The Singapore Junior Physics Olympiad (SJPO) and the Singapore Junior Biology Olympiad (SJBO) are two of the national junior science olympiads for secondary students, both two-hour papers normally entered through the school rather than by families directly. SJPO is run by the Institute of Physics Singapore and SJBO by the Singapore Institute of Biology, and SJBO also names a fallback exam centre for a student whose school does not register. Ancourage Academy teaches secondary Physics and Biology to the school syllabus, and parents of strong Sec 3 and Sec 4 science students regularly ask how these competitions fit alongside it. This guide sets out what each organiser actually publishes, shows four original practice problems in competition style, and explains where olympiad content departs from the O-Level / SEC syllabus taught in our secondary Science programmes. Every figure comes from the organisers' own pages. For the school syllabus each competition builds on, see our O-Level / SEC Physics guide and Biology guide; for the admission route, our DSA guide.
Ancourage Academy's Sec 3 Physics classes run in small groups of 3 to 6; book a trial class (usually $18) to start with a diagnostic of where your child stands.
What Are SJPO and SJBO?
SJPO and SJBO are annual, school-registered competitions that test Physics and Biology beyond the secondary syllabus, and each is the junior counterpart of a senior olympiad for junior college students.
The Institute of Physics Singapore runs SJPO. Its SJPO page states that "Schools will be invited by the organising committee to take part in SJPO every year. Individual application is not accepted." Its page for international schools sets the level: participants "must be studying at an academic level equivalent to Singapore secondary school students (secondary 1-5) in the year of the competition."
The Singapore Institute of Biology runs SJBO. Its SJBO about page says the competition "was started in 2016, as a complement to the long-running Singapore Biology Olympiad" and is "organised by The Singapore Institute of Biology in collaboration with Science Centre Singapore, and supported by the Ministry of Education." The organiser's 2026 results page describes the field as "2895 participants in Secondary 2 to 4 (or their international equivalent) from 119 schools."
How Do SJPO and SJBO Compare Side by Side?
Both are two-hour papers registered by schools, but they differ in who can enter, what the organiser publishes about format, and how awards are reported.
| Item | SJPO (Physics) | SJBO (Biology) |
|---|---|---|
| Organiser | Institute of Physics Singapore | Singapore Institute of Biology, with Science Centre Singapore, supported by MOE |
| Eligibility | Secondary 1 to 5 level (organiser's international-school page) | Secondary 2 to 4 (age 14 to 16), or international equivalent (organiser's FAQ; the 2026 results page reports the same field) |
| Rounds | One paper in 2026; the organiser's sample set is headed "Individual Round". Whether a further round follows is not stated on the organiser's page. | One online Theory Round. The organiser states "there will not be an SJBO practical round moving forward". |
| Format | Organiser's sample questions are five-option multiple choice (A to E). Question count not stated on the organiser's page. | Online paper; "a mix of IBO level questions, O level questions and A level questions" (organiser FAQ). Question count and type not stated on the organiser's page. |
| Duration | 2 hours (3pm to 5pm) | 2 hours, held at a time the school chooses within a 9am to 6pm window |
| Calculators | Non-programmable scientific calculators only; no graphing calculators | Not stated on the organiser's page |
| Awards | Not stated on the organiser's page | Gold, silver, bronze and honourable mention, "based on the IBO medal distribution percentages" |
| 2026 dates | Registration closed Thursday 2 April; paper on Thursday 21 May | Registration 13 February to 13 March; Theory Round 6 May; results 20 July; prizegiving 22 August |
| How to register | School only, via the teacher-in-charge; fees billed to the school | School submits forms to the organiser; students who cannot register through their school may use an exam centre appointed by the organiser |
The dates above are the 2026 cycle, taken from the SJBO timeline and the SJPO page. Both organisers charge a registration fee, and both state that it is not refunded for absentees; neither page publishes the amount. Both 2026 registration windows closed by early April, so ask the school early in the year.
What Do SJPO Questions Look Like?
SJPO questions are short multiple-choice problems that often need two ideas combined, and many use Physics that the O-Level / SEC syllabus does not teach, such as momentum and buoyancy.
The organiser publishes a sample question set and a syllabus, which states that "no question will require the explicit use of calculus" but that questions "can require multiple concepts to solve." The two problems below are Ancourage Academy practice problems written in that style for a Sec 3 or Sec 4 pure Physics student. They are not past SJPO questions.
Practice problem P1 (impulse and momentum). A 0.20 kg ball travelling at 5.0 m/s strikes a wall head-on and rebounds along the same line at 3.0 m/s. The ball is in contact with the wall for 0.040 s. What is the average force the wall exerts on the ball? A. 10 N · B. 20 N · C. 25 N · D. 40 N · E. 50 N
Worked solution. Take the rebound direction as positive. The initial momentum is 0.20 × (−5.0) = −1.0 kg m/s and the final momentum is 0.20 × 3.0 = +0.60 kg m/s, so the change in momentum is 1.6 kg m/s. Average force equals change in momentum divided by contact time: 1.6 ÷ 0.040 = 40 N. The answer is D. Option A is the trap: subtracting the speeds ignores the reversal.
Practice problem P2 (flotation). A wooden block floats in water (density 1000 kg/m³) with 60% of its volume below the surface. The same block is placed in a liquid of density 800 kg/m³. What fraction of its volume is now submerged? A. 0.48 · B. 0.60 · C. 0.75 · D. 0.80 · E. The block sinks.
Worked solution. A floating object displaces its own weight of liquid, so the fraction submerged equals the block's density divided by the liquid's density. From the water case, the block's density is 0.60 × 1000 = 600 kg/m³. In the second liquid, 600 ÷ 800 = 0.75. The answer is C. Option A multiplies where it should divide.
What Do SJBO Questions Look Like?
SJBO's organiser describes its paper as a mix of olympiad-level, O-Level and A-Level questions with topics based on the International Biology Olympiad syllabus, and it does not release past papers.
The SJBO FAQ answers "Will past year SJBO papers be made available to schools?" with "No," and points students to past International Biology Olympiad papers instead. It adds that the topic list appears in the registration briefing slides. The two problems below are Ancourage Academy practice problems, not SJBO questions, pitched at a Sec 3 or Sec 4 pure Biology student and built on reasoning rather than recall.
Practice problem B1 (inheritance and probability). Two parents who do not have an autosomal recessive genetic condition have a child who does. Their second child is born without the condition. What is the probability that this second child is a carrier? A. 1/4 · B. 1/2 · C. 2/3 · D. 3/4 · E. 1
Worked solution. The affected first child shows that both parents must be heterozygous (Aa). A cross of Aa × Aa gives AA, Aa and aa in the ratio 1 : 2 : 1. The second child is known to be unaffected, so aa is ruled out, leaving three equally likely outcomes, two of which are carriers. The probability is 2/3, answer C. Answer B uses the whole Punnett square instead of the three remaining outcomes.
Practice problem B2 (interpreting osmosis data). Potato strips were left in sucrose solutions for one hour and their percentage change in mass was recorded: 0.0 mol/dm³, +12%; 0.2 mol/dm³, +5%; 0.4 mol/dm³, −2%; 0.6 mol/dm³, −9%. Assuming a straight line between neighbouring points, at what concentration would there be no net movement of water? A. 0.20 · B. 0.29 · C. 0.34 · D. 0.40 · E. 0.45 mol/dm³
Worked solution. The change in mass crosses zero between 0.2 and 0.4 mol/dm³, where it falls from +5% to −2%, a drop of 7 percentage points over 0.2 mol/dm³. Reaching zero needs 5 of those 7 points, so the concentration is 0.2 + (5/7 × 0.2) ≈ 0.34 mol/dm³, answer C. Movement of substances is a school topic; the olympiad demand is the data handling.
How Is Olympiad Content Different From O-Level / SEC Physics and Biology?
The school syllabus sets the floor and the olympiads build well above it: several topics in the SJPO syllabus do not appear in the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) syllabus for G3 Physics (K323), and SJBO draws on the International Biology Olympiad syllabus rather than G3 Biology (K325).
From 2027 the national examination at G3 is the Secondary Education Certificate, and SEAB publishes the G3 syllabuses for 2027. Ancourage Academy compared the published topic lists directly.
| Area | O-Level / SEC (G3) | Junior olympiad |
|---|---|---|
| Physics scope | K323: 20 topics in six sections, from measurement to radioactivity | SJPO syllabus: seven areas, adding momentum and collisions, circular motion, rotation, fluid flow (Bernoulli's principle), simple harmonic motion, interference and diffraction, polarisation, capacitors, inductors and the ideal gas |
| Biology scope | K325: 14 topics in four sections, from cell structure to inheritance | SJBO: "Topics typically tested is based on the IBO syllabus" (organiser FAQ) |
| Paper shape | Paper 1 (40 MCQ, 1 h), Paper 2 (structured questions, 1 h 45 min) and Paper 3 (practical, 1 h 50 min) | A single two-hour paper; no practical round in SJBO |
| What earns marks | Syllabus-defined recall, application and practical skills | Combining unfamiliar ideas quickly, often with a hint for higher-level content |
The Physics gap is concrete: the K323 syllabus document does not contain the word "momentum", while the SJPO syllabus lists "Conservation of linear momentum" and "Collisions/explosions, coefficient of restitution". The SJPO syllabus also warns that questions "may make use of additional physics not explicitly mentioned", with hints where the content is at A-Level or university standard. Our O-Level / SEC Physics guide and O-Level / SEC Biology guide set out what the national syllabuses do cover.
Who Should Consider a Science Olympiad?
The olympiads suit a student who is already secure in school science and enjoys hard, unfamiliar problems; they are an enrichment choice, not a remedy for school results.
- A good fit: a student who finishes school Physics or Biology work comfortably, reads beyond the textbook and asks "why" questions that the syllabus does not answer.
- Probably not now: a student whose school science marks are uneven, or who is carrying a heavy Sec 4 load. Time spent on momentum problems is time not spent on the practical paper.
Access runs through the school. SJPO takes no individual applications, and on internal selection by schools SIBiol writes: "We strongly caution against this as it goes against the spirit of SJBO as being a competition for all students who are enthusiastic about learning Biology." If your child is interested, the first step is the school's Physics or Biology teacher, not an outside provider. Students choosing between subject combinations may also find our Pure vs Combined Science comparison useful, because the olympiads assume pure-science depth.
How Can a Student Prepare Alongside School?
Secure the school syllabus first, then add olympiad material in small, regular doses using the organisers' own resources: the SJPO syllabus and sample questions, and past International Biology Olympiad papers for SJBO.
- Check the base. A student who cannot yet explain Newton's laws or osmosis cleanly will not be helped by harder problems. Our Pure and Combined Science strategies guide covers the school-level method.
- Read the organiser's syllabus. Mark the SJPO topics that are new, such as momentum and circular motion, and learn them from an A-Level-level text one at a time.
- Work the official samples under time. The SJPO set has twelve questions with an answer key. For SJBO, the organiser points to past papers on the International Biology Olympiad website.
- Keep the practical paper in view. Olympiad practice does not replace the G3 Paper 3 practical; our science practical and lab exam guide covers that separately.
- Protect the exam year. Both 2026 papers fell in May, in the middle of Term 2 and near its weighted assessments. Sec 4 students should weigh that timing.
To be clear about what Ancourage Academy offers: our Sec 3 Physics, Sec 4 Physics, Sec 3 Biology and Sec 4 Biology classes teach the school syllabus for the national examination. Ancourage Academy does not run an olympiad programme and makes no claim about olympiad results.
Do Olympiad Results Count for DSA-JC or JC Admission?
An SJPO or SJBO award can be one item in a DSA-JC portfolio at a junior college that offers a science talent area, but no organiser or MOE page (checked September 2026) says a result guarantees or counts towards a Direct School Admission offer; MOE says only that applicants may be asked for a portfolio, and that admission still depends on O-Level / SEC results.
MOE's DSA-JC overview says students "can apply based on your talent in sports, CCAs and specific academic areas that may not be demonstrated at the O-Level examinations." Its choose-a-school page lists supporting documents a school may ask for, including "A portfolio showcasing your talents and achievements", and states that "Students accepted through DSA-JC still need to qualify for JC admission based on their O-Level examination results." A student admitted through DSA-JC cannot take part in the Joint Admissions Exercise.
So an olympiad award can be one item in a portfolio for a school that offers a science talent area, and each school sets its own criteria. It is not a separate admission route. Our DSA-Sec talent areas directory covers the P6 route and which schools list Science as a talent area, and our Maths Olympiad pathway guide covers the equivalent questions for Mathematics.
Where Do the Senior Olympiads SPhO and SBO Fit?
The Singapore Physics Olympiad (SPhO) and the Singapore Biology Olympiad (SBO) are the junior college-level competitions, and both are also entered through schools.
The Institute of Physics Singapore's SPhO page uses the same wording as SJPO: schools are invited and "Individual application is not accepted." The Singapore Institute of Biology's olympiads page says SBO draws "top biology students from junior colleges" and that "Students who wish to participate in the Olympiad would need to register through their schools upon invitation by MOE." In JC the relevant school subjects become H2 Physics and H2 Biology, covered in our H2 Physics guide and H2 Biology guide.
Common Questions About SJPO and SJBO
Can my child register for SJPO or SJBO on their own?
Not for SJPO: the Institute of Physics Singapore states that individual application is not accepted and that registration is through the school. For SJBO, schools register students, but the organiser's registration page says a student unable to register through their school may register with an exam centre appointed by the organiser. Start with the school's science teacher.
When are SJPO and SJBO held?
In 2026 the SJBO Theory Round was on 6 May and SJPO was on Thursday 21 May, from 3pm to 5pm. SJBO registration ran from 13 February to 13 March and SJPO registration closed on 2 April. As of September 2026 the organisers had not published 2027 dates, so confirm with the school or the organisers early in the year.
Does an SJPO or SJBO medal help with DSA-JC?
MOE says DSA-JC applicants may be asked for a portfolio of talents and achievements, and an olympiad award can be part of one where a junior college offers a science talent area. MOE does not say any competition result guarantees an offer, each school sets its own criteria, and a DSA-JC place is confirmed only if the student qualifies for JC on O-Level / SEC results.
Which secondary syllabus topics do SJPO and SJBO build on?
Both papers assume the school syllabus and go beyond it: several SJPO topics do not appear in the SEAB syllabus for G3 Physics (K323), and SJBO draws on content past G3 Biology (K325), so a student should be secure on the O-Level / SEC syllabus first. Ancourage Academy teaches secondary Physics and Biology to that syllabus and does not run an olympiad programme; a trial class (usually $18) starts with a short diagnostic.