What's New in 2026
Key Changes for MIST 2026
Section titled “Key Changes for MIST 2026”- All questions are now strictly multiple choice or “select all that apply”, standardizing assessment across regions.
- Surah Ya-Seen moved to Level 3, with level outlines updated accordingly.
- Students are no longer required to bring a physical mushaf.
- Rubric updated to include tie-breaker considerations.
- Preparation time has been adjusted to 30 minutes to support stronger research and performance readiness.
All Arts Competitions
Section titled “All Arts Competitions”- All arts that require interviews will now have a pre-interview scoring cap at 80 points.
- Therefore, only top 15 considered can achieve a score above 80 for the competition.
- Memorization is now an officially scored component within the rubric.
- Updated speech times and a revised rebuttal order.
- Standardized tie-breaker criteria introduced for use after preliminary rounds.
- Ballot has been edited to better match the structure of the judging criteria, account for tie breakers, and keep track of time and POI counts.
- The competition now includes expanded content coverage along with supplemented practice questions to better guide student preparation.
- Round 1 now focuses exclusively on current events and features toss-up questions in a newly revised structure for clearer pacing.
- Rounds 2 and 3 have undergone point adjustments to strengthen scoring balance and distinguish performance more effectively.
- The total number of topics has been reduced from six to five, with updated topic descriptions.
- Now partnered with HHRD instead of IRUSA.
- Includes a new community engagement component to deepen local involvement and impact.
Competition Renames
Section titled “Competition Renames”- Graphic Design has been renamed to Digital Art.
Competition Structure Changes
Section titled “Competition Structure Changes”- Prepared Essay, Poetry, and Short Fiction will now be run as their own separate competitions. They will no longer run under Creative Writing.
General Improvements
Section titled “General Improvements”- Cosmetic edits, grammar corrections, and formatting refinements throughout the rulebook for enhanced readability and navigation.
For complete details on any competition, see the individual competition pages in the Rulebook.