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IBO Exam - International Biology Olympiad (IBO)

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Last updated date: 20th Apr 2024
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Olympiads

International Biology Olympiad 2023-24

The International Biology Olympiad is the World’s leading Biology competition conducted for secondary school students every year in the month of July. The virtual IBO 2023-24 Challenge will be held from July 18 - 23. 

The competition is organized to identify, encourage, empower, and support the new generation leaders in Biological Science and to enhance their international network. The first International Biology Olympiad was held in Czechoslovakia in 1990, and since then it has been held every year.

Each participating country sends 4 winners of the National Biology Olympiad to the IBO usually accompanied by 2 leaders who are the members of the International jury for the duration of the competition.

IBO Syllabus 2023-24

IBO seeks to find, motivate, empower, and assist the future generation of leaders in the life sciences, as well as grow their international network, as the world's leading high school biology student competition.

During IBO, students must take both theoretical and practical exams. The Theoretical Exams are made up of roughly 100 tasks, most of which are closed-ended (e.g., multiple true-false). These activities cover all aspects of biology and require students to apply their scientific knowledge to analyse complex biological events. Practicals are frequently broken down into three or four labs. The content domains for each Practical are revealed 6-12 months before each IBO. In the lab, students display biological talents by doing research and analysing data. Because of the objectives specified by each host nation, each IBO year differs slightly.

The country delegates will be issued regulations on how the tests will be conducted, however, students will be eligible to participate in the competition regardless of their country's confinement regulations at the time of the exam. This implies that students who are permitted to gather in public areas such as a school or university may take the test together under the supervision of a national Delegate, while students who are restricted at home may take the exam alone. The practical test will not require access to a lab area or any materials/chemicals; instead, it will be focused on the interpretation of videos, photos, and graphics. Students must, however, have access to a computer with an internet connection in order to participate. Finally, merit, medals, and certificates will be given out according to the same procedures as a conventional IBO. A second competition will provide prizes to the winners of the video/image competition. The Country Coordinator who is enrolled on the IBO portal must register the NBO.


Participation in the IBO Challenge II is subject to the following conditions-

  • You must be a member of the International Business Organization (IBO).

  • You'll need to organise a National Biology Olympiad to choose your participants.

  • On the site, you must register your country.


Rules and Guidelines for IBO-

  • All IBO members must agree to and cooperate with two primary "legal" texts. The IBO Steering Committee enacts these rules.

  • The IBO Articles of Association lay out how the organisation operates. These regulations specify who is eligible to join the IBO and how we make decisions, among other things.

  • All components of the yearly competition are covered in the IBO Operational Guidelines. They outline elements that an IBO host nation must give, for example.

  • Please be aware that the IBO presently lacks an approved curriculum document. The Operational Guidelines include pertinent information on the contents of the IBO test. This paper includes a list of theoretical test subjects as well as a list of practical abilities that will be examined during the practicals.

  • IBO also gives other guiding documents, particularly for the hosts, in addition to these two key publications.

The rulebook and other related guideline documents can be downloaded from the official site of IBO. You can also tune in to Vedantu to keep in touch with the latest updates.

Exam questions in the early days of IBO were primarily focused on knowledge reproduction (i.e., students exhibited what they had learnt by heart). The topic of IBO examinations has changed significantly as a result of the greatly increased body of knowledge in biology, the much easier access to subject information via digital media, and the altered focus of international scientific curricula: The great majority of IBO test questions these days address the application of biological knowledge in scenarios derived from modern biological research. Many of these assignments require students to analyse data from biological studies, for example, and then consider what implications may be taken from the data.

The IBO 2023-24 examinations will be held on July 18, 2023, and will consist of a single theoretical test. Students should review the curriculum for the next IBO test before taking it. The IBO 2023-24 examinations will be held on July 18, 2023, and will consist of a single practice test.

To improve your speed, familiarise yourself with the exam pattern and precise IBO exam scenario, identify strong and weak areas and understand the IBO blueprints and their relevance, you should take an IBO mock test. 

You can visit the Vedantu site or the Vedantu mobile app for sample papers and mock tests along with other related information regarding IBO. Information related to other International Olympiads and their study materials can also be easily availed on Vedantu and that too free of cost! 

FAQs on IBO Exam - International Biology Olympiad (IBO)

Q1. How Do I Participate in the International Olympiad Exam?

Ans. Students who want to participate in the IBO exam must become the top 4 students of the final round of the National Biology Olympiad, organized each year in the current school year and in which only secondary class students for general education are eligible to participate. NBO is open for all schools within each country. Participation of students not competing in all the rounds of NBO is not allowed. Due to this, each country has a duty to provide a description of their IBO and NBO team selection procedure using the online form available on the IBO official website. Youngsters present at IBO as observers or team leaders are exempted for future IBO participation.

Q2. Is the Biology Olympiad Hard?

Ans. Yes. Biology olympiads are considered to be a tough exam as the questions usually asked in these exams are a bit tricky. The questions asked in the Biology Olympiad exams are of advanced level which makes students think deeply. It is suggested for all candidates to practice as many questions as possible to score well in Olympiads. Although Biology olympiads are considered to be tough exams, thorough practice, dedicated learning, and passion to score well exceed all difficulty. Once the students clear their basic concepts, and all content gaps are filled, the exam becomes quite interesting for all candidates. The best way to score well in the Biology Olympiad exam is to be in touch with the latest syllabus, practice previous year’s question papers, sample papers, and refer to Biology Olympiad reference books.

Q3. How Do You Prepare for the Science and Biology Olympiad?

Ans. Learn the subjects like your favourite hobby. It is important to have a strong foundation on every topic you come across. Don't get distracted just by looking at different Science and Biology Olympiad books, complicated terms, theories, diagrams, laws, and derivations that give you nightmares. The best part about the Science and Biology Olympiad exam is that you don't always need a different thick textbook to prepare. If you once understand the concepts properly, you will be able to find the answers to all the questions around you.


Here are the tips to score well in the Science and Biology Olympiad exam.

  • Make sure to have in-depth knowledge about the latest syllabus and exam pattern.

  • The most important step to prepare for the Science and Olympiad exam is to understand each and every concept with full clarity.

  • Practice, Practice, and Practice

  • Solve mock test, previous year question papers, sample papers available on Vedantu's official website.

  • Students must be thoroughly acquainted with the books of their respective schools. However, this is not sufficient, you need to get additional practice by referring to the different books available from good publishers.

  • Make sure to stay motivated by rewarding yourself every time you achieve the target.

Q4. What is the IBO Exam?

Ans. The “ International Biology Olympiad” is a biology exam conducted for secondary school students. In 1990, the first IBO exam was held in Czechoslovakia, and since it has been conducted annually. The students' skills in handling biological problems, and dealing with biology experiments are tested in this exam. The IBO exam challenges and encourages secondary school students to enhance their talent and to foster their future careers as scientists.


Every participating country sends 4 winners of the National Biology Olympiad to the IBO along with the two adults who are the members of the International jury for the duration of the competition. To select these 4 top contents for this international competition, all the member countries organize 3-4 consecutively more difficult national competition rounds. As a result, this engages the participation of more than 1 million students worldwide in biological science every year.  

Q5. How to Apply for the International Biology Olympiad?

Ans. International Biology Olympiad is an annual leading Biology competition that demands subsequent clearing of the preliminary stages of the exam. To apply for IBO, students need to clear all the Biology Olympiad exams conducted at the National level. Students who can apply for the IBO exam must be under the age of 20 and must be from regular secondary school.


The first stage leading to IBO is a National Standard Examination in Biology. Students can enroll their name for the NSEB exam at their institution which must be a registered NSE centre. If the candidate's school is not a registered centre, then they can register at the nearby registered NSE centre. Of the thousands of participated students, only 300 -500 students are selected for the second stage of IBO, which is an Indian National Biology Olympiad (INBO).


The top 35 students from Indian National Biology Olympiad (INBO) merit list are selected for the third stage of IBO, which is an Orientation Cum Selection Camp (OCSC), out of which only 4 students are selected for the Pre-departure training for the IBO, and these 4 students are ultimately selected for the last stage, which is an IBO.

Q6. What is the Aim of the IBO Exam?

Ans. IBO aims to bring together the gifted students and tries to challenge and encourage the students to enhance their careers as scientists so that the biology talents do not get lost. The aim of conducting IBO is also to identify, encourage, empower, and support the new generation in Biological Science and develop their network. This Olympiad competition also offers an opportunity to compare the syllabus and educational trends in Biology in different leading counties. This is fruitful information to develop Biology education at the national level.

Q7. What Happens in the International Biology Olympiad?

Ans. During the International Biology Olympiad, students have to participate in both Theoretical and Practical exams. The theoretical exam consists of 100 questions in a largely close-ended format (For example multiple, true or false).  These questions cover the entire domain of Biology and students are asked to apply their scientific knowledge in analyzing advanced Biological phenomena. The practical exam falls in 3-4 laboratories. The content domain of practical exams is announced 6-12 months before the IBO exam.  Students get an opportunity to showcase their Biological skills by conducting investigations and analyzing data.

Q8. How Can Students View the IBO 2023-24 Results?

Ans. The students can view IBO 2023-24 results by visiting the IBO official website.