Q1. I have students in grade 9 who wish to enter, can they?
A1. Any student in or below grade 10 may enter the competition. Having completed Science 10 is not a prerequisite.

Q2. I have grade 10 students who took Science 10 a year early and are now in
Bio 11/Chem 11/Phys 11. Can they still write the exam?
A2. Unfortunately, the Michael Smith Challenge is designed to be written by students that have grade 10 knowledge. To be fair, any student who is taking or has taken a science 11 or 12 course is not eligible to participate.

Q3. What is the cost of writing this exam?
A3. There is a 5$ charge per exam manuscript sent to us. This is used to pay for the marking staff.

Q4. Why can't I login into the system using the email and password I registered for last year?
A4. To keep our records up to date, we require that you make a new account each year for the Michael Smith Challenge.

Q5. I am having trouble registering/downloading the exam (or past exams)/viewing the webpage, what should I do?
A5. Please email us at mschall@phas.ubc.ca. If you have any questions on the day of the Challenge, please phone us immediately at 604-822-3675.

Q6. I have lost my password. Can you send it to me?
A6. Yes. However, please note that you do not need your password to download the exam, only to make changes to your teacher/student information.

Q7. What if there is a school event in conflict with the exam?
A7. Please contact us by phone or email.

Q8. When will we get our results?
A8. The results will be posted as soon as possible. In 2010, it took approximately 2 months to have the result packages sent out. We hope to be even quicker this year.

Contact Information

If you require any additional information please e-mail us at mschall@phas.ubc.ca