The USA Computing Olympiad (USACO) is a contest involving computer programming in a limited amount of time. There are four divisions: Novice (for beginners), Bronze, Silver, and Gold.

The novice and bronze divisions are suitable for students who have not taken or are currently taking AP Computer Science, and the tasks emphasize coding simple routines. The Silver division emphasizes coding more complex routines and requires knowledge of several basic algorithms. The Gold division emphasizes problem solving and algorithm design, and assumes fluency in coding any algorithm. The Gold division typically represents some of the top computer programmers in the nation.

Each year there are around six contests taken online, each ranging from three to five hours. These tests are self-administered and contestants are ranked based on how they perform on the questions asked. The task may involve writing a program for unknown input, or submitting solutions for known input (these are generally harder). Performing well in one division may constitute moving up to a higher division. Towards the end of the school year (around April), there is the USACO Open exam, which is proctored, and will also count towards your final standings.

The top 15 USA contestants in the Gold division and several international students are invited each year to a final series of 6 or 7 in-person contests, held in early June. This training camp takes place over a week. The camp is awesome. At the conclusion of the camp, 4 people are selected to represent the USA in the IOI, the International Olympiad in Informatics.