Category: Blog

International Economics Olympiad (IEO)

As the only economics-focused event among the 13 global scientific Olympiads, IEO was initiated and is chaired by Nobel laureate in economics Eric Maskin. It covers over 50 countries and regions. Its results are highly recognized by economics and business programs at world-leading universities such as Harvard, Yale, Oxford, and Cambridge. National team selection is the highest proof of an applicant's academic strength. Hanlin students have continuously broken through in IEO, cumulatively securing multiple national team selections over the years, maintaining a leading position in the industry:

2025: Student L successfully selected for the IEO China Hong Kong Team

2025: 2 students successfully selected for the IEO China National Team

2022: 5 students successfully selected for the IEO China National Team

2019: 1 student successfully selected for the IEO China National Team

National Economics Challenge (NEC)

Organized by the Council for Economic Education (CEE), NEC has a history of over 20 years and is the most influential high school economics competition in the United States. Its content overlaps with 85% of the economics knowledge points in AP, IB, A-Level, and other international curricula. Over 60% of global round participants are admitted to top 30 universities such as Harvard and Yale each year, making it an extremely valuable background enhancement project for business school applications. Hanlin students have consistently dominated the NEC global stage, achieving top global rankings for two consecutive years with numerous remarkable feats:

2025 NEC USA Round: Teams from WLSA, Shebei, and Qidi won QT+CT double global first place; teams from Qidi, Qingmiao, and SAS won global second place

2024 NEC USA Round: Teams from Pinghe, Xinghewan, and Linke won global second place

1. Official Recognition by Globally Top Institutions, Maximizing Application Competitiveness

As an International Olympic system event, IEO results are widely recognized by globally top universities. Historically, 65% of award winners have successfully entered economics programs at Ivy League universities, HKU, and other top institutions, and 30% of top performers receive direct invitations to summer schools at Wharton and the University of Chicago. Meanwhile, NEC experience is listed by Harvard, MIT, Stanford, and other prestigious schools as a key reference for business school applications. Over 60% of global round participants ultimately enter Ivy League or UK G5 universities. Oxford University's economics department even regards the NEC Global Round Gold Award as a direct certificate for autonomous admissions.

2. Full Alignment with Business Training Systems, Early Preparation for University Academic Requirements

The assessment systems of these two major events deeply align with the business training logic of overseas prestigious schools: IEO includes three modules—economics theory assessment, financial practice, and business roadshow—comprehensively evaluating students' micro/macroeconomics knowledge, financial investment abilities, and business case analysis skills. NEC, through economics assessment, case analysis, economic innovation challenges, and other segments, fully hones students' critical thinking, logical reasoning, public speaking, and teamwork skills. The preparation process essentially equates to completing undergraduate-level foundational economics coursework in advance, significantly improving students' performance in international curricula and academic adaptability.

3. Creating a Differentiated Application Background, Highlighting Personal Core Strengths

In an era of increasingly homogenized business school applications, major achievements such as IEO national team selection and top NEC global round rankings allow applicants to stand out among a sea of candidates. Whether it is the academic depth shown by individual event honors or the leadership and collaboration skills demonstrated in team events, these achievements precisely align with the selection criteria of Ivy League and G5 schools for future business leaders, becoming core materials in personal statements and interviews, significantly boosting the success rate of applications.

1. Top-Tier Business Faculty Team, Full Protection for Preparation

Core mentors of Hanlin's business research and teaching team graduated from economics and finance-related programs at global top institutions such as Ivy League and G5 schools. They have years of experience teaching and leading teams in international competitions, deeply understanding the question-setting logic, scoring standards, and preparation techniques for IEO, NEC, and other events. Most mentors have national team participation/coaching experience in competitions and official certification in international curricula, enabling them to precisely identify competition focus areas and students' weaknesses and develop targeted preparation plans.

2. Exclusive Research and Teaching System, Suitable for All-Stage Learning Needs

Addressing the pain points of no official systematic textbooks for IEO and NEC events and scattered available materials, Hanlin's research and teaching team, leveraging years of teaching experience, has created exclusive refined lecture notes and preparation material systems:

Deeply analyzing core competition points, covering microeconomics, macroeconomics, international economics and current affairs, business case analysis, and other full-module content, highly compatible with AP, IB, and A-Level international curricula

Integrating past competition real questions, systematically breaking them down by focus and difficulty, with exclusive answer templates and problem-solving techniques to help students efficiently grasp question logic

Creating tiered content from introductory foundation, basic reinforcement, sprint elevation, to national team selection for students at different levels, suitable for preparation needs at different stages

3. Tiered Course System, Personalized Teaching Services

Hanlin has created a flexible and diverse course system for students with different foundations and preparation goals, including full-program courses, intensive courses, sprint courses, one-on-one exclusive tutoring, and other course types. It supports both online and offline teaching modes, meeting the learning needs of students both domestically and internationally. At the same time, the teaching team provides full-cycle academic support services, from pre-competition planning, detailed knowledge lectures, real-question mock tests, to pre-competition sprint, team integration, and mock defense. They track students' learning progress throughout the process, adjusting teaching plans in real-time to ensure students fully adapt to the competition rhythm and maximize their potential.

1. "All-rounder" Students Wanting to Explore the "Big Business" Direction

Target Audience: If you currently only know that you want to study business but are unsure whether to choose accounting, marketing, or management, BPA is the best "touchstone". Students can choose from various formats including objective assessments, business presentations, and team documentation based on their interests. This flexibility is great for those wanting to clarify their academic direction through competition.[reference:0]

2. Strong Communicators and "Stage-Presence" Presenters

Target Audience: Unlike purely paper-based tests, BPA includes extensive live presentation sessions. This suits students who are outgoing, skilled at creating high-quality slides, and adept at presenting business plans in fluent English. BPA judges place great value on professional demeanor, including business attire, eye contact, and the ability to think on your feet.[reference:1]

3. International Students Aiming for Top 30 Universities

Target Audience: Admissions officers highly value a student's "career readiness" when considering a business background. BPA, known as a "preparatory course for the workplace," provides awards that strongly prove you not only possess academic knowledge but also the practical ability to solve real-world business problems. It serves as a powerful endorsement for applications to business schools in the U.S. and U.K.[reference:2]

1. The "Professionalism" Challenge in Knowledge Coverage

The Challenge: The objective section of BPA examines professional knowledge in great detail. Many test points involve commercial law, tax rules, advanced accounting standards, etc., which are only superficially covered in standard AP/IB/A-Level textbooks. Students need to dedicate their summer to significant extracurricular academic strengthening.[reference:3]

2. The "Mental Toughness" Test of Live Presentations

The Challenge: The final round of BPA usually includes a judge's Q&A session. The judges, often real-world industry professionals or professors, will pose extremely sharp questions about your plan. If the team's coordination isn't tight or if they lack a deep understanding of their plan, it's easy to crumble psychologically under the spotlight.[reference:4]