InChO 2021 - Indian National Chemistry Olympiad

InChO Exam 2021

InChO, the Indian National Chemistry Olympiad is an annual examination that is being conducted by the IACT, the Indian Association of Chemistry Teachers. Students of Class 11 and 12 after passing certain eligibility requirement can attempt this exam. The students are being judged in accordance with their calibre in performing in the field of Chemistry. 

In 2020, amidst the outbreak of the pandemic InChO have equally subjected to all the social norms of Covid and had taken care while conducting the exam. They always kept the student’s safety as their topmost priority. Also, in 2021 they were assertive enough and followed the same. The centre conducting the exam recognised the importance of this exam in the academic career of the students. Also, they did not fail to take all the social responsibilities in such a national crisis. 

InChO Exam 2021 Important Dates

This Olympiad is being conducted each year in the month of January-February. Like this exam, other exams such as INAO and INPhO is being conducted by the Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBCSE). In order to appear for the InChO exam, one must qualify for the NSEC exam. 

Talking about the current year, 2021, the exam was held in the month of February, the first week.  

As per, the record of the exam is being conducted in the first week of February. Thus, students seeking information about the exam dates for the next term, 2022 are advised to consider the first week of February as the examination schedule and also to keep information about the confirmed exam dates on InChO official website.  

InChO Olympiad Exam Pattern

The exam pattern followed by the InChO is given as under:

1. The question pattern consists of 80 MCQs with negative marking.

2. The medium used in the paper is English and Hindi. Students can select their medium according to their preference at the time of registration. 

3. The syllabus lies the same as being studied by the senior secondary level students, including the syllabus of Class XII of CBSE. InChO syllabus also follows the NSEC syllabus.

4. 3 hours are being allotted to complete the paper.

Process of Downloading InChO Olympiad Exam Admit Card

The admit card being the gateway for the students, are compulsory to be carried with them on the exam days. This will only allow the students to enter the examination centre and give the exam. 

1. The students are requested to download their admit card from the official site of HBCSE. 

2. After which they need to print out the downloaded form and carry it with them every day to the examination centre. 

3. In the admit card, basic details of the students like name of the candidate, NSE roll no., name of the examination centre, date and time of the exam.  

4. The admit card is to be preserved by the students carefully till the result is being announced. 

Process of Registration For InChO Exam 2021

For the process of enrolment, the students are being guided to follow the steps mentioned below:

1. Go to the official site of InChO.

2. Search for the option named Olympiad.

3. Then, click on the upcoming events.

4. After this, the students are required to fill in the required details like DOB, NSE centre code, and their roll number.

5. Students are required to choose the exam centre according to their preference at the time of registration.

Students can also register from their respective schools if it is a registered NSE centre. Students can reach out to their school principals or administration for help. If their school is not an NSE centre, then the students register themselves from any nearby NSE centre. 

An important thing to note – Suppose, a student registering their name from different states other than the state of their own school is required to send the scanned copy of NSE to admit card and school email ID to IACT, else their registration will be disqualified. 

InChO Olympiad Exam Registration Fees

The enrolment fee required by each student is INR 150 per subject and this examination fee is to be paid at the centre in charge of the NSE registration centre.

Exam Result of the InChO Olympiad

During the time of the exam result being announced, the students get impatient to check their performance. For the students who qualify for the next round, their name is being published along with their score and performance card. In order to know the status of the InChO, the candidates need to check their result from the official website of HBCSE. 

For 2021, the result was declared in the month of March. For the next year, 2022 the dates are not being announced yet, it will be notified shortly and officially.  

Reference Book for Indian National Chemistry Olympiad 2021

In this section, we will limit our suggestion to refer to those books which are applicable for the 2021 examinations. The books are:

• For level 1 – The students are required to refer to the general books studied by them in their JEE mains and advance level preparation. The guide books or the NCERT books studied by them will be sufficient for them to pass level 1.

• For Level 2 – The students are required to enhance their knowledge further. As this is an International level exam, they need to widen their scope and hence in order to specialize in each of the subjects they can refer to the books as suggested:

1. Inorganic Chemistry – Lee or Housecroft

2. Organic Chemistry – Calyden, Morrison and Boyed. In India, Morrison and Boyed are mainly available. 

3. Physical Chemistry – Atkin

4. Analytical chemistry – Skoog

5. Practical Chemistry – I. Vogel

6. Biochemistry – Lehninger

Eligibility Criteria for InChO Olympiad Exam 2021 

Students are required to abide by the eligibility criteria. If any student found defying the grounds of eligibility will be disbarred from sitting for the exams. 

Below Mentioned are the Criteria:

1. The date of birth of the candidate should be between 1 July 2002 to 30 June 2007. 

2. Students are capable of holding Indian passport. 

3. Students appearing for this exam cannot appear for the NSEJS exam, 2021. 

4. The student must be a resident of India and is studying in this country and have not completed their 12th board exam.  

5. The students who already applied for, at least they have not started to study in university or colleges. 

How Do I Prepare For InChO?

Students attempting to excel in the InChO exam should be borne in mind, that this an international level exam, hence they need to strategize and plan out their study accordingly. 

• Students willing to sit for InChO should start from the ground level by improving their knowledge. They can sit for local Olympiads conducted by their schools right from classes 7 -10. This will give them an idea about the bigger quest and also with this they can track and improve their level of knowledge.

• Students can also participate in Junior Olympiad at the initial stages.

• To sit for this exam, the students are advised to start early. Like a student can start right from class 10 with inorganic and physical chemistry, further, they can concentrate on the rest of the subject in classes 11 and 12. Also, s/he can start with the basics by studying and solving the NCERT in class 10 while when he is promoted in class 11 and 12, he can refine the basic and go for advanced studies. 

This way, students are advised to strategically devise and compete in this exam. 

How Do I Participate in International Chemistry Olympiad?

A student to participate in Chemistry Olympiad should foremostly have sufficient interest in the specified field. Secondly, with sheer knowledge and specialization in chemistry, they can participate in International Chemistry Olympiad. As advised, with guided strategy, books referred and by following the question paper pattern they can get an idea and then participate in the Olympiad. 

Students first need to check their eligibility after which they can register for the Chemistry Olympiad. 

Is Chemistry Olympiad hard?

Before answering this question, a student must acknowledge that securing good marks in this exam will not only render academic benefits to the students but will also be of national pride to our country. As this is an international level exam, the excellence of the students will be recognized internationally. 

Coming back to the question, to answer it specifically and straightforwardly, the exam is quite competitive in its approach and definitely tough. This is to be understood this is an international level exam that judges the student’s specialization in one particular subject. Hence, the exam being of a standard level toughness is quite fair.