Lipscomb's School of Computing is holding a programming contest similar but not identical to the USA Computing Olympiad.
We hope to see you February 27, 2026 on the second floor of the Fields Engineering Center on the Lipscomb University campus.
Please use this form to register for the competition.
To get an idea of the problems, or to practice see this zip file which contains the 2025 problems, test input, and correct output.
If you have questions or would like training materials, please contact Dwayne Towell via email.
| 8:00 | registration, orientation |
| 8:30 | setup, rules |
| 9:00 | contest begins |
| 12:00 | scoreboard freezes |
| 1:00 | contest ends, box lunch |
| 1:30 | results, debrief, prizes |
| 2:00 | event ends |
The following rules are designed to clarify the difference between acceptable behavior and unacceptable behavior. This is not a complete list. We reserve the right to define new rules as necessary to make this a fair and enjoyable contest.
All contest submissions, including problem submissions and clarifications, are the property of Lipscomb University. We reserve the right to use and publish these submissions as we choose.
Teams may have at most three members.
Team members must be pre-college students.
Teams that violate any rule may be disqualified and required to leave the venue immediately.
Only the computer provided may be used. Phones, calculators, smart watches, or any other computer-like devices are not allowed and must be left outside the contest venue.
Computers and network equipment may not be modified.
Only network services specifically described as acceptable may be accessed.
Online language and standard library references will be provided.
Non-machine-readable resources such as books, manuals, and printed program listings are allowed and encouraged.
During the contest, contestants may only communicate with their own team members and contest personnel.
Offensive language may not be used.
Teams submit source code solutions to problems via a web forms. Submission results are available on the contest website.
All program input is available by reading from the standard input stream (keyboard), without prompting the user. For example, "<" may be used to direct input into your program.
All program output should be written to the standard output stream (terminal). Output written to the error stream will be ignored.
Each submission is tested against multiple hidden data sets and receives a score (0..100) based on the number of correct answers computed.
The final score for each problem is the maximum score received for that problem. Problems may be resubmitted without penalty.
The team score is sum of the final score for each problem.
Teams may request an appointment to consult with an expert during the contest. The entire team must be present and nothing can be brought from the team workspace to the appointment. Printed copies of the problems and scratch paper are available during the appointment, but nothing can be taken back to the team workspace.
If a team believes a problem is ambiguous or incomplete, they may submit a Clarification via the contest website. Typically, responses encourage contestants to carefully reread the problem. However, if the judges believe a clarification is necessary, it will receive a public response via the contest website.
In the event of unforeseen difficults, the Contest Director may alter the rules, modify the environment, change problems, or alter the problem set to help rectify the situation and make the contest as fair and enjoyable as possible.