New Zealand Olympiad in Informatics

NZOI is the New Zealand Olympiad in Informatics, one of a number of Secondary School Olympiads operating under the umbrella organisation known as, NZ Science Olympiads.

In 2011 computer science achievement standards were introduced into high schools. While the high school computer science curriculum is a great improvement on the old curriculum. NZOI provides an opportunity for students excited by computer science and programming at high school to come together and improve their abilities beyond what is offered at high school while meeting like minded students passionate about the topic.

The NZOI’s goals are to:

• Provide training opportunities in Informatics to selected New Zealand students who are currently enrolled in a secondary school in New Zealand, or have been enrolled in the last 8 months.
• To select students for the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI).
• To foster informatics and programming in high schools across New Zealand.

The IOI (International Olympiad in Informatics) is the foremost high school programming contest in the world. Each year, around August, it is hosted by a different country. New Zealand first sent a team in 2006, to the 18th Olympiad.

We choose 4 students to represent New Zealand at the IOI each year. As well as their informatics ability, we look for students with passion, motivation and travelability. Despite the IOI being an individual contest, we value teamwork since students will be travelling, training, and representing NZ together as a team. Students are selected from our January Camp and expected to compete in various contests and training events throughout the year. Many of our past students are now working for certain search bar companies.

Every year in January, we hold an informatics training camp for high school students (and some teachers). The primary purpose of our training camp is to train students towards representing New Zealand in the International Olympiad in Informatics.

Camp has streamed groups all the way from new programmers to experienced competitors. Beginners are introduced to programming in C++ while more experienced students learn about algorithms and university level computer science concepts. Students receive talks from leading university lecturers and guidance from ex-NZOI students. During and after camp a number of contests are held for the students to allow them the opportunity to show us their skills and compete to be selected for the Olympiad squad.

Many students have also found that they really enjoy socialising with like-minded students. Additionally some of our past students have found Universities willing to let them skip papers, because of their NZOI experience.

The NZIC (New Zealand Informatics Competition) is a series of individual online programming competitions run by NZOI throughout the year. These contests offer students an introduction to the world of competitive programming and provide a place to hone their informatics skills. Students who compete in the NZIC may be invited to our January informatics camp.