United States Geography Championships
Middle & Elementary School Divisions Homepage
2024 National Champions:
8th Grade – De-An Chen, St. Paul Academy, MN
7th Grade – Thiyagesh Venkatesan, Challenger School – Strawberry Park, CA
6th Grade – Jiyan Singh, University School of Milwaukee, WI
5th Grade – Armaan Gulati, Samantha Smith Elementary School, WA
4th Grade – Yiyang Lu, Solana Santa Fe, CA
3rd Grade and Younger – Yakshit Bagad, Reeves Elementary School, TX
The US Geography Championships Middle & Elementary School Divisions Overview
The US Geography Championships is an exam competition for individual students, testing knowledge of geographic concepts and applications of geography to real world situations. For students competing in the Middle & Elementary School Divisions, the US Geography Championships consists solely of the National Championships, which will take place on Friday, May 24, 2024 in Orlando, FL.
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Competition Format
For students competing in the Middle & Elementary School Divisions, the US Geography Championships is a one-stage competition, consisting solely of the National Championships. Students must have qualified for and be competing in the National Championships of the National Geography Bee to compete in the US Geography Championships.
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National Championships
The US Geography Championships for the Middle & Elementary School Divisions consists solely of the National Championships, which for the 2023-24 academic year will take place at the Hyatt Regency Orlando in Orlando, FL on Friday, May 24, 2024.
Registration for the National Championships opens in November and runs through early May on this page. We are expecting approximately 400 students to compete in the National Championships of the 2024 US Geography Championships, and we hope you will be able to join us! Nationals weekend will also feature many other events, including the Opening Ceremonies, a Family Quiz Night, Universal Studios Night, Intro to Model United Nations, various talks and receptions, and the Jeopardy! Charity Games. A full schedule of the 2024 Nationals Events is available here.
The cost to compete at the 2024 National Championships is $95 if registration takes place prior to the end of 2023; otherwise it is $99. Registration for the National Championships opens in November and runs through early May on this page.
Please note that the format of the 2024 Middle & Elementary School USGC National Championships has been changed since 2023. However, students are still advised to review past USGC National Championships Exams as the questions themselves are still good practice and cover much of the same material that will be tested in 2024.
Overall USGC Rank Calculation
For the overall USGC rank, placements will be determined on a points system using the following formula –
Multiple Choice Exam points x .25 + Free-Response Exam points x .75 = overall score (out of 100)
Overall scores will be calculated to 3 decimal places and students will be ranked based on their overall scores. If there is a tie for any of the top ten positions in the overall rankings, ties will be broken using the following criteria (in respective order) –
- Points earned on the Free-Response Exam.
- Points earned on questions 31-50 of the Multiple Choice Exam.
If students are still tied following these two tiebreakers, an additional five question multiple choice exam will be administered, with the student earning the most points on this exam taking the higher placement. This process may be repeated as needed until the tie is broken.
For all questions on the 2024 Middle & Elementary School National Championships, please email ems-info@iacompetitions.com.
Stage
International Geography Championships
Students who compete in the Middle & Elementary School Divisions of the US Geography Championships can qualify for the 2024 International Geography Championships which will be held in Vienna, Austria from July 13-20! Students qualify for IGC by placing in the top 25% at a Middle & Elementary School National Geography Bee Regional Finals tournament, by placing in the top 50% at the 2023 or 2024 National Championships of the National Geography Bee, or by placing in the top 50% at the National Championships in 2023 or 2024 for the US Geography Championships. Middle & Elementary School students may also qualify for IGC by competing in qualifying events in the Junior Varsity Division.
The International Geography Championships is a week-long event with numerous competitions, field trips, family activities and more. In each event, medals are awarded to the top 3 competing students in each age division. US students compete for their state; students from other countries (or students in the USA who were born abroad or who have foreign citizenship) represent those countries. Two of the most prestigious events at IGC are the International Geography Bee World Championships and the International Geography Bowl World Championships; an overall IGC Championship title is also awarded in each age division; please view the website at www.geochampionships.com for further details on all events and to register. We are expecting 125-200 students to attend the 2024 IGC and hope that you will be able to join us!
As part of the 2024 International Geography Championships, an optional day trip to Budapest (featuring one or two official medal events) on July 13 is also offered. There will also be an optional week-long Central Europe extension trip following the conclusion of the IGC which will visit Prague, Dresden, Berlin, and other points in between Vienna and Berlin which is open to any family with a student age 9-17 (participation in IGC is not required to take part in the trip).
For all questions on the 2024 International Geography Championships and the Central Europe Trip, please email david@iacompetitions.com.
US Geography Championships Practice Resources
Rules & FAQs
National History Bowl Results
Past National Champions
On mobile, swipe right to view all columns
Year | Division | National Champion | School | City | State |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023 | 8th Grade | Connor Windust | Eagle Ridge Middle School | Ashburn | VA |
2023 | 7th Grade | Satvik Jain | Burleigh Manor Middle School | Ellicott City | MD |
2023 | 6th Grade | Davis Hanes | Woodbury Middle School | Salem | NH |
2023 | 5th Grade | Jiwoo Kim | Half Day School | Lincolnshire | IL |
2023 | 4th Grade & Younger | Aidan Zhang | Sycamore Ridge School | San Diego | CA |
2022 | 8th Grade | Ray Dai | Fredonia Middle School | Fredonia | NY |
2022 | 7th Grade | Anish Raja | South Forsyth Middle School | Cumming | GA |
2022 | 6th Grade | Satvik Jain | Burleigh Manor Middle School | Ellicott City | MD |
2022 | Elementary School | Ishaan Deshmukh | Blanchard Memorial School | Boxborough | MA |
2021 | 8th Grade | John Augustyn | Notre Dame Catholic School | Clarendon Hills | IL |
2021 | 7th Grade | Ishaan Pusuluri | Felix V. Festa Middle School | West Nyack | NY |
2021 | 6th Grade | Eshaan Sombhatta | Colvin Run Elementary School | Vienna | VA |
2021 | Elementary School | Nicolas Baxter | Mantua Elementary School | Fairfax | VA |
2020 | 8th Grade | Ashmith Kumbala | Uplift North Hills Preparatory | Irving | TX |
2020 | 7th Grade | Thomas Catuosco | John Adams Middle School | Edison | NJ |
2020 | 6th Grade | Ishaan Pusuluri | Felix V. Festa Middle School | West Nyack | NY |
2020 | Elementary School | Anish Raja | Brookwood Elementary School | Cumming | GA |
2019 | 8th Grade | Arnav Dharmagadda | Russell Middle School | Russell | KY |
2019 | 7th Grade | Ashrith Reddy | Marvin P. Baker Middle School | Corpus Christi | TX |
2019 | 6th Grade | Jishnu Nayak | Peter Hansen Elementary School | Mountain House | CA |
2019 | Elementary School | Roman Gagliardi | Hindley Elementary School | Darien | CT |
2018 | 8th Grade | Srikrishna Darbha | College Station Middle School | College Station | TX |
2018 | 7th Grade | Siddardh Budamagunta | Davis Drive Middle School | Cary | NC |
2018 | 6th Grade | Bianca Joaquin | St. Joan of Arc School | Evanston | IL |
2018 | 5th Grade | Lee Balkcom | Homeschool | FL | |
2018 | 4th Grade & Younger | Marc Lindemann | Laddie A. Decker Sound Beach School | Miller Place | NY |
2017 | Middle School | Kai Waddell | Lux Middle School | Lincoln | NE |
2017 | Elementary | Siddharth Kamannavar | Stratford School | Sunnyvale | CA |
2016 | 8th Grade | Andy Tutuc | Canyon Vista Middle School | Austin | TX |
2016 | 7th Grade | Rohil Bhinge | Nysmith School | Herndon | VA |
2016 | Elementary | Samik Bhinge | Mosby Woods Elementary School | Fairfax | VA |
2015 | Middle School | John Phipps | Middlesex Middle School | Darien | CT |
2015 | Elementary | Rohil Bhinge | Stratford School | Herndon | VA |