Queen Mary College’s Maths Department celebrates excellent effort and results from the UK Senior Maths Challenge 2024. This is an annual, international competition for those who are in year 13 or below. Students sit a 90-minute, multiple choice paper based on a points system, designed to elicit a deeper level of thinking and problem-solving.

Among various competitions and extracurricular activities, the Maths Challenge provides an opportunity for students taking one of our Maths courses to stretch themselves and apply their mathematical skills. The competition offers a challenging experience, aimed at developing students’ ability to analyse and find solutions rooted in logic.

Each year the top-performing participants are awarded, with the top 66% being Bronze, Silver and Gold in the ratio 3:2:1. This year, a record number of QMC Maths students took part in the 2024 Challenge. Principal Mark Henderson presented the certificates to award winners on Wednesday 16th October.

This year, 83% achieved a certificate: 

• 36 Bronze awards
• 25 Silver awards
• 12 Gold awards

Those who achieved a Gold award this year include:

1st year: Ojas Dhall, Lucia Kraner and James Gibson (Top Scoring student in the cohort).

2nd year: Finlay Baulch, Daniel Malone, Emily McGuinnity, Rhys Perrett, Alessandro Toldo, Ben Treble, Amy Watkins (Top Scoring student in the cohort), James Wheatley and Ben Williams.

All Gold award winners have automatically qualified for the follow-on competition, the Senior Kangaroo Challenge, which takes place in November. A special congratulations goes to double Maths student Amy Watkins, who has also qualified for the prestigious British Mathematics Olympiad. This achievement places Amy in the top tier of mathematicians in the country for her year group. Next month, she will take on a rigorous 3.5-hour exam as part of this challenge. We wish all our students the very best of luck in their upcoming competitions.

Following this year’s results, David Smith, Head of Mathematics at QMC, commented, “Congratulations to everyone who took part in this year’s maths challenge. It is really pleasing that so many are keen to test their problem-solving skills in a national competition.”