2021 Premier

What is it?

Every November, hundreds of high school-level students around the world showcase their skills by competing in an individual-based physics competition hosted internationally. This event bears the name Physics Unlimited Premier Competition.

The 2021 Premier Competition took place in multiple time zones on Sunday, November 14, 2021. Due to COVID-19, as last year, the event was hosted and proctored virtually by our volunteers. Separate sessions were hosted by our international partners for students located within China, Germany, South Korea, Turkey, Vietnam, and Taiwan.

Besides sessions administered by our international partners in the above-listed countries, we hosted the following online sessions for students from all other countries:
Session 1 (for most of Europe and Asia): 9:00 am - 10:30 am CET (UTC+1)
Session 2 (for US, Canada, and the Americas): 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EST (UTC-5)

Assignment and solutions

Problem packet: 2021 exam

Solutions and scoring guide (updated): 2021 solutions

Rankings and recognition

347 eligible submissions from 19 countries were read and scored by volunteers for Physics Unlimited and by our international partners' graders. The following results include all submissions received during our two general sessions and sessions hosted by the above-listed host sites:

Sorted by score, out of 85 points: 2021 results, by score (older versions: v1, v0)

Sorted by participants' home country: 2021 results, by country (older versions: v1, v0)

Preparation details

The following statements were posted ahead of registration for the event.

Material on this exam may assess anything covered in AP Physics 1, 2, or C curricula (or their international equivalents), so all students are encouraged to refresh their memory of major topics from these or equivalent classes.

Competitors should prepare at least 10 sheets of blank paper, a ruler (for drawing a graph in one of the problems), and a simple numeric calculator.

During the virtual session, we would ask for a mobile device with the video software to face each competitor's desk from the rear side, so that the working space and a laptop screen with the problem packet is visible to proctors.

We will announce further updates here and on our official Facebook page, which we encourage everyone to follow for timely notifications.

Kinds of prizes
The standard prizes include conventional gold, silver, and bronze-level recognition certificates, in addition to honorable mention certificates. All competitors additionally receive a certificate of participation. Due to the global nature of this competition, all prizes are to be e-mailed by the organizers to their correspodning recipients in digital form in the week or so following the official release of results. (We apologize in advance for any operational delays.)

We thank everyone for your interest and participation in Premier Competition 2021!