As many as four Pakistani students will attend 42nd International Chemistry Olympiad being held in Tokyo in July this year. An announcement here on Tuesday said the visit had been arranged under the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Careers Programme.
It said that STEM was a joint venture of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) and Pakistan Atomic Commission for grooming talented students for careers in STEM. Co-ordinator to National Chemistry Talent Contest (NCTC) Professor Dr Khalid Muhammad Khan said the International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), Karachi University was the home institute of the National Chemistry under STEM Careers Programme.
The names of the successful candidates included Hafiz Hassan Ali of Fazaia Degree College PAF Base Faisal, Karachi; Muhammad Anus of St. Patricks High School, Karachi; Izhar Ali of Aga Khan Higher Secondary School Karimabad, Karachi and Minahil Sana Qasim Khan of Beacon House Defence Campus DHA, Lahore.
The students are initially selected through a nation-wide screening test among applicants with at least 75 percent marks in their SSC or O-level examinations, studying in FSc/A-Level (Part-I). Subsequent selection is done through a series of training camps through a process of teaching and testing.
Fifty top scorers are selected on the basis of their performance in Chemistry. They are further groomed and screened through a series of training camps and distance learning examinations that leads to the selection of four students for International Chemistry Olympiad, which will be held during July 17-28 in Tokyo.