[img_inline align=”left” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/Quizbowl.jpg” caption=”L-R:M.Choi, I.Philp,E.Jones, P. Greco,”]While many McMaster students begin studying for exams this weekend, four Arts & Science students will be in Boston facing an academic challenge of a different nature.

Ian Philp, Matthew Choi, Patrick Greco and Evan Jones, all Level III students, head to Boston University today (Friday, April 7) to compete in an International Academic Quiz Tournament against students from several Ivy League universities.

The McMaster team will compete against 23 other four-person teams from various universities in regions throughout the U.S. including Princeton, Harvard, Yale and MIT.

The four, who make up McMaster's Quiz Bowl Club, only began competing this year. In February, they won the Canadian Division 2 National Academic Quiz Tournament Championship at the University of Waterloo, defeating five other teams competing for the first time.

“The questions at the tournaments are all over the place,” says Philp, explaining that topics range from politics to science and architecture to atomic physics. Each of the four students has a particular area of interest and expertise. Past competitions have given them the incentive to learn more.

Although optimistic about how they'll do in Boston, team members says there'll be a lot of American teams — and American content — in the tournament. “This puts us at a disadvantage,” says Choi.

To date, the group has financed their registration fees and expenses for tournaments on their own. They recently received a small amount of funding from the McMaster Students Union and the provost for the international competition.