Outside of meetings, you are expected to study on your own and with your partner, and complete any extra work that a coach may choose to assign. Building events will require more time outside of event meetings to test or build extra devices. The best way to manage your time leading up to the competition is to not procrastinate; victory is a team effort and requires every member to pull his or her weight.
Events are assigned based on several factors, including:
1. Your preference as listed on your application
2. Your schedule in relation to the coach’s schedule
3. Competition day schedule (multiple events compete during each time slot)
4. Individual expertise in past experience in SciOly or certain classes
Partners are assigned with the above list in mind, as well as the dynamic of a team, such as how well students work together. (In events like Write it Do it, students that have similar thinking processes or good communication would likely be paired together if the other factors work out.)
Don’t be discouraged if you didn’t get the event you wanted. As listed above, there are many factors as to why you may not have gotten an event, such as a conflicting schedule on competition day. Instead, view this as an opportunity to learn something that may be out of your comfort zone; you may discover that you love the events you were placed in!
Expect to reserve a whole day to participate in the competition. We will have several meetings leading to the competition to answer questions and give more information, but in short, you will arrive at the designated location, participate in your events, and receive medals based on how well you performed. The top 20 for each event with receive either a medal or a trophy, and after all the events are called, trophies are awarded for how teams did as a whole. Obviously, medals and trophies are a testament to all the hard work and dedication you’ve put into Science Olympiad throughout the year, but at the end of the day, the things you’ve learned and taken away are much more important. Don’t be discouraged if the results aren’t exactly what you wanted; remember that you are competing against hundreds of other students, and will always have a chance to do better next year.
There are many ways to ensure your success on competition day, starting with not procrastinating. Show up to your weekly meetings; your coaches put in a lot of hard work preparing materials and activities for you! Also, meetup with your partners on your own time to study and divide up the work. Ultimately, your commitment and effort will be the deciding factors for your success on competition day.