The Michigan Mathematics Prize Competition (MMPC) is an annual high school mathematics competition held in Michigan. First founded in 1958, the competition has grown to include over 10,000 high school participants (although middle-schoolers may also participate through a high school). The director and host of this competition changes every three years, the most recent director being Stephanie Edwards of Hope College. This competition consists of two parts, which are added together to determine score:

Part I: A 40 question, multiple-choice exam open to all Michigan high schoolers

Part II: A 5 question, proof exam given only to the Top 1000 scorers on Part I

The Top 100 scorers on the combined score of both parts of the competition are honored at an awards banquet, usually at the host university, although recent years have seen more than 100 people being awarded due to ties.

Problem difficulty

The problems on the competition range from basic algebra

Algebra

Algebra is the branch of mathematics concerning the study of the rules of operations and relations, and the constructions and concepts arising from them, including terms, polynomials, equations and algebraic structures...

 to precalculus

Precalculus

In American mathematics education, precalculus , an advanced form of secondary school algebra, is a foundational mathematical discipline. It is also called Introduction to Analysis. In many schools, precalculus is actually two separate courses: Algebra and Trigonometry...

 and are within the grasp of a high schooler's mathematical knowledge. The contest only contains concepts at school, which means that geometry

Geometry

Geometry arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships. Geometry was one of the two fields of pre-modern mathematics, the other being the study of numbers ....

 and combinatorics

Combinatorics

Combinatorics is a branch of mathematics concerning the study of finite or countable discrete structures. Aspects of combinatorics include counting the structures of a given kind and size , deciding when certain criteria can be met, and constructing and analyzing objects meeting the criteria ,...

 are generally omitted.

Grading

For each correct answer on Part I, one point is awarded for a maximum score of 40 points.

Part II is graded in intervals of 1.2 points, with each problem gaining a maximum of 12 points. The test is graded out of 60 points.

The highest possible score on this test is 100 points. While no one has ever scored a perfect, recent scores have been in the high 90s (the highest being a 99, achieved by Allen Yuan of Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School is a private, secular school located in four campuses in Oakland County, Michigan, north of Detroit. The administrative offices, facility services, safety and security services, and the upper school are located in a campus in Beverly Hills, along with the middle school...

in 2009).

Awards

The Top 100 are invited to an awards banquet. Although the Top 50 are denoted as "bronze," no actual medal is awarded. Likewise, the Top 10 and Top 3 are called "silver" and "gold" (respectively) but do not receive medals.

The Lower 50 are deemed "honorable mentions" and receive a gift card/certificate.

Everyone in the Top 50 receives a scholarship ranging in size from $250 to $2000.

Recent winners

2010: Allen Yuan, Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School is a private, secular school located in four campuses in Oakland County, Michigan, north of Detroit. The administrative offices, facility services, safety and security services, and the upper school are located in a campus in Beverly Hills, along with the middle school...

2009: Allen Yuan, Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School is a private, secular school located in four campuses in Oakland County, Michigan, north of Detroit. The administrative offices, facility services, safety and security services, and the upper school are located in a campus in Beverly Hills, along with the middle school...

2008: Allen Yuan, Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School is a private, secular school located in four campuses in Oakland County, Michigan, north of Detroit. The administrative offices, facility services, safety and security services, and the upper school are located in a campus in Beverly Hills, along with the middle school...

2007: Alan Huang, Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School is a private, secular school located in four campuses in Oakland County, Michigan, north of Detroit. The administrative offices, facility services, safety and security services, and the upper school are located in a campus in Beverly Hills, along with the middle school...

2006: Alan Huang, Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School is a private, secular school located in four campuses in Oakland County, Michigan, north of Detroit. The administrative offices, facility services, safety and security services, and the upper school are located in a campus in Beverly Hills, along with the middle school...

2005: Frederic Sala, Troy High School

Troy High School

Troy High School may refer to:*East Troy High School in East Troy, Wisconsin*Troy Area High School in Troy, Pennsylvania*Troy Buchanan High School in Troy, Missouri*Troy Christian High School in Troy, Ohio*Troy Junior-Senior High School in Troy, Idaho...

2004: John Zhou, Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School

Detroit Country Day School is a private, secular school located in four campuses in Oakland County, Michigan, north of Detroit. The administrative offices, facility services, safety and security services, and the upper school are located in a campus in Beverly Hills, along with the middle school...

2003: Anant Gupta, Troy High School

Troy High School

Troy High School may refer to:*East Troy High School in East Troy, Wisconsin*Troy Area High School in Troy, Pennsylvania*Troy Buchanan High School in Troy, Missouri*Troy Christian High School in Troy, Ohio*Troy Junior-Senior High School in Troy, Idaho...

2002: Robert Hough, Dow High School

2001: Mike Asmar, Troy High School

Troy High School

Troy High School may refer to:*East Troy High School in East Troy, Wisconsin*Troy Area High School in Troy, Pennsylvania*Troy Buchanan High School in Troy, Missouri*Troy Christian High School in Troy, Ohio*Troy Junior-Senior High School in Troy, Idaho...

2000: Qian Zhang, Livonia MSC Program

1999: Qian Zhang, Livonia MSC Program

1998: Michael Khoury Jr., Brother Rice High School

Brother Rice High School (Michigan)

Brother Rice High School is a Roman Catholic all-boys non-residential college prep school with approximately 700 students located in Bloomfield Township, Michigan . Until 1993 its address was in neighboring Birmingham, Michigan's postal district. In 1993 the U.S...

1997: J. Benjamen Hough, H.H. Dow High School

1996: Bryant Matthews, Forest Hills Northern High School

Forest Hills Northern High School

Forest Hills Northern High School is one of the three high schools in the Forest Hills Public Schools in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The district's two other high schools include Forest Hills Central High School and Forest Hills Eastern High School...

1995: Amit Khetan, ICAE

1994: Amit Khetan, ICAE

1993: Amit Khetan, ICAE

External links/sources

• MMPC Website for 2011–2014

• Previous MMPC Newsletters with Names of MMPC Winners

• MMPC Website for 2008-2010

• MMPC Website for 2006–2007

• MMPC Website for 2002–2004

• Michigan Mathematical Association of America MMPC Article