
try more than one solution method where possible;
practise eliminating incorrect options in multiple-choice questions;
work carefully without a calculator;
attempt timed problem sets; and
review not only incorrect answers, but also whether a more efficient solution was available.
The official sample solutions frequently demonstrate multiple methods for the same problem, such as logical reasoning, tables, algebraic approaches or systematic listing. This reflects an important part of AMO preparation: students should learn that a challenging problem may have several valid routes to the answer.
Students should also practise presenting final answers carefully, particularly in the open-ended sections, where the sample materials frequently use three-digit answer formatting such as
036,018and008.
Resources & Downloads
Access all available competition information, preparation materials, past papers and official documents.