From IYPT

How can I participate?

If you are a student or a teacher in one of the countries listed here, you are lucky: there is someone in your country who organizes a local competition that selects a national team. Join, do well and become part of the national team for the IYPT!

If your country is not on that list, that means that the IYPT has no active member organization in your country. Some countries have participated in the past but later withdrew, and some countries have never participated in the IYPT.

To participate with a team from such a country, you will need to fulfill several important conditions:

  • organize a team of 5 students;
  • find someone experienced with the IYPT who will come together with your team to the IYPT as an "endorser" and act as a team leader.
  • Set up or find an organization that will apply to become the IYPT Member Organization (IMO), responsible for the selection of the countries national team.

Our rule says that a new team is brought by someone who has already been at the IYPT (as a juror, team leader, team member or observer). This endorser will be coaching the team together with a second team leader, and must guarantee to us that the team is reasonably well prepared. We expect that the endorser organizes a fair national selection and applies to become the IYPT Member Organization (IMO) as early as possible. The endorser should contact the IYPT organizers no later than in December prior to the IYPT, check the conditions and deadlines for pre-registration, and then pre-register the team before a deadline. Note that the deadline is many months prior to the competition, and more likely than not will be in January.

Usually, a country first sends an observer for an IYPT event and only the next year the observer comes with a team and introduces the IYPT in their country. The other option is to cooperate with someone experienced with IYPT from a different country (e.g. a former participant or leader who now studies or works abroad).

Our regulations state that "All members of the team must either be citizens of the country they represent, or be enrolled as students in a school of the country they represent". Therefore if a student is enrolled in a school in country A and a citizen of country B, he or she has the option to participate as a member of either nation. There is no limit for citizenship or enrollment of team leaders.

Please understand that assembling a team, finding an endorser, preparing for the IYPT and solving the problems, and then securing the travel budget will be many months of hard work. We will be happy to provide advice in this respect and will be happy to see a new team. If you would like to have assistance or advice in your plan to form a new IYPT team, please contact us.