The School of Mathematics and Statistics Research Challenge provides school-aged students with the opportunity to understand what it means to conduct mathematical and statistical research.
After six years of providing school-aged students in Australia and New Zealand with unique problems to explore and research, the annual School of Mathematics and Statistics Research Challenge is taking a break in 2026. We are reviewing and evaluating impact and sustainability of the format, in light of the increased use of genAI in 2025 and changing landscape of mathematics competitions.
We thank all of the students, teachers and parents that have been part of the MSRC so far and we welcome your reflections and input into this review. If you have feedback or questions please feel free to email us at ms-outreach@unimelb.edu.au.
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Students must be enrolled in an Australian or New Zealand government or non-government school, or registered home school. The challenge is open to three age categories:
- Senior (AU: Year 10 – 12, NZ: Year 11 – 13),
- Intermediate (AU: Year 7 – 9, NZ: Year 8 – 10), and
- Junior (AU: Year 5 – 6, NZ: Year 6 – 7).
If a team includes students from different age categories, then they must enter in the category of the oldest student. Schools are encouraged to enter multiple teams; students are limited to one entry in the challenge.
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The following links will allow you to download a flyer that you may want to use to advertise the challenge to students in your organisation along with a brochure with a high level summary of the challenge:
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- Problem Booklets available – April 24 2025
- Information session (attendance is optional) – May, June, July 2025
- Submissions open – May 2025
- Submissions close – 11:59 PM Wednesday 6 August 2025 (Melbourne time, UTC +10:00)
- Finalist teams* notified– October 2025
- Certificates issued – October - November 2025
- Finals Presentation* – November 2025
* Report projects only
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The Outreach Team will be facilitating information sessions (attendance is optional) to answer your questions about the program. The information session will provide an overview of the challenge and reflect the information available in the FAQ and the Submission Guidelines. There will be time for questions about logistical/administrative aspects of the program. The information session is NOT intended to provide guidance on the research projects.
These sessions will take place over Zoom, the links will be sent out to those who have provided their details using the link above. If you wish to attend an information session, you can choose ONE from the following options:
Information Session 1
Date: Thursday 1 May 2025
Time: 4 PM – 4:30 PM (Melbourne time)Information Session 2
Date: Monday 2 June 2025
Time: 4 PM – 4:30 PM (Melbourne time)Information Session 3
Date: Tuesday 1 July 2025
Time: 4 PM – 4:30 PM (Melbourne time)