Science Olympiad Foundation
The Science Olympiad Foundation (SOF) is an educational foundation and a nonprofit organisation, established in 1996, based in New Delhi, India which promotes science, mathematics, general knowledge, introductory computer education and English language skills among school children in India through various Olympiad examinations. It helps students in their studies by providing a higher level of education through their books, sample papers and olympiads.
 The logo of the organization | |
| Formation | 1996 |
|---|---|
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
Official language | English |
Secretary General | Mahabir Singh (Director) |
| Affiliations | CBSE, British Council, Institute of Company Secretaries of India, Techfest, TCS Star Sports (formerly) |
| Website | sofworld |
Olympiads
SOF organizes six Olympiads each year, namely IEO, NSO, NCO, ICO, IGKO and IMO. During the 2016–2018 academic year, 45000 schools from more than 1400 cities registered, and millions of students appeared for the six Olympiad exam. Olympiads were conducted across 30 countries.
Current
About 5 lakh (500,000) students take part in each of the following olympiads:
- International General Knowledge Olympiad (IGKO) is a single level exam. Students from classes I-X may participate in the examination. This olympiad was introduced in the 2017-2018 academic session.
- International English Olympiad (IEO) used to be a single level exam each year, but since 2017-2018 it is conducted on two levels. Students from class I-XII can participate in this olympiad. It is conducted in partnership with the British Council.
- National Science Olympiad (NSO) is conducted on two levels each year. It was the first olympiad conducted by SOF. It has been conducted since 1996. Students from class I-XII may participate in the examination. It is conducted in partnership with Techfest.
- International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO) is conducted on two levels each year. Students from class I-XII may participate in the examination.
- International Commerce Olympiad (ICO) is a single level exam. Students from classes XI and XII may participate in the examination. It is conducted in partnership with ICSI.
- National Cyber Olympiad (NCO) is a single level exam. It was the second olympiad conducted by SOF. It has been conducted since 2000. Students from class I-XII may participate in the examination. It is conducted in partnership with TCS iON, a branch of TCS.
Former
- National Cyber Olympiad Level-2 (NCO) was formerly a two-level exam, but it has been abandoned since 2017-18.
- International Sports Knowledge Olympiad (ISKO) was conducted only once, during the 2016-2017 session. It was a single level exam conducted in partnership with Star Sports in which students of classes I-X could participate.
Eligibility and pattern
Students from class I to XII can participate. There is a different exam paper for each class. The question paper consists of 35 multiple choice questions of 40 marks for classes I to IV, and 50 multiple choice questions for classes V to XII of 60 marks, to be answered in one hour. Five questions that are part of the 'Achievers' section' carry three marks each whereas the remaining questions carry one mark each. Students are required to mark their answers on an OMR sheet. Results are announced for every student and it includes the student's international rank, zonal rank and school rank. SOF also generates a performance report for all participating schools, as well as awards teachers and principals whose pupils excelled in the exam.[1]