BIONIX Competition ISE! 2026: A More Inclusive and Interactive National Information Systems Olympiad

Surabaya, FTEIC ITS – The Information Systems Student Association of ITS, together with the Department of Information Systems ITS, has once again organized the BIONIX Competition, one of the main events of ISE! 2026. BIONIX (Business and IT Olympiad in Information Systems Expo) is a national-level olympiad for senior high school and vocational high school students across Indonesia, centered on the field of Information Systems.

To learn more about the preparation and execution of the event, we spoke with Christabel, Head of the BIONIX Competition Division for ISE! 2026. As Division Head, Christabel coordinates the entire competition. Her responsibilities include developing the concept and plan, managing the division’s internal needs, coordinating with other divisions, and making sure everything runs smoothly on the day of the event. “I help oversee the BIONIX process from the preparation stage until the competition is complete,” she said.

The main goal of BIONIX is to introduce the Department of Information Systems ITS to high school and vocational students, while giving them a picture of the field through an engaging and interactive competition. That way, participants gain not only competition experience, but also a better understanding of Information Systems and the opportunity to pursue higher education in this field.

This year’s BIONIX theme remains focused on Information Systems competition, but the committee has introduced several developments. First, Logic has been added to the exam syllabus so that BIONIX is open to students who have never learned coding or have no prior knowledge of Information Systems, giving them an equal chance to compete. Second, the game concept has been made more engaging. In the semifinal, playing cards from A to K determine the difficulty level of the questions, while in the final, participants play Territory Clash, a quiz competition built around the concept of capturing territory.

The competition begins with an online preliminary round. Participants answer multiple-choice and short-answer questions covering five subjects: Enterprise Systems, Data and Statistics, Information Systems Management, IT Infrastructure and Security, and Logic. The top-scoring participants advance to the semifinal, held offline at ITS, which consists of several challenges such as games and essay writing. The five best teams then move on to the final, where they face two challenges: Territory Clash and Project Execution, which combines programming with the development of a Business Model Canvas (BMC). The entire event closes with an awarding ceremony to announce and honor the winners.

Through this competition, the committee aims to test and develop participants’ logical and critical thinking, data analysis, understanding of information technology, and problem-solving skills. The challenges in the semifinal and final also sharpen teamwork, creativity, communication, and the ability to apply knowledge to solve problems. Participant enthusiasm has also been strong, with many students from across Indonesia interested in joining the competition.

For Christabel, the most memorable moment was the Territory Clash round in the final, where she saw participants race to answer questions by pressing the buzzer. “The atmosphere was both exciting and tense, and even as a committee member, I felt the nerves,” she said.

According to her, the greatest benefit for participants is the experience of competing and the chance to measure their abilities in Information Systems. From there, they can identify areas that still need improvement and use them as motivation to keep learning.

Looking ahead, the committee hopes BIONIX can reach more students across Indonesia and become better known among prospective university students. The competition concept, in both its materials and its format, will also continue to be developed so that it stays engaging, interactive, and relevant to developments in Information Systems. The committee hopes BIONIX will become a platform for students to get to know the Department of Information Systems ITS more closely while developing their potential.