Engineering Art and design Academic
Odyssey of the Mind
Teams solve a long-term creative problem over months, then face a spontaneous problem they have never seen.
Run by Creative Competitions, Inc.
Key facts
- Eligible grades
-
US divisions for 2026-27: Division II is grades 6 to 8, Division III is grades 9 to 12, and Division I covers younger students up to grade 5, with a non-competitive Primary division for kindergarten to grade 2. The oldest team member determines the division.
The official Program Guide states Divisions II and III explicitly; the Division I grade range was taken from the Vermont association's FAQ, which gives grades K to 5. Division IV is collegiate.Source, checked 2026-09-02
- Official divisions
-
Division I to grade 5, Division II grades 6 to 8, Division III grades 9 to 12, plus a non-competitive Primary division for kindergarten to grade 2. The oldest team member sets the division. International teams are placed by age instead.
Based on the organiser's own divisions.
- Eligible ages
-
For international (non-US) teams, eligibility is by age: Division II is less than 15 years of age on 1 May 2027, and Division I is younger still. Division III is for teams whose oldest member does not qualify for I or II and attends a regular school.
Odyssey of the Mind uses grades for US teams and ages for other international teams; both are stated by the organiser.Source, checked 2026-09-02
- Individual or team
- Team · Up to seven members may participate on any team from Primary through Division III. Each team may include one student who attends a different school or is home schooled.
- Where it runs
- In person · United States, International
- Entry cost
- A national membership, $290 for a standard membership according to state associations, plus tournament registration fees set by each state association (for example $75 per team in Vermont, $25 for Primary).The national FAQ directs cost questions to your Association Director, so the $290 figure is from a state association page rather than the national site. Teams also face a strict spending limit on their long-term solution.
- Registration deadline
- Set locally, not published as a single national date Set by each state association; not published nationally.
- Competition dates
- The 2026-27 long-term problem synopses are published. Tournament dates are set by each state association. For reference, the 2026 World Finals were at Iowa State University, 27 to 30 May 2026.
- Difficulty
- Some preparation neededYou will want a few weeks of targeted practice. Most motivated students place respectably.
- Prizes
- Trophies, medals and World Finals qualificationNo cash prizes. Placement and creativity awards.
What Odyssey of the Mind is
Odyssey of the Mind runs two halves. Teams of up to seven spend months building a solution to a long-term problem, which might be a mechanical device, a performance, a structure built from balsa that holds weight, or a technical challenge, and they present it as an eight-minute performance. Then on competition day they are given a spontaneous problem with no warning and a few minutes to respond as a team. Adults are strictly forbidden from helping, and that rule is enforced.
How the competition works
Teams select one long-term problem: five competitive problems plus one primary problem for young teams. At every level of competition the team also solves a spontaneous problem.
Eligibility notes
Division I is up to grade 5, Division II grades 6 to 8, Division III grades 9 to 12. A non-competitive primary division exists for the youngest students.
Is Odyssey of the Mind right for you?
- Experience needed
- None. This is one of the most accessible team competitions available and starts in elementary school.
- Time commitment
- Several months of weekly meetings from autumn to the spring tournament.
- What you actually do
- You build and perform an eight-minute solution your team invented entirely themselves, then improvise an answer to a problem you have never seen, in front of judges, in a few minutes.
A good fit if
- You like building and performing in equal measure
- Your team includes people who are creative rather than academic
- You want something where adults genuinely cannot do the work for you
Probably not for you if
- Students who want an individual competition
- Teams whose parents will not stay out of it, since outside assistance is penalised
Common mistakes
- Accepting adult help. Outside assistance is scored against you and judges ask students directly who did what.
- Neglecting spontaneous practice. It is a large share of the score and the only part you cannot prepare a solution for.
- Exceeding the materials cost limit, which is checked and penalised.
How to register
- Find your state or regional association through the official site and register a team with a coach.
- Choose one of the five long-term problems released each autumn. Read the problem document in full; scoring is extremely specific.
- Work within the materials cost limit, which is part of the scoring and is checked.
- Practise spontaneous problems weekly. Teams under-practise this and it costs them at every tournament.
What skills you need
- Creative problem solving
- Building and engineering within constraints
- Performance and script writing
- Thinking fast as a group
- Working without adult help
Recommended resources
-
Odyssey of the Mind (also: sample spontaneous problems)
Association directory, the current year's problems, rules and the coaching handbook. The organisers publish practice spontaneous problems, which is the highest-value weekly practice a team can do.
Past problems and materials
Only materials the organiser or an authorised archive publishes openly are listed here.
- Past problems and sample spontaneous sets
Published by Creative Competitions.
Frequently asked questions
Can parents help build?
No, and this is enforced more strictly than in any other competition in this directory. Outside assistance is scored against the team, and judges question students directly about who did the work. Coaches may teach skills but may not contribute ideas or labour.
What is the spontaneous problem?
A problem your team has never seen, given on competition day, with a few minutes to respond. It might be verbal, hands-on, or both. It is a large share of the score and the part teams most often under-practise.
Reviews, tips and resources from other students
Posts are public. Do not share your full name, school, address or contact details.
Something out of date?
If a deadline, fee or eligibility rule on this page no longer matches the official site, flag it and it goes into the review queue.
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