The leading economics competition for high school students
The British Economics Olympiad
Take part in the leading Economics competition for secondary students across the British Isles.
Designed to challenge and inspire, the British Economics Olympiad is a unique opportunity for students to push themselves further and excel in the Economics field.
Budding economists will develop critical problem-solving skills, learn to think more creatively and get a chance to test their knowledge in new, real-world situations. They could even find themselves representing the UK at the prestigious International Economics Olympiad.
Registration for 2027 opens in September 2026.
BEO@Rochester
The British Economics Olympiad is brought to you by the Economics Department at Rochester Independent College. At RIC, we offer a fresh alternative to traditional independent education.
One of our former star sixth form students, Angelina from Moscow, was frustrated there wasn’t an Olympiad style competition for her to compete in like her classmates in Maths and the sciences - at the time, there was no accredited host UK centre for the Economics Olympiad. Undeterred, she contacted the International Economics Olympiad Committee and worked to help accredit RIC. The British Economics Olympiad now serves as the national qualifier for the UK team.
Angelina, the RIC student who started it all, is currently studying Economics at KCL.
Find out more about The British Economics Olympiad at RIC
The BEO (British Economics Olympiad) is a national competition for UK secondary school students run by Rochester Independent College on behalf of the International Economics Olympiad (IEO) Committee.
The competition is designed to promote interest in economics and to identify talented students who may become future leaders in the field.
The competition consists of 3 stages:
- Stage 1: 50 Economics Questions - Carried out online with a set time limit.
- Stage 2: Financial Literacy - Multiple choice questions with a set time limit.
- Stage 3: Business case - Presentation of case solutions to a panel of judges here at RIC.
The top performing students are then given the opportunity to represent the UK at the International Economics Olympiad.
The Economics Olympiad is a great opportunity for secondary school students who are interested in economics to showcase their knowledge and skills, meet other students from around the world who share their interests, and gain valuable experience and recognition.
- Challenge yourself by practising your economics skills and knowledge outside the classroom
- Compete with students all over the world in a prestigious international competition
- Make your personal statement more competitive
The British Economics Olympiad is open to all secondary schools and colleges across the UK. However, the questions are aimed at GCSE and A-Level students so we recommend that entrants should be at least 14 years of age. Participants must be 19 years old or younger in order to be eligible.
The competition is designed to challenge, so it will not be easy. Students should see it as an opportunity to develop their thinking and problem solving skills, and to test their existing knowledge of economics in real-world situations.
Run annually, the competition is made up of three stages that start with a multiple choice test and end with four students representing the UK at the prestigious International Economics Olympiad.
Registrations for the BEO 2026 are now closed. Register your interest for the 2027 competition now.
If you have any queries, please email ieo@rochester-college.org.uk.
Reading around the subject, getting to grips with the competition format, and tackling past papers will all help you prepare for the British Economics Olympiad. Read our full tips for getting ready for the competition.
You will be placed into 5 teams of 5 students and given a case study to work on as a team. Each group will create a presentation for the afternoon for the judges to consider. The winning team will represent the UK at the World Finals. In 2026, the finals will take place in Suzhou, China in July 2026.
Groups will be assessed in 4 key areas:
- Analytical thinking
- Conceptual thinking
- Quantitative thinking
- Communication skills
Want to participate in the next British Economics Olympiad? You can express interest in the 2027 competition now. Registration opens in September 2026.
UK finals day at RIC on 26 March 2026
Congratulations to the winning UK team - Freddie from @cgsbucks, Thomas from @cranbrookschoolkent, Oscar from @eastnorfolk, Yash from @rgshighwycombe and Maya from @tiffinschool. They will be travelling to Shenzhen in July for the world finals.
They will be accompanied by RIC’s David Hodges and Vici Hodges - and the top performing @rochesterindcollege student in the event - Kiril- who won a place in the final 25 of 1700+ entrants.
You can read more about the previous competition by going to our page on the BEO 2026.
