High School Mathematical Contest in Modeling (HiMCM)
High School Mathematical Contest in Modeling (HiMCM) provides an opportunity for students to work in team and solve real-world problems using mathematical modeling, problem-solving, and technical writing skills.
Interested in the competition?
Competition Overview
Students in high school grades or below
Eligibility
$100
Entry fee
2:00 pm EST Wednesday, November 5, 2025
Registration deadline
On or before February, 2026
Contest results
Competition Details
1. Eligibility
- Team Composition: Up to 4 high school (or below) students from the same school.
- Eligibility: Students in high school grades or below
- Each team must have a faculty advisor from their school. The advisor must complete registration for each team. Please note that there is no limit to the number of teams a school can register or the number of teams an advisor can advise.
2. Contest dates and time
- Registration Deadline: 2:00 pm EST Wednesday, November 5, 2025
- Contest Window Opens: 3:01 pm EST Wednesday, November 5, 2025
- Contest Window Closes: 8:00 pm EST Tuesday, November 18, 2025
- Solution Report Deadline: 9:00 pm EST Tuesday, November 18, 2025
- Receipt of Solution: 8:00 pm EST Wednesday, November 19, 2025
- Contest Results: The results will be posted on or before February 2026
3. Previous Problems
- Roller Coasters: Develop an Objective Ranking System
- Drone Clusters as Sky Light Displays: Design an Aerial Drone Light Show
- Shop and Ship: Optimal Placement of Warehouses for 1-Day Ground Shipping
- Swim, Bike, and Run: Minimize Congestion and Road Closures for a Triathlon
- Art Gallery Security: Determine Most Secure Configuration for an Art Exhibit
4. Prizes and Recognition
Level of Awards: Unsuccessful, Successful Participant, Honorable Mention, Meritorious, Finalist, Outstanding
Recognition:
- All teams submitting a solution will receive a PDF certificate of participation.
- Meritorious or higher (HiMCM) and Finalist or higher (MidMCM) USA teams qualify for the International Mathematical Modeling Challenge (IM2C), held from March to April 2026.
- Select solution papers may be published in COMAP’s Consortium newsletter and featured in local/national media.
Special Awards:
The NCTM Award, supported by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, is given to two Outstanding HiMCM teams and one Outstanding MidMCM team. Winners will be announced on COMAP and NCTM websites.
Contest instruction
1. During the Contest – Choosing and Solving the Problem
The HiMCM contest problems will be available at 3:01 PM EST on Wednesday, November 5, 2025. Solutions are judged on varying levels of success, so partial solutions are acceptable. Judges prioritize the team’s thought process, problem analysis, modeling strategies, and mathematical methods. Solutions should be articulate, concise, and well-organized, with key points clearly presented. Teams should restate the problem if needed, define variables, assumptions, and hypotheses, and provide a thorough problem analysis that justifies their chosen model. They should detail the model design, discuss its strengths and weaknesses, suggest testing methods, and summarize key computations within the main text, placing longer calculations in appendices. Conclusions should be clear, with results explicitly reported and all resources thoroughly documented.
2. During the Contest – Preparing a Solution Document
Teams must submit their entire solution as a single Adobe PDF file, including written text, figures, charts, and supporting materials. The paper must be typed in English with a readable font (minimum 12-point size). All work must be finalized, and no changes can be made after 8:00 PM EST on Tuesday, November 18, 2025.
3. After the Contest – Submitting a Solution Document
All teams must end their work by 8:00 p.m. EST on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, and submit their solution as a PDF file to COMAP by 9:00 p.m. EST the same day.
The PDF file must:
- Be named using your team’s control number (e.g., 1234.pdf).
- Be under 20MB in size.
- Begin with the Summary Sheet (Page 1), followed by the solution, references, and appendices.
- NOT include names of students, advisors, or institutions on any page.
- NOT include programs, software, databases, or other files, as these will not be considered in judging.
4. Related Resources
