USACO is short for USA Computing Olympiad. It is a Computer Science tournament for high school students, conducted by usaco.org. USACO is a prestigious computer programming competition for secondary school students in the United States. It is designed to test students' problem-solving skills and their understanding of algorithms and data structures.
The Purpose of USACO
The main goal of the USACO is to identify and train computer science talents who can represent the United States at the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI), one of the most recognized computer science competitions in the world.
Who should take the USACO?
The USACO conducts competitive challenge contests for high school students who are interested in pursuing Computer Science at advanced levels. Any pre-college student in or outside of the United States is eligible to compete in the USACO. There is no age restriction, but the content is designed for high school students.
The USACO Contest timeline
The USACO holds four contests each year, typically in December, January, February, and March. Each contest is released on a Friday and competitors can choose any four-hour block within the following three days to complete the contest.
Do I need a team to compete in the USACO?
No. You must compete in a contest as an individual competitor, and working with other people during the contest is not allowed. However, you can study and prepare with anyone you like! The rules for the competition detail official academic integrity guidelines. Once a student passes all the 4 levels, they will be invited for a 1 week session at. Four students from this group will be selected to represent the USA at the IOI.
Contest Format
Each USACO contest typically consists of three to four problems, which competitors have to solve within a four-hour window. The problems can be solved using any of the three programming languages: C++, Java, or Python.
The Importance of USACO
USACO is a very challenging contest and students are expected to practice rigorously and consistently to pass each level. Students who are not promoted to the next level will compete again in the same level the following year. Participating in the USACO is not only a great way to improve programming skills but also a valuable experience for college applications. It shows a high level of commitment, problem-solving ability, and interest in computer science.
USACO Competition Levels
The USACO offers four levels of competition to cater to different skill levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Each level comes with its own set of challenges, and competitors can progress through the levels by performing well in contests. Each USACO contest typically consists of three to four problems, which competitors have to solve within a four-hour window. The problems can be solved using any of the three programming languages: C++, Java, or Python.
After each competition weekend, if your score is high enough - typically around 600-800 out of 1000 - you might be "moved up" to the next level. If you score perfectly on all problems, you can even be promoted instantly. Each level is much harder than the one before it. Moving up to a new level often requires a good deal of learning, practice, and multiple attempts.
Registration and Participation
Registration for the USACO is free, and students can register online through the USACO website (www.usaco.org). Once registered, students can participate in contests, access training materials, and track their progress.
You don’t need to register for a specific contest date ahead of time! Once you have an account, you can compete, as well as access all training courses and resources through your own portal.
How are contests scored?
Each of the 3-4 programs submitted is tested against 10 or more “test cases” – sets of data fed into your program with known results expected. You get credit for each test case that gives the correct results. There are 1000 points total for all problems in a division in one contest weekend. You will lose credit on test cases if your program takes too long to run, takes up too much memory, or crashes, so the efficiency of your code is a factor! This is especially true in the Silver division and above.
What kinds of problems are used in USACO?
USACO is an “algorithmic” contest, meaning it requires coming up with creative, systematic approaches to analyzing information, not just directly translating a description of a program into code. For instance, “find the position of the largest number in a list” is a very simple algorithmic problem, but “write down the commands to draw a circle and then a square” is not. You can view past contest problems for some examples.
What programming language does USACO use?
USACO accepts solutions in many languages, including Java, C++, and Python. Java and Python submissions get twice the time limit of C++ to account for their longer running times.
However, Python is not recommended by USACO’s own description, because it tends to run more slowly than Java, and may have cases where even the best solution for a problem does not complete within the time limit.
Solutions posted on the USACO website for students to learn from tending to be in C++ for older problems including most “training problems”, but Java has grown increasingly popular over time.
C++ does run faster than Java, but USACO allows for twice as much time for Java programs. There should not be a problem that could not be completed in a reasonable time using Java. We recommend using a language you’re comfortable with for learning. Remember, the real knowledge is in the algorithms, not the language.
What is the “US Open”?
The US Open is the last contest of the year open to all competitors. It follows the same format as the December-February contests, but is often slightly harder and sometimes has more problems and a higher time limit.
What is the “Training Camp” and “IOI”?
The top 16 students in the nation competing in the Platinum division are invited to the training camp for the US national team. Each year, the US team competes in the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) against teams from other countries.
Resources to prepare for the USACO
We offer the most comprehensive training course with three coding language. The USACO provides a comprehensive training page on its website, which includes a vast array of problems from previous contests. This is a great resource for students to practice and hone their problem-solving and programming skills.