Euclid Mathematics Contest Euclid

Waterloo's final-year contest — where presentation earns marks and a correct answer alone does not.

Fast facts

Organiser
Centre for Education in Mathematics and Computing (CEMC), University of Waterloo source
Country
Canada source
Tier
Open entry source
Questions
10 source
Duration
2h 30m source
Format
Mixed format source
Maximum score
100 source
Rounds
1 source
Sat
Sat at school source
Fee
CAD 18 source
When
6 April 2027 (North and South America) source

Is this for my child?

Students in their final year of secondary school or CÉGEP students. source

Format & marking

Each question is worth 10 marks, out of 100. Questions mix SHORT ANSWER parts worth 2 or 3 marks with FULL SOLUTION parts worth the remainder. On the full-solution parts marks are awarded for completeness, clarity and style of presentation — CEMC states plainly that a correct solution poorly presented will not earn full marks. That makes Euclid a writing exercise as much as a mathematics one, and it is the single biggest adjustment for students arriving from multiple-choice contests. source

What to know

Presentation is marked, not just correctness

CEMC awards marks for completeness, clarity and style of presentation, and states that a correct solution poorly presented will not earn full marks. Students who have only ever sat multiple-choice contests routinely lose marks here for work that reaches the right answer.

Euclid's real prize is not a medal

Waterloo uses Euclid in admissions and scholarship decisions for its mathematics programmes. That makes it one of the few contests on this list whose incentive is a university place rather than a certificate — worth knowing if your child is weighing where to spend limited preparation time.

Past & sample papers

Papers are copyright of the organiser, so we point you to the source rather than hosting copies.

View on CEMC (official) →

Practise the same format

Original CREST Champs problem sets built to match this competition's format, timing and difficulty — our own content, so you can sit one today rather than waiting for the real date.

Start a Style Paper →

Questions parents ask

Is Euclid multiple choice?

No. It is 10 questions in 2.5 hours, mixing short-answer parts worth 2 or 3 marks with full-solution parts worth the rest of each question's 10 marks. Full solutions are marked for completeness, clarity and presentation.

Who can write Euclid?

Students in their final year of secondary school, or CÉGEP students. Younger students often write it early for practice.

Why does Euclid matter for university?

Waterloo uses Euclid results in admissions and scholarship decisions for its mathematics programmes, which is why it draws a stronger field than its certificate structure alone would suggest.