शि

Exams · IOQM

Olympiad

IOQM

IOQM exam held 6 Sept 2026 (reported); Shishya's tracker has no announced date for the next exam yet. IOQM Stage 1: 30 questions, 100 marks, 180 minutes, no negative marking; each answer is an integer from 00 to 99, marked on an OMR sheet; there are no options to choose from (HBCSE brochure, read 29 Sept 2026). Official site: olympiads.hbcse.tifr.res.in.

Indian Olympiad Qualifier in Mathematics

HBCSE Stage-1 for the Indian math olympiad chain (RMO → INMO → IMOTC → IMO). 30 questions in 3 hours, integer answers 00–99, no calculus.

30 Qs100 marks180 minNegative: None📅 Dates & updates📋 Full syllabus🎯 Expected cutoff🧠 Tricks & mnemonics📖 How to crack it🔁 Mistake Notebook

Free IOQM mock tests and previous year paper practice — start now.

Full-length mocks with instant scoring and solutions, PYQ-pattern papers, topic-wise tests and Ask Shishya when you're stuck. Your scores and a free day-by-day plan are saved to your account. All free, no credit card. Content is written with AI; dates marked Official link the conducting body's own site.

Sign up with GoogleNo forms. The exam you sign up from becomes your exam.Sign up from an exam's page and that exam is set up as your exam: your dashboard starts from it and your AI tutor chats are saved. Where the exam has practice, your timed mock scores and weak topics are kept too. For students 13 and above. Free, with your Google account, no forms.Try a free 5-question quiz — no signup →
🎓 Preparing for IOQM? Get a free day-by-day plan to exam day. Rebuilt every morning around what you actually did — miss a day, nothing is lost.Build my plan →
~900 vacancies(indicative / typical)✓ Verify on Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBCSE) ↗

Updated 23 Sept 2026 ·Vacancy counts change every cycle — always confirm the exact number in the latest official notification before applying.

Share with your prep group:WhatsApp

Sourced

Source: HBCSE brochure, read 29 Sept 2026. How this works →

✦ Try a IOQM question — free, no signup

If log₂(x) + log₂(x − 3) = 2, what is the value of x?

Tap an option to check your answer.

Start with a diagnostic

5 questions across the syllabus to see where you stand.

This becomes your exam: a Daily 5 email on mornings after you visit, and emails about your streak, live tests, exam date and result day, or after a week away. Each has an unsubscribe link.

🧩 Build your own mock — pick exact topics → · every mock readable in हिंदी + 17 languages inside the test

IOQM eligibility

Shishya's summary, as of 2026-05 — confirm the details on the official site ↗.

Education
Currently studying in Class 8-12 in a recognised Indian school.
Attempts
One attempt per academic year (per cycle).
Nationality
Indian citizen, OCI, or studying in Indian schools.

IOQM cutoffs

Historical cutoffs are a guide, not a prediction. Use them to set a realistic target, not to predict next year's exact number.

IOQM cutoff (qualifying for RMO)

out of 100 marks

HBCSE picks ~25 students per region per class for RMO. Cutoffs vary by region and year — figures here are representative of metropolitan regions.

YearCategoryCutoff
2024Class 12 students (Top ~1,200)~50 – 55
2024Class 11~45 – 50
2024Class 9-10~35 – 45
2024Class 8~25 – 35

Source: official ↗ · as of 2026-05.

IOQM paper analysis — what actually got asked

Topic-by-topic weightage averaged across 2022-2024 papers. Use this to decide where to invest study hours, not where to skim. Source ↗ · as of 2026-05.

Number Theory

25/100 marks avg

  • Divisibility + modular arithmetic + Diophantine equations

    ~25 marks(25%)

Algebra

22/100 marks avg

  • Polynomials + functional equations + inequalities (AM-GM, Cauchy-Schwarz)

    ~22 marks(22%)

Combinatorics

24/100 marks avg

  • Counting + pigeonhole + graph theory basics

    ~24 marks(24%)

Geometry

22/100 marks avg

  • Euclidean geometry (triangles, circles, similarity, power of a point)

    ~22 marks(22%)

Other

7/100 marks avg

  • Estimation, integer answer (TITA) format

    ~7 marks(7%)

Takeaways for prep planning

  • IOQM is integer-answer (TITA) format — no negative marking, no partial credit. Either you solve, or you don't.
  • Number theory and combinatorics are the two highest-yield areas — they cover ~50% of marks but only ~30% of standard JEE Math prep.
  • Standard NCERT/CBSE Math does NOT prepare you for IOQM. Use Pranesachar's Challenges + Mathematics Olympiad books + AoPS resources.

IOQM — Frequently asked questions

Is Shishya free for IOQM preparation?
Yes. Every IOQM mock test, PYQ-pattern paper and study tool on Shishya is completely free — no subscription and no credit card. Questions are written with AI to follow each exam's syllabus topics on Shishya, and re-checked whenever a student reports one.
How many IOQM practice questions does Shishya have?
Shishya has 66 IOQM practice questions, written with AI; every one of them has passed an automated answer check (three independent AI solves and an examiner), and any question a student reports is re-checked. They are available as adaptive mock tests with a worked solution for every question.
Are IOQM previous year question papers available?
Yes. The official IOQM previous year papers the conducting body published are linked on this page, and Shishya has free PYQ-pattern practice papers covering 2021–2025 (5 years) — questions freshly worded in the pattern of each year's paper, not the paper itself; each year's page shows how many questions it holds against the real paper's count. Each is a timed practice set with full solutions.
How long is the IOQM exam?
The Indian Olympiad Qualifier in Mathematics (IOQM) runs for 3 hours. Shishya's mock tests mirror this duration so you can practise under real exam-time pressure.
What is the exam pattern of IOQM?
IOQM Stage 1 has 30 questions for 100 marks in 180 minutes. Answers: each answer is an integer from 00 to 99, marked on an OMR sheet; there are no options to choose from. Marks: 10 questions carry 2 marks each, 10 carry 3 marks and 10 carry 5 marks. Source: HBCSE brochure, read 29 Sept 2026 — https://olympiads.hbcse.tifr.res.in/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Brochure-Maths-Olympiad-2026-27-1.pdf
Is there negative marking in IOQM?
No — IOQM Stage 1 has no negative marking (HBCSE brochure, read 29 Sept 2026).
In which languages is IOQM conducted?
IOQM Stage 1 question paper: English and Hindi (HBCSE brochure, read 29 Sept 2026).
What is the expected cutoff for IOQM?
Cutoffs change every cycle with paper difficulty and vacancies. Shishya maintains indicative score-to-rank bands and category-wise (General/EWS/OBC/SC/ST) expected cutoffs — not official figures — at https://shishya.in/exams/IOQM/cutoff
Is there a full-length IOQM mock test in the real exam pattern?
Shishya has a free full-length Indian Olympiad Qualifier in Mathematics practice set, scored with solutions, but not in the paper's answer format: in the real paper each answer is an integer from 00 to 99, marked on an OMR sheet; there are no options to choose from (HBCSE brochure, read 29 Sept 2026), while Shishya's practice questions give four options. Use it to practise the ideas.
Can I build a topic-wise IOQM mock test?
Yes — pick any topics from the IOQM syllabus, choose 10, 25 or 50 questions and the difficulty, and attempt it as a timed mock with solutions and weak-topic analysis, free, at https://shishya.in/exams/IOQM/build-mock — questions can be read in Hindi and 17 other Indian languages inside the test.
How can I prepare for IOQM for free?
Shishya offers IOQM preparation 100% free: adaptive mock tests, official previous year papers (linked from the conducting body) and PYQ-pattern practice papers modelled on each year's paper, the full syllabus (https://shishya.in/exams/IOQM/syllabus), subject-wise memory tricks (https://shishya.in/exams/IOQM/tricks), a free day-by-day coach plan and an AI tutor in 18 Indian languages.

Previous year papers

70 questions across all years

Official papers

Question papers and answer keys as the conducting body published them. Each link opens the body's own file.

Published by HBCSE-TIFR (Mathematical Olympiad Cell)

Previous year paper practice: each year is a set of PYQ-pattern questions — freshly worded in the pattern of that year's paper, not the paper itself. Every card shows how many it holds against the real paper's count.

Practise PYQ-pattern questions topic by topic, across all years →

Mock tests

Take any mock in your preferred language — use the language picker inside the mock to switch (Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Bengali, and 15 more).

New to IOQM? Start small:a 25-question subject test first — 4 in 5 aspirants finish these; full mocks after your first win.Pick a subject test ↓

  • IOQM — Quick Practice

    SET

    20 questions · 180 min

    Start mock →

  • IOQM — 2024 PYQ-pattern set (10 of 30 questions)

    SET

    10 questions · 180 min

    Start mock →

  • IOQM — 2025 (PYQ Pattern)

    FULL

    27 questions · 180 min

    Start mock →

  • IOQM — Full-Length Practice Set (30Q · 180 min)

    FULL

    30 questions · 180 min

    Start mock →

  • IOQM — 2021 PYQ-pattern set (10 of 30 questions)

    SET

    10 questions · 180 min

    Start mock →

Practice by subject & topic

Full-length subject tests below — 25 questions each, real exam format, instant scoring.Want to drill a single topic? Open it from the syllabus — a topic that has practice questions has a short quiz on its page.

  • Mathematics

    66 Qs

🎯 Build my own mock

Tell Shishya exactly what to test you on — topics, size, difficulty — and get a fresh mock in seconds. Leave the box blank and we'll target your weakest topics.

Questions
Difficulty

Your rank

vs everyone who has taken this exam

Take a mock to see where you stand on the leaderboard.

Students

53

Mocks taken

199

Average score

39%

Top score

100%

What can I get from IOQM?

Mock-score → expected rank → likely outcome. Use the mocks below to find your current band, then plan how many marks you need to climb.

AI-curated from historic cut-off patterns. Always verify with the latest official notification before making decisions.

News & timeline

See older updates →

Latest news

Important dates

  1. Registration correction window

    passed

    Mon, 3 Aug, 2026

    Reportedioqm.mtai.org.in

    Edit facility available from August 3-5, 2026 through Student Login

  2. IOQM 2026 admit card released

    passed

    Sat, 8 Aug, 2026

    Reportedbrilliantpala.org

    Hall tickets available for download at ioqm.mtai.org.in

  3. 🏅IOQM 2026 exam day

    passed

    Sun, 6 Sept, 2026

    Reportedmtai.org.in

    3-hour, 30-question OMR-based exam; no negative marking

  4. IOQM 2026 result (expected)

    4 days away

    Thu, 15 Oct, 2026

    Expected

    Results typically declared 4-6 weeks after exam; qualifiers advance to RMO 2026

  5. RMO 2026 — second stage, for IOQM 2026 qualifiers

    35 days away

    Sun, 15 Nov, 2026

    Officialolympiads.hbcse.tifr.res.in ↗

    Regional Mathematical Olympiad: Sunday 15 Nov 2026, 13:00–16:00 (3 hours, 6 proof questions) — HBCSE, Mathematical Olympiad 2026-27. Who qualifies from IOQM 2026 is set by HBCSE's RMO selection criteria.

  6. INMO — third stage of the 2026-27 cycle, for RMO 2026 qualifiers

    98 days away

    Sun, 17 Jan, 2027

    Officialolympiads.hbcse.tifr.res.in ↗

    Indian National Mathematical Olympiad: Sunday 17 Jan 2027, 12:00–16:30 (4.5 hours, 6 proof questions). HBCSE's Mathematical Olympiad 2026-27 page: "Date of INMO 2026: January 17, 2027".

Syllabus

Tap any topic for its study notes + a 10-question topic test