The College of New Jersey has been selected as one of 29 institutions across the U.S. and Canada to host the 2026 USA Mathematical Olympiad and USA Junior Mathematical Olympiad.
This year’s olympiad marks the first time students will gather at official regional sites to participate in this national competition.
“Our selection as a host site reflects the strength of mathematics in New Jersey and the high academic quality of The College of New Jersey,” said Tom Hagedorn, professor of mathematics.
The Mathematical Association of America announced the list of host institutions in January.
The USAMO and USAJMO will take place March 21–22, 2026, bringing approximately 40 of the nation’s top high school mathematics students to campus. These competitions are essential in selecting students for the United States team for the International Mathematical Olympiad.
As Hagedorn explained it, the USAMO and USAJMO are the equivalent of the national Olympic tryouts for physical sports. Approximately 600 top-scoring students from the American Invitational Mathematics Examination are invited to participate in the regionals. Each competition consists of six proof-based problems completed over two days for a total of nine hours. The top scorers will go on to represent the United States of America at the annual International Mathematical Olympiad, which will be held at Shanghai, China in July.
Two years ago, the U.S. took first place and last year the U.S. placed second in the world.
The TCNJ host site will be led by four faculty organizers, and hopes to extend invitations to mathematics and statistics majors to assist in running the competition.
— Leah Cruz ’26