Can I have access to the problems from the last contest?

You can find them at Stepik (free registration required).

If I missed the dates of the competition, can I still see and solve problems?

Yes, you will be able and solve the problems both from Qualification and Final Rounds. You will not get points for them.

What skills are required from the participants?

Participants should know how to code in one of the programming languages, especially how to read and write from standard input/output streams and files. The knowledge of algorithms and data structures, machine learning and basics of molecular biology will be helpful. Any programming language can be used.

Can teams participate?

No. Bioinformatics Contest is the competition among individuals, so groups, unfortunately, are not eligible to participate.

Are there any prizes?

Yes, the top five participants get awesome prizes! In addition, the top 30 get honorary Bioinformatics Contest T-shirts.

All genetic testing will be conducted depending on the winners' location. Organizers reserve the right to exchange a prize in case it is not available at that location.

What is Qualification Round?

The Qualification Round is the first stage of the Contest and is required to go further. It lasts 7 days. This round is more educational than competitive. It will help you get familiar with Stepik and the testing system. Participants will also be able to assess the level of required skills.

The Qualification Round is open for all.

Do I have to sign the Honor Code before the Contest?

Yes, it is obligatory to sign the Honor Code to enter the Contest. You will find the Honor Code within the introduction module on Stepik.

Please note that it may require some time to get a point for signing the Honor Code. If you didn't get a point and can't enter the Qualification Round, wait several minutes and reload the page.

How the Final Round is organized?

Everybody, who gets the required number of points in the Qualification Round, automatically advance to the Final Round. The day before the finals they receive notification that it is going to start soon. Like in the Qualification, you are given several problems to solve. Please don't forget to read the rules carefully!

You will be able to solve problems within 24 hours. The winner will be the one who gets the highest points in the Final Round. Please note, that the Qualification Round score will not contribute towards the final result.

You will be able to follow the competition scoreboard in real-time. Winners will be announced during the week after the Contest.

What type of problems I should expect?

There will be two types of problems: with exact and approximate answers.

For problems with the approximate answers the test inputs will be downloadable files. Your task will be to find good solutions for these tests and upload them to the testing system. Here, almost anything can be used to solve the problems, including existing bioinformatics tools, libraries, and frameworks, but excluding help of other people.

Are there any examples of the problems?

Yes, you can check out examples from previous Bioinformatics Contests on Stepik:

• Bioinformatics Contest 2021
• Bioinformatics Contest 2019
• Bioinformatics Contest 2018
• Bioinformatics Contest 2021

How the problems are graded?

Each problem has its own number of points that you could get for solving it. In the problems with exact answers you will get points only if your answer satisfies all the requirements of the problem and passes all the tests.

In the problems with approximate answers you will get the points calculated by a formula given in the statement of the problem. In this case, for each test the best submission attempt is used for the final score.

How solutions will be submitted?

You will be given a test that you download and then you should upload your output for that test in a plain text format. In order to solve such problem you could use everything you want except for the help of other people. The output file should not exceed 5 MB.

In the case of interactive problem the interaction protocol through the text files will be specified in the problem statement.

What could be the additional limits for the problems?

You can not submit your solution very often. As a rule, 10 seconds should pass between two consecutive submissions. These constraints will be described in each problem.

What programming languages I can use to solve the problem?

Any programming language can be used. There will be no problems where you should submit a solution code. For each problem you will be given a test input and you should provide only the output in the text format.

How the scoreboard is calculated?

Your points at the end of the round are calculated as a sum of your points for each problem in the round. The Qualification and Final Round are scored independently. The prizes will be awarded basing only on the results of the Final Round.

Where can I learn more about previous contests?

Bioinformatics Contest has taken place since January 2017. You can check out the results published online:

• bioinf.me/en/contest/2017
• bioinf.me/en/contest/2018
• bioinf.me/en/contest/2019
• bioinf.me/en/contest/2021

I can't find results from the Bioinformatics Contest 2020 or 2022. Where should I look?

We didn't organize the contest in 2020 and 2022. That's why there is no information about them.

We will try to keep the contest regular (maybe every two years). And you can help us with it! If we have ideas for the problems (you can submit them here) or more sponsors (they can contact us at contest@bioinf.me), it will make it easier for us to organize further contests!

I have an idea of a problem that I think may be a good fit for the future Contest. Can I submit it to the Contest Team somehow?

Yes, sure! We welcome contributions to the creation of the problems. Please fill in this form, and we will discuss it further in more detail. Authors of the problems selected for the Contest will get prizes from the organizers.