New Delhi: Kushagra Juneja – a student of FIITJEE Punjabi Bagh Centre made India proud by winning the Bronze Medal at the 27th International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) held at Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Around 320 students participated in the Olympiad from 80 countries in the final round i.e. IOI 2015. India was represented by a team of 4 students i.e. Kushagra and 3 others. IOI had two 5 hour tests conducted on two different days in which one had to solve 6 problems and code on computer programming language. Each question carried 100 marks. The programs are typically run on a grader wherein it runs on input files and then compare them with the corresponding standard output files. Based on how many test cases a program has solved correctly, marks are awarded.
Kushagra had to pass through 3 stages before making it to the IOI 2015. This is not the first time that Kushagra has won an international title. In fact, he was crowned as the WORLD TOPPER and a Gold Medallist in the International Junior Science Olympiad in 2014.
After returning to India, excited Kushagra said – “My experience at the IOI was fabulous. I interacted with the students around the globe and learnt about their customs & traditions and the way they learn Computing in their country. I think I have achieved a lot more than the name and fame by clearing IOI. I learnt a lot during my preparation for the IOI too. Also, I developed many problem solving skills during my preparation which would be very essential in my later life especially in the areas like Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and not just restricted to Computer Science. Overall, this experience increased my IQ and boosted my overall personality.”
Responding to a question – as to what would be his advice to juniors; Kushagra said – “Although we were allowed to program in either of these languages: C, C++, Java & Pascal it is mandatory to know any one of these languages. But since time is also an important parameter in competitions like IOI, I would recommend a student to learn C++, because it’s Standard Template Library(STL) is awesome i.e. we get a chance to shorten our code by using the standard codes fed into the STL.”
Kushagra intends to become a computer engineer from IIT and is currently studying at the FIITJEE Punjabi Bagh Centre. He says, “A sizeable part in Computer Science Engineering pertains to programming & algorithms and this competition teaches just that. Also, this competition helps indirectly by building IQ and problem solving skills.” He remains extremely thankful to FIITJEE Punjabi Bagh Centre as he started training towards IQ & Logical Reasoning development from class VII onwards.
Mr. S K Juneja (Kushagra’s father) – chartered accountant by profession says – “Since he joined FIITJEE Punjabi Bagh Centre coaching well in advance i.e. in class 7th, he is quite ahead of most of other students in the city, his confidence and knowledge in the subjects is much higher vis-a-vis other students. Since he has participated and competed in many national and international competitions in the last three years, he has interacted with most of the brilliant students and faculties in India as well as in the world; his maturity level has also improved. Now he is in class XIth, he is well equipped to take any challenge nationally and internationally. My contribution in his achievement is only to the extent that I remind him; time and again that nothing is impossible in the life if one really wants to achieve that.
Elated, Mr. Partha Halder, Centre Head of FIITJEE Punjabi Bagh Centre said – “Kushagra has developed a very strong IQ and Logical Reasoning skills which are very essential skills required for competing at the highest level. He has made us and India proud several times in the past, he was the WORLD TOPPER in International Junior Science Olympiad, cleared few other olympaids and now IOI. My heartiest congratulations to Kushagra and to his parents”
About IOI, 2015 and the various stages
1st Stage – The first stage is the ZIO (Zonal Informatics Olympiad) – a written exam to test the IQ of students and questions are algorithm based. ZCO (Zonal Computing Olympiad) –this is another exam through which one can reach the second stage – it is essentially a programming based test wherein one has submit programs to a grader to assess whether it gave correct or incorrect output. In India, 300 students are selected out of 1000 students to compete at the next level.
2nd Stage – The second stage is INOI (Indian National Olympiad in Informatics) – wherein one has to solve 2 problems in 3 hours and solution is desired in programming language – C, C++, Java & Pascal. 25 students are selected out of 300 who then go ahead and participate in a camp held at The International School Bangalore.
3rd Stage – The third stage is the camp which is held for 8 days. At first all contestants are familiarized with algorithms and programming techniques. After which the contestants are required to appear in 3 team selection tests, each of which are 5 hour tests comprising of 3 problems. One requires deep knowledge in programming and algorithm. Based on the correctness of the problems solved top 4 students are selected to represent India at the IOI.
4th Stage – A Pre-departure camp was organized for 10 days at the Chennai Mathematical Institute, Chennai. It is not a part of selection process. Selected students are trained and mentored before the IOI.
5th Stage – IOI has two 5 hour tests conducted on two different days in which one has to solve 6 problems and code on computer programming language. Each question carried 100 marks. The programs are typically run on a grader wherein it runs on input files and then compare them with the corresponding standard output files. Based on how many test cases a program has solved correctly marks are awarded.