Exam blueprint
What Is Actually On the Exam, and Where We Teach It
The USNCO multiple-choice paper is not a grab bag. It is built from a fixed set of topic blocks in a fixed order — so the honest way to answer “does this course cover the exam?” is a table, not a promise.
How the paper is built
Both the Local Exam and Part I of the National Exam use the same structure. Question order is not random — each block of questions belongs to one named topic, so a student who is weak in one area loses a predictable slice of the paper rather than a scattered few marks.
10
Topic blocks
60
Multiple-choice questions
6
Questions per topic
Part of the complete USNCO guide.
Applies to the Local Exam and National Exam Part I. Question ranges last checked against acs.org on 2026-08-27. ACS exam information ↗
Every objective behind these ten blocks, split Standard and High Level, is listed on the mock platform (free account). USNCO Learning Objectives ↗
Part II (free response) and Part III (the laboratory practical) are not built on this blueprint — they are graded on written chemistry and lab work rather than topic blocks. That is the ground Level 4 is pitched at, which is why two blocks below read as prerequisites there rather than lessons.
Coverage
Every block, and the session that teaches it
Each cell names the module and the session numbers within it. Follow any of them straight into the syllabus.
| Questions | Level 2Local Prep | Level 3Nat'l Prep | Level 4Camp Prep | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 · Stoich./Solutions | Q1–6 | Assumed | ||
| T2 · Descriptive/Lab | Q7–12 | |||
| T3 · IMFs/States | Q13–18 | Assumed | ||
| T4 · Thermodynamics | Q19–24 | |||
| T5 · Kinetics | Q25–30 | |||
| T6 · Equilibrium | Q31–36 | |||
| T7 · Redox/Electrochem | Q37–42 | |||
| T8 · Atomic/Periodicity | Q43–48 | |||
| T9 · Bonding/Structure | Q49–54 | |||
| T10 · Organic/Biochem | Q55–60 | |||
| All ten accounted for | Q1–60 | 10 taught | 10 taught | 8 taught + 2 assumed |
Scroll the table sideways to reach Level 4.
- M2#4
- Taught — module and session number in that module’s syllabus.
- Assumed
- Expected on arrival. Level 4 does not reteach stoichiometry to students who scored 30+ on National Part I; that is the entry gate, not a gap.
Questions families ask about exam coverage
What topics are on the USNCO Local Exam?
Ten: Stoichiometry/Solutions, Descriptive/Laboratory, IMFs/States of Matter, Thermodynamics, Kinetics, Equilibrium, Redox/Electrochemistry, Atomic Structure/Periodicity, Bonding/Molecular Structure, and Organic/Biochemistry. They appear in that order on the paper, six questions each across the sixty multiple-choice questions. The National Exam Part I uses the same ten blocks in the same order. Because the split is fixed, every topic is worth exactly ten percent of the paper — there is no topic a student can safely skip, and no topic worth cramming at the expense of another.
How many questions is each USNCO topic worth?
Six, on both the Local Exam and National Part I. Questions 1 through 6 are Stoichiometry/Solutions, 7 through 12 are Descriptive/Laboratory, and so on through 55 to 60 for Organic/Biochemistry. This matters for how a student uses practice time: six marks is roughly the gap between award tiers in a typical year, so a single weak block can decide whether a student advances. It also means the descriptive and laboratory block carries the same weight as thermodynamics, which surprises most students who prepare from a general chemistry textbook alone.
Does Level 2 cover all ten topics?
Yes, all ten, across its three modules. Module 1 covers atomic structure, periodicity, bonding, molecular geometry, intermolecular forces, gases and solutions; Module 2 covers thermochemistry, kinetics, and the full arc of equilibrium through buffers, titrations and solubility; Module 3 covers electrochemistry, thermodynamics, first organic chemistry, and the descriptive and laboratory topics that decide Local Exam scores. What Level 2 assumes is not a topic but a starting point: a full year of solid chemistry, because it moves harder and faster than AP Chemistry from the first week rather than beginning at zero. It is built to be taken alongside AP Chemistry or an equivalent honors course. The placement test at Find Your Level checks that footing before recommending a level, and the Level 1 textbook guide covers the self-study route.
Why do some topics say "assumed" instead of naming a session?
Because a blank cell would be misleading. Level 4 is for students who already scored 30 or higher on National Exam Part I, so it does not spend class time reteaching stoichiometry or states of matter — those are the entry gate. Marking them assumed says what is true: the material is required, it is simply required on arrival rather than taught again. Every level accounts for all ten blocks one way or the other, and the site has a test that fails the build if any level ever leaves a block unaccounted for.
Are Part II and the lab practical covered by this blueprint?
No. The ten-block structure describes the multiple-choice papers only. Part II is eight free-response problems covering reaction writing, quantitative chemistry and organic chemistry, and Part III is a hands-on laboratory practical. Neither is divided into topic blocks. Level 4 is built for that ground specifically — its Module 1 works reaction writing and explanation questions as free-response skills, and its Module 2 runs integrated problem solving in the style Part II and the IChO use.
How do I see what happens in a specific session?
Follow any module link in the table into the Curriculum page, which lists every session of every module for all three levels, alongside the textbooks each module is read with and the weekly hours each level asks for. The comparison mode there puts the three levels or the three modules side by side, including a coverage strip showing which of these ten blocks each module reaches.
See the sessions behind the map
The curriculum page lists every session of every module, with the textbooks and the weekly hours each level asks for.