Overview of the Top Science Competitions

Every year, more than 2 million students in grades K–12 enter a science competition. Of those, only several thousand students in grades 9–12 participate in the topmost levels of competition. These prestigious competitions include:

• Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF): For high school students only, who must first qualify at an affiliated fair. Top prize is a $50,000 scholarship.
• Intel Science Talent Search (Intel STS): A competition for high school seniors. Top prize is a $100,000 scholarship.
• Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science and Technology: A competition for high school students. Top prize is a $100,000 scholarship.
• Junior Science and Humanities Symposia (JSHS): A competition for high school students only. Regional winners proceed to a national competition.
• sanofi-aventis International BioGENEius Challenge: For high school students only; recognizes outstanding research in biotechnology. Process is state, regional, international—all held by sanofi-aventis. Top prize is a $7,500 cash award.
• Some of the larger state and regional fairs.

Each of these competitions is distinctly different, but they all have extremely high standards for success, generally far beyond what is expected at other levels of competition. So, if you are in middle school or junior high school, we hope you aspire to participate in these fairs, but don't worry about your current project meeting the same standards. Virtually all of the participants in the top competitions "worked their way up" from much simpler projects when they were younger!

Resources for Top Science Competition Participants

During the past several years, a number of our Science Buddies Mentors and Volunteers have participated in these top competitions with great success. We are fortunate that these participants were willing to write about their experiences in order to share them with others.

At these top competitions, Science Buddies Mentors and Volunteers wrote blogs to give a day-by-day feel for what they were like:

• Intel Science Talent Search Blog by Amber Hess.
• Intel International Science and Engineering Fair Blog by Amber Hess.
• The Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science and Technology by Benjamin Pollack.
• National Junior Science & Humanities Symposium Blog by Yihe Dong.   New!

Amber Hess also wrote the following essays:

• How to Be Successful at a Top Science Competition
• How to Find a Mentor
• Judging Tips for Top Science Competitions
• When Competition Doesn't Turn Out the Way You Want

We also have great information about how to make large display boards for the top competitions:

• Big Display Boards for Top Fairs

Soon, we will also offer an online forum where students who have already participated in these competitions can answer your questions.

Get a middle school student's perspective on doing a science fair project with Carly's Science Fair Project Blog.