Science Fair Directory
How to Find Science Fairs and Other STEM Competitions
There are hundreds of science fairs, engineering fairs, and other STEM competitions held locally, nationally, and internationally every year. Some competitions require students to start at the local level and win in their category to advance. Other competitions are open to all students. The listings below include a collection of regional and state level science fairs for middle and high school students across the US. Each entry notes the city, state, website, and whether the fair can be entered by anyone ("open") or requires qualifying from another science fair ("qualify").
These fairs also have a Broadcom Coding with Commitment award, which is available to students in grades 5-8. Broadcom Coding with Commitment highlights coding as an essential 21st-century skill, a language and design tool that empowers students to actively engage in solving the problems they are most passionate about in their communities.
Register with Science Buddies to receive occasional invitations to participate in STEM competitions. Local science fairs and engineering fairs can also be found by asking science/STEM teachers at nearby schools.
| Science Fair | City | State | Website | How to Enter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Science and Engineering Fair | Anchorage | AK | https://alaskasciencefair.org/ | Open |
| Alabama Science and Engineering Fair | Huntsville | AL | https://www.alabamaacademyofscience.org/ | Qualify |
| Central Arkansas Regional Science and Engineering Fair | Little Rock | AR | https://ualr.edu/cstem/carsef/ | Open |
| Arizona Science and Engineering Fair (AZSEF) | Phoenix | AZ | https://www.azscience.org/events-programs/arizona-science-engineering-fair/about/ | Qualify |
| Southern Arizona Research, Science and Engineering Fair | Tucson | AZ | https://sarsef.org/programs/competitions/sarsef-science-and-engineering-fair/ | Qualify |
| Orange County Science and Engineering Fair | Costa Mesa | CA | https://ocsef.org/ | Open |
| Fresno County Science Fair | Fresno | CA | https://sciencefair.fcoe.org/ | Open |
| Irvine Unified School District Fair | Irvine | CA | https://iusd.org/about/departments/education-services/academics/stem/science/science-programs-and-events | Open |
| Los Angeles Science and Engineering Fair | Los Angeles | CA | https://www.lascifair.org/ | Open |
| California Science and Engineering Fair | Los Angeles | CA | https://csef.usc.edu/ | Qualify |
| Riverside County Science and Engineering Fair | Riverside | CA | https://www.rcoe.us/about-us/superintendent/office-of-the-superintendent/community-engagement-and-partnerships/student-events/science-and-engineering-fair | Qualify |
| Greater San Diego Science and Engineering Fair | San Diego | CA | https://www.gsdsef.org/ | Open |
| Synopsys Silicon Valley Science and Technology Championship presented by the Santa Clara Valley Science and Engineering Fair Association | San Jose | CA | https://science-fair.org/ | Open |
| San Mateo County Office of Education STEM Fair | San Mateo | CA | https://stemfair.net/ | Open |
| Synopsis Outreach Foundation Alameda County Science & Engineering Fair | Alameda | CA | https://acsef.zfairs.com/ | Open |
| Pikes Peak Regional Science and Engineering Fair | Colorado Springs | CO | https://pprsf.zfairs.com/ | Open |
| Colorado Science and Engineering Fair | Fort Collins | CO | http://www.csef.colostate.edu/ | Qualify |
| Gwinnett Regional Science, Engineering + Innovation Fair | Duluth | GA | https://www.gwinnettsciencefair.com/ | Qualify |
| Hawaii State Science and Engineering Fair | Honolulu | HI | https://www.hawaiiacademyofscience.org/hawaii-science-fair | Qualify |
| State Science and Technology Fair of Iowa | Aames | IA | https://sstfi.org/ | Open |
| Idaho State Science Fairs | Pocatello | ID | https://stem.idaho.gov/ | Open |
| Chicago Public Schools Student Science Fair | Chicago | IL | https://cpsscifair.org/ | Open |
| Massachusetts Middle School Science & Engineering Fair | Worcester | MA | https://scifair.com/ | Qualify |
| Maine Middle School Science & Engineering Fair | Augusta | ME | https://www.maine-state-science-fair.com/ | Open |
| Science and Engineering Fair of Metropolitan Detroit | Detroit | MI | https://www.sefmd.org/ | Open |
| Minnesota Academy of Science State Science & Engineering Fair | Minneapolis | MN | https://www.mnmas.org/about-science-engineering-fair | Qualify |
| Greater Kansas City Science & Engineering Fair | Kansas City | MO | https://sciencecity.unionstation.org/event/gkc-science-fair/ | Open |
| Academy of Science - Greater St. Louis Science Fair | St. Louis | MO | https://www.sciencefairstl.org/ | Qualify |
| Montana Science Fair | Missoula | MT | https://hs.umt.edu/mtsciencefair/default.php | Open |
| North Carolina State Science Fair | Raleigh | NC | https://ncsef.org/ | Qualify |
| Bergen Science Challenge | Hackensack | NJ | https://sites.google.com/bergen.org/bergenscichallenge/home | Open |
| Central New Mexico STEM Research Challenge | Albuquerque | NM | https://hsc.unm.edu/stem-h/programs/challenge/ | Qualify |
| State Science Day (Ohio) | Columbus | OH | https://ssd.ohiosci.org/ | Qualify |
| Muskogee Regional Science and Engineering Fair | Muskogee | OK | https://ok-mrsef.zfairs.com/ | Open |
| Northwest Science Expo | Portland/Banks | OR | https://nwse.org/ | Qualify |
| Delaware Valley Science Fairs | Exton | PA | https://www.dvsf.org/ | Qualify |
| Covestro Pittsburgh Regional Science & Engineering Fair | Pittsburgh | PA | https://carnegiesciencecenter.org/educators/stemcenter-science-fair/ | Open |
| Reading and Berks Science and Engineering Fair | Reading | PA | https://www.rbsef.com/ | Open |
| USC Central South Carolina Region II Science and Engineering Fair | Columbia | SC | https://sc-central.zfairs.com/ | Open |
| Eastern South Dakota Science and Engineering Fair | Brookings | SD | https://www.sdstate.edu/science-and-engineering-fair | Qualify |
| Austin Energy Regional Science Festival | Austin | TX | https://sciencefest.org/ | Qualify |
| Texas A&M - State Science Fair | College City | TX | https://txsef.tamu.edu/ | Qualify |
| Rio Grande Valley Science and Engineering Fair | Weslaco | TX | https://www.utrgv.edu/regional-science-fair/ | Qualify |
| University of Utah Science and Engineering Fair | Salt Lake | UT | https://usef.utah.edu/ | Qualify |
| Northern Virginia Science and Engineering Fair | Fairfax County | VA | https://www.nvsefair.com/ | Qualify |
| Washington State Science & Engineering Fair | Silverdale | WA | https://wssef.org/ | Qualify |
| Wyoming State Science Fair | Laramie | WY | http://www.uwyo.edu/sciencefair/ | Qualify |
For a comprehensive list of fairs at the local, regional and state levels in the US, as well as a list of international fairs visit the Directory of Fairs Across the Nation and the World
Science Buddies Engineering Challenge
The Science Buddies Engineering Challenge is an annual K-12 engineering challenge open to students in the U.S. and around the globe. The goal is to inspire all students to try their hand at engineer. Materials are low-cost, and the time commitment is short. Participating schools and non-profit organizations are entered in a lottery for cash prizes. Students and educators can use project directions and lesson plans to explore previous Engineering Challenges.
