International Philosophy Olympiad
| Conducted by | International Philosophy Olympiad (IPO) International Committee, under the auspices of FISP and with UNESCO recognition; Secretariat at the Department of Philosophy, Sofia University |
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| Exam type | Philosophy essay contest: each pupil writes one essay, in 4 hours, on one of four topics, up to 2,500 words.Source: Statute - Regulations concerning the organization of the International Philosophy Olympiad, art. 4(b) Writing the Essays |
| Field | Philosophy |
| Who can apply | Open to pupils of any country who are enrolled in high school (or graduated shortly before the olympiad), even if already at university. Entry is only through national delegations, whose pupils are chosen in a national competition.Source: Statute - Regulations concerning the organization of the International Philosophy Olympiad, art. 2 Organization; also 'Students eligibility' on ipo-participate |
| Age / class | Maximum age of a pupil is 20 by the end of the calendar year in which the IPO takes place.Source: Statute - Regulations concerning the organization of the International Philosophy Olympiad, art. 2 Organization |
| How often | Organized every year by one of the participating countries.Source: Statute - Regulations concerning the organization of the International Philosophy Olympiad, art. 2 Organization, first sentence |
| Stages | National competition selects pupils; at the IPO essays are anonymised and graded in three stages: first stage by four assessors, second stage by two more, third stage the Medals Committee decides the awards.Source: Statute - Regulations concerning the organization of the International Philosophy Olympiad, art. 2 and art. 4(c) Grading the essays, points III to V |
| How to apply | The IPO accepts only national delegations, not individual students, teams or schools. Each country sends one or two pupils (the host country up to ten), with up to two accompanying philosophy teachers who act as evaluators. A pupil should contact their national delegation leader.Source: How to participate? - International Philosophy Olympiad, 'IPO only accepts national delegations' and 'HOW TO PARTICIPATE?' |
| Result / certificate | Awards are gold, silver and bronze medals and honorable mention; the Medals Committee decides the distribution and may grant more than one medal in each category.Source: Statute - Regulations concerning the organization of the International Philosophy Olympiad, art. 5 Awards |
| Talent category | Olympiads |
| Pathway | National philosophy essay competition > IPO (national delegation of one or two pupils) |
| Recognition | Official / statutory body |
| Level | International |
| Achievement | Gold, silver and bronze medals and honorable mention. |
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