San Diego Math Circle

WMTC Team USA

(Disclaimer: This page is hosted by SDMC in support of Team USA, but SDMC is not otherwise involved in WMTC and SDMC students do not receive any special consideration in team selection.)

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WMTC is an annual international team-based mathematics competition taking place in real time at a single site. The 2014 competition will occur during the traditional American Thanksgiving school break and will be held in Beijing, China.

WMTC's competition style is similar to that of the US-based ARML/IRML competitions. In fact, some of the same leaders can be found at the top levels of WMTC, ARML, and IRML. US competitors will find the competition style familiar and comfortable.

WMTC is a private, not a state event; in particular, the sponsorships helping to support WMTC are from private, not governmental sources. The international fraction of teams competing in WMTC this year is expected to be slightly more than 1/2 and is expected to rise to 3/4 in future years.

Cultural exchange is a significant aspect of WMTC. This includes the incorporation of excursions to famed cultural sites in and near Beijing and the opportunity for students from different countries to interact outside of competitive events.

General information about WMTC including its leadership, past contest results and past contest questions can be found at the following link: www.wmtc-math.net

Team Composition

Individual teams may consist of up to six students in any one of three divisions:

Advanced - birthdates in 1996 or later

Intermediate - birthdates in 1999 or later

Junior - birthdates in 2002 or later

Younger students are permitted to compete in higher divisions, but older students are not permitted to compete in lower divisions.

The US sends at least one team in each division (18 students). It is anticipated that this year the US will send more than one team in some divisions; the final configuration of teams will depend on the progress of team selection and development.

US Team Selection

As is the practice in a number of international competitions, US Team development begins with the selection of a domestic team consisting of a somewhat greater number of invitees than are expected to constitute the traveling team that will ultimately compete in Beijing. Over the summer, the domestic team will be offered some optional educational opportunities at no cost. At the end of the summer, domestic team members will be asked to submit a set of team selection exercises to help finalize the selection of the traveling team. There is no training camp, homework, or other required activities expected of domestic team members, except for the team selection exercises at the end of the summer.

Citizenship and Residency Requirements

The fundamental requirement for a student to be admissable to the US Team is that the student is a current full-time student in a US school, public or private. It is not specifically required that the student be a US citizen, legal resident, or green card holder.

It IS necessary that team members possess a valid passport from the United States or another country for which a Chinese visa can be issued. The student passport should have six months remaining validity at the time of travel. We would recommend that any students admitted to the domestic team go ahead and acquire or renew their passport (if necessary) as a valid passport is a good thing to have in any case, but defer visa application unless and until selected for the traveling team.

Cost

Though WMTC has a number of sponsors, students' families must be responsible for significant costs, including the following:

Registration - Each six-member team is responsible for a registration fee US$450.

Local Costs - US$330 per team member pays for each team member’s meals for 5 days, 4 nights of hotel rooms, transportation (including airport pick up and drop off), sightseeing tours, translator/guide escort, certificates, medals, trophies, souvenirs, etc.

Travel Costs - Each student's travel expenses from their home to Beijing is their own family's responsability.

Sponsorship

Chinese Society of Optimization, Overall Planning and Economical Mathematics (China)

Chinese Society of Optimization, Overall Planning and Economical Mathematics, Committee of Mathematics Education (China)

The World of Mathematics and Physics Journal (China)

The Committee of Hope Cup Mathematics Competition (China)

WMTC (The United States of America)

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