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A celebration of learning
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For scholars of all ages
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Teams made of three scholars
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No limit on the number of teams per school
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Lead your team to Yale university
Reach our annual finale, hosted by the Yale International Relations Association
Reach our annual finale
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Four academic events
1. Team Debate
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Four academic events
2. Scholar's Bowl
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Four academic events
3. Collarborative Writing
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Four academic events
4. Scholar's Challenge
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Team and individual achievements
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Participate in a regional round near you
Or apply to host your own
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Share your thoughts
Community Discussion
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Share your traditions
Cultural Fair
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Show your talents
Scholar's Show
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Dance freely
Scholar's Ball
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2021 Global Theme
A World Renewed
WSC Regional Round
Time
- From October, 2024 to January, 2025
Notes: Choose only one round.
Language
- English
Age Divisions
- Junior Division
- Senior Division
Team Requirements
- Form a team of three. All students are welcome.
Scoring and Advancement
- Team Scoring: For Collaborative Writing,Team Debate and Scholar's Challenge,team scores are determined by adding all team member's individual scores together. For Scholar's Bowl, team scores will be calculated based on the the number of correct answers the team manage to give.
- Overall Scoring: The team score for each event makes up 25% of the overall team score.
- Advancement: The teams whose overall performance is ranked top 50% in each Regional Round will be invited to the Global Round.
3 Highlights
Form a Team
Form a Team
Play as a 3-member team and be better prepared for the Global Round
Meet Team Challenges
Meet Team Challenges
Compete with your peer scholars in Scholar's Challenge, Collaborative Writing, Scholar's Bowl, and Team Debate
Have Fun
Have Fun
Make new friends, take your vows to adopt an alpaca, and show yourself off in the talent show
Welcome Letter
Letter from the Founder
The artist Austin Kleon once advised his students, "Draw the art you want to see, play the music you want to hear, write the books you want to read, build the products you want to use."
In designing the World Scholar's Cup, my team and I have always kept something similar in mind: to design a program we wish we could have attended when we were students.
That's why the World Scholar's Cup may look like a competition, but isn't one at all. It's a celebration of learning. (Just ask the "ninjas" who raided the Taiwan Round in 2012 to demand more guides to study.) It brings together many subjects, because before we can begin to specialize, we need to see the big picture. It challenges teams to work together, because there's nothing harder or more inspiring than knowing that someone else depends on you. And it deals with serious global issues without taking itself too seriously, because I'm convinced that before we can fall in love with learning, we have to find the fun in learning.
Whether you join us just for just a regional round or continue with us all the way to the Tournament of Champions at Yale University, you're becoming part of a community of scholars and leaders that will last a lifetime.
Daniel Berdichevsky
Founder and Alpaca-in-Chief
Mr. Daniel Berdichevsky
Daniel Berdichevsky is the program's founder and alpaca-in-chief. In high school, he achieved the highest score in the history of the United States Academic Decathlon; he has been a professional nerd ever since. For Daniel, Decathlon was life-changing: it introduced him to the joy of teamwork, inspired him to overcome his fear of public speaking, and launched him into college with new confidence. It was after studying science, technology, and society and public policy at Stanford and then public policy at Harvard that Daniel had three realizations: first, that there was no opportunity like the one he had been given for students around the world; second, that such a global program could be for students in the 21st century what Decathlon had been for him in the 20th; and, third, that he had just discovered his life’s work. Daniel has also led strategic innovation for CASIO, worked (with great non-success) in venture capital, and attempted (with even greater non-success) to write musicals. Daniel loves little more (except maybe the song Havana) than meeting and learning from students around the world.Highlights
popular around the World
popular around the World
An international academic feast gathering potential scholars
More than 70 host countries and 140 cities
More than 70 host countries and 140 cities
More than 60,000 participants competing for higher global rankings
Advancing to Tournament of Champion at Yale
Advancing to Tournament of Champion at Yale
140 Regional Rounds, multiple Global Rounds and annual Tournament of Championship at Yale
Interdisciplinary discussions on current global issues
Interdisciplinary discussions on current global issues
Subjects including Science&Technology, Social Studies, History, Arts&Music, Literature&Media, and Special Areas
Featuring 4 academic activities
Featuring 4 academic activities
Events including Scholar's Challenge, Collaborative Writing, Scholar's Cup and Team Debate
Cultivating young scholars aged from 8 to 18
Cultivating young scholars aged from 8 to 18
Participants divided into Senior Division, Junior Division and "Skittle" Division
More than 60% participants receive awards
More than 60% participants receive awards
High award rate for individual and team competitions, encouraging learning efforts and academic exploration
A strong support for international university applications
A strong support for international university applications
A proof for academic, teamwork and communication ability to university admission committees
World Scholar's Cup spreads over 70 countries,140+cities
Advancement
From October, 2024 to January, 2025
Regional Round
born on or after January 1, 2011
Senior Division:
born before January 1, 2011
Dubai "Holiday Special" Global Round (2024.12.12-12.18) / Summer of 2025
Global Round
2024.11.13-11.18
Tournament of Champions
from the Global Round
are invited.
Themes and Subjects
Each year, all teams focus on a current global theme, exploring it from the perspectives of different disciplines including history, social studies, science, technology, arts, music and so on.
Theme 2024:
Reimagining the Present
Science & Technology
Social Studies
History
Art & Music
Literature & Media
Special Area
Team Events
Scholar's Bowl
Every team in the theater. Every team with a clicker. Every question harder than the one before. Your team will work together to solve analytic questions and multimedia challenges. Click your answers before time runs out, and don’t be surprised if you’re asked to connect a poem you studied to a clip from Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It’s loud. You might even hear a team shout the wrong answer— hoping you’ll click it. It's strategic. What will you and your teammates do when you disagree? Remember, it's not the first team to answer correctly that gets all the credit. You’re all racing the clock. But, the clock is fast and the stakes are high.
*No electronic devices can be used throughout the event.
Collaborative Writing
Speak with the power of your pen (or pencil!) You’ll be given six prompts, from each of the six subject areas, ranging from creative scenarios to explore to persuasive arguments to make. Two easy rules to remember: as a team you only need to write three of the six, and each of you needs to answer a different prompt. You’ll first have 20 minutes to prepare together, then 40 minutes by yourself to write the most compelling piece possible, then 15 minutes to review one another's work at the end. Whether you craft a poem or compose a five-paragraph essay, make sure your work excites and challenges you, because that means it'll excite and challenge your reader too.
*No electronic devices can be used throughout the event.
Team Debate
Each team debates three times, on motions across all the subjects, from policy to poetry. You may be arguing whether parents should have access to surveillance cameras at schools—or whether women make better superheroes. Debate is your chance to apply all that you’ve learned to make the most persuasive case you can. And, win or not, after each debate, you’ll give the other team feedback on how to improve.
Each of you will speak up to 4 minutes. But first, you’ll have 15 minutes to research your argument, with full access to the Internet. Use your time—and choose your sources—wisely!
Two-thirds of our students have never debated before; over half are EFL learners. The rest sign up because they’re debaters. For new debaters, it’s a great introduction; for experienced debaters, it’s a challenging new style.
Scholar's Challenge
It’s multiple choice, so make multiple choices. The Challenge looks like any other test, but with an alpaca-powered twist: you can mark more than one answer per question. The fewer you mark, the more points you can earn if you’re right. (Yes, that means you can finally guess C and D... and also A, B, and E.) Apply your knowledge of the six subjects successfully and you can win medals in one, two, or all of them.
You’ll soon discover what all World Scholars do: that even if you think you’re an expert in science, you might win a medal in the arts, and that the best way to prepare for a test that touches on everything is to talk through it all with your team, day by day.
Play your cards right, and you could earn enough medals to warrant a neck brace.
Hosting Schools of 2024-2025 WSC Regional Round
NORTH CHINA
EAST CHINA
SOUTH CHINA
CENTRAL
&
WEST
Sample Schedule of Regional Round
Regional Round Agenda
DAY 1 | 8:00-9:00 | Registration |
9:00-10:30 | Opening ceremony | |
10:30-13:30 | Team Debate | |
13:30-14:30 | Lunch | |
14:30-16:30 | Collaborative Writing | |
16:30-17:45 | Scholar's Challenge | |
DAY 2 | 8:00-8:30 | Arrival |
8:30-11:30 | Scholar's Bowl | |
11:45-12:45 | Lunch | |
12:45-14:00 | Debate Showcase | |
14:00-15:00 | Scholar's Show* | |
15:00-16:30 | Awarding Ceremony |
*The Scholar's Show is an optional talent show, a chance for students to show their talents to the audience, even if they are not experienced performers. (Whether it's a Singapore student impersonating Obama, or a Bulgarian team introducing us to a traditional dance, every performance is unique.) A Debate Showcase is also hosted in each round. During the Showcase, the best debaters from different schools, as nominated by the judges, are gathered to debate on the stage.
Note:
The agenda is subject to change.
Each student can participate in no more than one regional round each year.
TEAM AWARDS
Champion TeamsTeam Bowl
Team Challenge
Team Writing
Team Debate
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Champion ScholarsAsimov Award*
Debate Champions
Writing Champions
Challenge Subject Awards
Jac Khor Award*
School Top Scholarss
*Asimov Award is to reward scholars who are not among the top for single events, but have an overall excellence performance across all events.
*Jac Khor Award is named after the person who got the 2019 'the Alpaca of the year', she was responsible for the scholar's challenge. It will be awarded to the scholar who got the first place in the 'scholar's challenge' event.
2024 Global Round
Global
Round
Global Round Preview Schedule
Notes: The agenda is subject to changes according to the realities.
Morning | Afternoon | Evening | |
DAY 1 | Arrival | Check-in | / |
DAY 2 | Junior Division:Opening Ceremony | Senior Division:Opening Ceremony Scholar's Scavenge |
Social Dinner |
DAY 3 | Junior Division:Team Debate Senior Division: City Tour |
Junior Division:Scholar's Challenge + Collaborative Writing Senior Division: City Tour |
/ |
DAY 4 | Junior Division:City Tour Senior Division: Team Debate |
Junior Division:City Tour Senior Division: Scholar's Challenge + Collaborative Writing |
Cultural Village |
DAY 5 | Scholar's Bowl | Debate Showcase Talent Show I |
Scholar's Ball |
DAY 6 | Talent Show II | Scholar's Show II Closing Ceremony闭幕式 |
/ |
DAY 7 | Departure |
Global Round Events
Opening Ceremony
Team Events
Scavenger Hunt
Scholar's Show
Scholar's Ball
Cultural Fair
Alpaca Program
Flag Ceremony
Awarding Ceremony
Tournament of Champions
The Tournament of Champions is more than just another Global Round. You’ll have the chance to interact with and learn directly from Yale students and faculty. You’ll attend a special panel on college life and on how to leverage your World Scholar’s Cup experience as part of your admissions portfolio. You’ll eat Yale dining hall food. You’ll meet our keynote speakers, including a Yale University professor. And you’ll come away knowing what it’s like to be a student at one of the world’s greatest universities.
You can also look forward to the Yale Ball, where you can dance (or not dance) with your fellow scholars from over fifty countries, a special Thanksgiving meal, and beautiful historic venues for the Scholar’s Bowl, Debate Showcase, and Scholar’s Show - the Shubert Theatre and Yale's own Woolsey Hall.
During a scavenger hunt that will take you to every corner of Yale’s campus and the surrounding community, you’ll encounter real alpacas, too, including our very own Painted Warrior—the official alpaca of the Tournament of Champions—and his faithful sidekick Trevor.
Contact Us
Ms. Zhang
North China
Beijing, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Shanxi, Shandong, Henan, Hebei, Tianjin, Inner Mongolia
13269709296
Ms. Zhou
East China:
Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang
13127836096
Ms. Ou
South China:
Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Fujian, Hongkong, Macao, Taiwan, and overseas
18576756975
Ms. Pan
Central and West:
Sichuan, Chongqing, Shaanxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, Ningxia, Gansu, Qinghai, Tibet, Hubei, Anhui, Xinjiang, Jiangxi
13086629260
Our Story
Terran Kroft
Thank you for giving me motivation not just to gain more knowledge, but also to share that knowledge with others.
Thiri Tun
Scholar's Cup made me a more active person with wonderful new memories and friends. I became more passionate about the arts and I really started appreciating innovative ideas.