SEAMO Past Papers with Answers - Practise Online

The Southeast Asian Mathematical Olympiad (SEAMO) is an English-language mathematics competition from Singapore for students from kindergarten to grade 12. Each age group sits its own paper, named by letter from Paper K to Paper F, and strong performers in the national round are invited to an international round called SEAMO X.

Working through SEAMO past papers is one of the most direct ways to prepare, because the paper structure and the scoring stay the same from year to year. This page explains the SEAMO levels, the exam format, the rounds and how to practise.

Overview

SEAMO was launched in Singapore in 2016. The competition is led by Terry Chew, a Singapore author of mathematics olympiad books, and his team writes the questions. The contest is run in each participating country or region through a local partner, and the official site lists participation from around 18 countries and regions, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines and Australia.

The stated aim is to build problem-solving skills beyond the school syllabus. After the contest, participants receive a performance report that shows strengths and weaknesses by topic, which makes the competition useful as a diagnostic tool and not only as a ranking.

SEAMO levels and grades

SEAMO papers are named by letter. Grade ranges follow the Singapore system (Primary, Secondary, Pre-University) and are converted to grades for other countries.

Not every country opens every paper in every season. Students register for the paper that matches their current grade.

Rounds

SEAMO has two stages:

• National Round. Held in each participating country or region through the local partner. This is the main SEAMO paper described below.
• SEAMO X. The extended international round. According to the organizer, the top 40 percent of candidates in each region are invited. SEAMO X ranks two groups separately: the Champions Division for students at or above the 60th percentile in the national round, and the Open Division for other participants who choose to take part. The host location changes from year to year.

SEAMO exam format and scoring

The official guidelines give the following structure for the national round.

For Papers A to F, the last five questions are free-response: students write a number instead of choosing an option, and each of these is worth twice as much as an early question. The published guidelines describe marks for correct answers and do not mention a deduction for wrong answers.

Awards are based on percentile rank: Gold for the 92nd percentile and above, Silver from the 80th percentile, and Bronze from the 60th percentile. In other words, about 40 percent of candidates receive a medal.

When is it held

The national round is usually held in the second half of the year, with exact dates set by each country's partner. In Vietnam, for example, the national round is planned for late October in recent seasons. SEAMO X takes place a few months after the national round. Registration is done through the official SEAMO website or the local partner, and registration usually closes several weeks before the exam.

How to prepare with past papers

• Practise the full 90 minutes. Twenty-five questions in 90 minutes leaves a little over three and a half minutes per question on average, but the last five questions need much more time than the first ten. Aim to finish Questions 1-10 quickly and accurately.
• Protect the high-value questions. Questions 21-25 are worth 6 marks each, or 30 percent of the total. They are free-response, so guessing does not help. Leave enough time to work on them carefully.
• Review by topic. SEAMO questions regularly cover number patterns, counting, logic puzzles, geometry and word problems that go beyond the school textbook. After each paper, list the topics you missed and practise more of the same type.
• Use the paper for your own grade. Each paper covers two grades, so a student in the lower grade of the pair meets some content they have not studied yet. That is normal; focus on the questions you can reach.
• Check every answer you write. In free-response questions a small arithmetic slip loses all 6 marks.

On Edupiad you can take SEAMO past papers online with a timer, have your answers marked automatically and review each question after you submit. Availability of years and solutions varies by paper.

Frequently asked questions

What grades can take SEAMO?

SEAMO is open from kindergarten (Paper K) to grade 12 (Paper F). Each paper from A to F covers two grades, for example Paper C for grades 5-6.

Is SEAMO hard?

The early questions are close to school mathematics, but the later questions require olympiad-style reasoning. Because medals go to about the top 40 percent, a well-prepared student has a realistic chance of an award.

Does SEAMO deduct marks for wrong answers?

The official guidelines list marks for correct answers only and do not mention a penalty. It is still worth checking the rules sent by your local partner each season.

What is SEAMO X?

SEAMO X is the extended international round. The organizer invites the top 40 percent of each region, ranked in a Champions Division and an Open Division.

How long is the SEAMO exam?

Papers A to F last 90 minutes. Paper K for kindergarten lasts 40 minutes.

Sources

• SEAMO official website
• SEAMO official guidelines
• Terry Chew - Math Olympiad Competitions
• SEAMO Vietnam (local partner)