CHALLENGES BY CODEMENTUM - EXAM CONDITIONS

1. ELIGIBILITY & PARTICIPATION

• This category is open to students in grades 1 to 12.
• Students participate in 4 grade groups and results are evaluated and ranked among participants within each grade group:
  -> Code Starters (Grades 1-3)
  -> Code Pioneers (Grades 4-6)
  -> Code Explorers (Grades 7-9)
  -> Code Masters (Grades 10-12)    
  

2. PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES & EXAM FORMAT

• Supported languages: Block Coding, Python and JavaScript.
• The exam in this category involves completing 30 coding challenges within 90 minutes.
• The challenges in the exam are similar to, those available in the Codementum Studio Training Portal.   
  

3. COMPETITION FORMAT AND ROUNDS

• This category consists of 4 online and 1 onsite round.
  -> Online Qualification Round 1
  -> Online Qualification Round 2
  -> Online Qualification Round 3
  -> Online Final Round (Free)
  -> Grand Final – Europe (Lisbon) or USA (New York)
• The 3 online Qualification Rounds are offered on alternative dates. Participants are not required to take all three rounds and may choose the Qualification Round(s) that best suit their schedules.
• Participants are recommended to participate in an additional Qualification Round exam to gain more experience and improve their performance. 
  

4. FEES & BENEFITS

• The participation fee is 40 €. Students may optionally participate in an additional Qualification Exam for 15 € to gain further practice and better prepare for the Final Round.
• The participation fee includes Codementum Premium membership, valid until 1 August 2027, provided by the Coding Olympiad.
• Through this Premium membership, students can access the Codementum training platform to practice and prepare for the competition.   
  

5. COMPETITION STRUCTURE

• Participants will complete 30 coding challenges designed to assess their programming skills, logical thinking and problem-solving abilities.
• Participants will write and submit their solutions through the Codementum Exam Platform.
• Participants will have 90 minutes to complete and submit their solutions. During this period, participants may test, edit and resubmit their solutions.
• Participants should carefully manage their time. Once they have completed the exam, they must click the “SUBMIT” button to officially submit their results and end the exam. The submission time will be recorded and will be considered in the event of a tie.
• Participants may skip a challenge and return to it later at any time during the exam.
• Once the 90-minute exam period ends, no further changes or submissions will be permitted.
  
• Students aiming for a top 10 ranking must keep both cameras and screen sharing active throughout the exam, ensuring that camera angles and visibility meet the specified requirements. Students with the highest exam scores who fully meet these security requirements may receive bonus points, which will be used solely to determine the final top 10 rankings. If the camera connection is interrupted or the participant is disconnected, the participant should continue answering the questions. Such issues will not result in any point deductions or changes to their original exam scores.
• 3 independent Qualification Exams are held on different dates.
• All participants take part in at least one Qualification Exam and one Final Exam.
• The total score is calculated using 30% of the Qualification Exam score and 70% of the Final Exam score.
• The ranking is determined based on the total score and the time spent on the Final Exam.
• For students who participate in multiple Qualification Exams, only the highest score will be considered.
• There is no elimination in the Qualification Exams. Students who miss the exam or score zero may still proceed to the Final Exam, with the Qualification Exam score counted as zero. 

6. EVALUATION & RANKING

• The exams in each round consist of 30 coding challenges. Each challenge can be completed with 1 to 3 stars, depending on the level of correctness and requirements met by the submitted code.
• Stars are awarded based entirely on the participant’s performance and understanding of the relevant programming concepts. Each challenge can earn up to three stars, based on the following criteria:
  

1. Challenge Completion – 1 Star
   A participant earns 1 star by successfully completing the challenge, regardless of the method used to solve it.
2. Concept Application – 1 Star
   An additional 1 star is awarded when the participant solves the challenge using the programming concept or technique associated with that challenge. For example, if a challenge focuses on While Loops, the participant earns this star by using a while loop in the solution.
3. Optimal Solution – 1 Star
   The final 1 star is awarded when the participant achieves the shortest solution for the challenge. Since a challenge may have multiple valid solutions, the system compares submitted solutions with the shortest solution available in the system.

• A participant who meets all three criteria earns the maximum of 3 stars for that challenge.
• Each star counts as 1 point. Therefore, the maximum possible score is 90 points. A participant who completes all 30 challenges with 3 stars each will receive the maximum score of 90 points.
• The competition is structured to encourage all students, especially those new to coding, to continue participating, improving their skills and developing a strong competitive spirit.
• The Final Round is the decisive stage of the competition, where students compete for the highest rankings and awards.
• The final evaluation and ranking in the Final Round will be based on the following criteria, in order of priority:
  1. Number of Challenges Successfully Completed
  2. Total Stars Earned
  3. Completion Time 
  

7. MEDALS, CERTIFICATES & DISCOUNT AWARDS

• The top 3 participants in each grade group, based on their results in the Final Round, will receive:
  - A physical Gold Medal (Gold 1, Gold 2 or Gold 3) and a Certificate of Achievement delivered by post
• 26-30 Challenges Completed: Digital Gold Medal Certificate & Certificate of Achievement
• 20-25 Challenges Completed: Digital Silver Medal Certificate & Certificate of Achievement
• 14-19 Challenges Completed: Digital Bronze Medal Certificate & Certificate of Achievement
• 7-13 Challenges Completed: Digital Honorable Mention Medal Certificate & Certificate of Achievement
• 0-6 Challenges Completed: Digital Participation Certificate 
  

8. GRAND FINAL QUALIFICATION AND DISCOUNT AWARDS

To encourage student motivation, promote continuous learning, and inspire the development of coding skills, the competition is designed to provide opportunities for students at all experience levels, especially beginners. Through access to a long-term coding learning and training platform, we aim to encourage students to make the most effective and productive use of the available educational resources, continuously improve their skills, and develop confidence, creativity, problem-solving abilities, and a positive competitive spirit. Our goal is to motivate students to remain actively engaged in learning, practicing, and challenging themselves throughout their coding journey.

• Grand Final Qualification: Students in grades 3–11 who participate in at least one Qualification Round automatically qualify for participation in the Orlando Grand Final (USA, February), Lisbon Grand Final (Portugal, June) and New York Grand Final (USA, July), subject to the applicable Grand Final participation requirements and available places.
• Orlando Grand Final Discount Award: The top 3 participants in each grade group in the 2nd Qualification Round will receive discounts on their participation in the Orlando Grand Final:
  → 1st place: 30% discount
  → 2nd place: 20% discount
  → 3rd place: 10% discount
• Lisbon & New York Grand Final Discount Award: The top 3 participants in each grade group, based on the results of the Final Round, will receive discounts on participation in one Grand Final of their choice: Lisbon or New York.
  → 1st place: 75% discount
  → 2nd place: 50% discount
  → 3rd place: 25% discount