2025 Clemson Calculus Challenge
Invitation
The School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences at Clemson University invites you to bring a group of your calculus students to take part in the 21st annual Clemson Calculus Challenge (CCC) on Friday, April 11, 2025. The CCC is a competition for high school students that tests students’ knowledge of calculus topics. These topics can be at least roughly approximated by a first semester university calculus course or the Advanced Placement Calculus AB exam (roughly, the material found in an early transcendentals book preceding sequences and series), but a more explicit syllabus can be found here.
Competition
The CCC consists of two components: an individual exam and a team competition. During the morning session, each participant has ninety minutes to complete a 40-question multiple choice exam. After a lunch break, the CCC continues with the team competition. The afternoon session consists of six 10-minute rounds of open-response questions. Read more about our rules and regulations.
This year schools will have the option to compete in person, virtually or both. Because the remote option only includes the individual competition, schools participating entirely remotely will be ineligible for the team and school competitions. If circumstances change and we are unable to hold the event in person, this year's CCC will revert to entirely virtual.
The exam will be begin at 10:00 AM EDT concurrently for all participants (in person and remote). A brief welcome will occur at 9:45 AM.
Each high school competing in person can enter up to 12 students and up to 3 teams. A school cannot register with less than 3 students as teams for the afternoon must consist of 3 or 4 students (which means schools may not register exactly 5 students). Participating students must be registered online by March 14, 2025. Please note that the scoring parameters have changed for the school competition since 2022 (Read about the changes).
Schools competing remotely can enter as many participants as desired. The students will compete in the individual competition only.
Calculator usage is not allowed on any part of the exam.
Should circumstances cause us to revert to fully remote there will be no team competition, only individual and school competitions. In that case, school scores will be calculated as the sum of the top three individual scores for a school.
Awards
If the funds are available, we will award $500 scholarships to attend Clemson University to some of the winners in the individual competition. The number of scholarships will be determined by available funds. Recipients must enroll as full-time students at Clemson University in the fall of 2025 in order to receive the scholarships.
Financial Assistance
Limited financial assistance may be available to assist those schools competing in person. We encourage schools that wish to be considered for financial assistance to complete the financial need portion of the application. A block of rooms will be available at area hotels for participants and their teachers/chaperones for the Thursday night prior to the event. Schools that are interested in overnight accommodations should indicate this preference on the registration form.
Tentative Schedule of Events
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 8:30-9:30 | Registration | Hendrix Student Center |
| 9:45-10:00 | Welcome | Hendrix Student Center |
| 10:00-11:40 | Morning Exam | Hendrix Student Center |
| 10:10-11:40 | Teacher Reception | McKissick Theater, Hendrix Student Center |
| 11:40-1:00 | Lunch | Schilletter Dining Hall / Hendrix Center Food Court |
| 1:00-2:15 | Afternoon Competition | Hendrix Student Center |
| 2:15-2:45 | Break | Ballroom Lobby, Hendrix Student Center |
| 2:45-3:10 | Research Presentation | Meeting Rooms, Hendrix Student Center |
| 3:10-3:40 | Awards Ceremony | Meeting Rooms, Hendrix Student Center |
Registration
Each school wishing to enter the 2025 Clemson Calculus Challenge must complete the online registration form and pay the associated registration fees. A teacher or administrator from the school must complete the registration. The same form will be used for all modalities. The registration form will become available in early January 2025. Registration will close at 11:59 p.m. on Friday, March 14, 2025 or once capacity has been reached, whichever occurs first. Once the online registration form is submitted, registration fees must be paid credit card. The registration fees are $10.00 per student and $10.00 per school. A t-shirt is included in the registration fee for all students participating in person. Students participating remotely have the option to purchase a t-shirt for an additional $10 fee. Registration fees must be received by Friday, March 21, 2025 and are nonrefundable after this date.
If you have any questions about the Clemson Calculus Challenge, you can email us at clemson-calculus-challenge@lists.clemson.edu.
We hope to "see" you at the Clemson Calculus Challenge on April 11, 2025!