Oct 24, 2024 By Team YoungWonks *
1. VEX Robotics Competition
- Over 15,000 teams worldwide. Middle and high school students.
- Design, build, and program a robot for head-to-head matches against other teams. Robots complete tasks like throwing balls into goals or stacking cubes.
- Live local and state tournaments lead up to national and world championship events with in-person judging.
- Regional and national winning teams receive trophies, publicity, and sometimes cash prizes and scholarships.
- Provides real-world engineering challenge and team collaboration experience.
- Official Website: VEX Robotics Competition
2. FIRST Robotics Competition
- 3,000 teams globally for ages 14-18. High schoolers must be in grades 9-12.
- 6-week timeline to build a robot from a common kit of parts and compete in live tournaments.
- Robot games involve scoring balls into goals, hanging on bars, and teamwork in alliances. Games change annually.
- Teams work alongside professional mentors. Winning teams earn multi-thousand dollar scholarships.
- Gives technical and problem-solving skills. Can lead to internships and connections.
- Official Website: FIRST Robotics Competition
3. Regeneron Science Talent Search
- High school seniors complete an original independent STEM research project.
- Submissions are judged based on the student’s scientific research report. Only 300 applicants are selected as scholars and finalists.
- The top 10 finalists are invited to Washington, D.C. to attend final judging and Congressional meetings.
- Awards range from $25,000 to $250,000 for top scholars. Prestigious regeneron sts boosts college apps.
- Produces publishable level research and cultivates scientific curiosity.
- Official Website: Regeneron Science Talent Search
4. Microsoft Imagine Cup
- Microsoft's global competition for high school and college students in computer science and coding.
- Competitors form teams and develop an app or technology that addresses a social issue like healthcare, agriculture, or environment.
- Submissions include a report, demo video, and presentation before live judges.
- National finalists compete at the global finals. Top teams win mentoring, cash prizes, world tours and internships.
- Develops coding abilities and practice working on technology with social impact.
- Official Website: Microsoft Imagine Cup
5. International Science & Engineering Fair
- Massive annual science fair and competition hosted in U.S. cities for 9th-12th grade students.
- Nearly 2,000 students from over 75 countries compete. ~600 projects across disciplines.
- Students exhibit their research and compete within STEM categories judged by expert evaluators.
- Top winners earn up to $75,000 in scholarships and are invited to prestigious awards ceremonies. High caliber networking opportunity.
- Prepares students for the world of scientific research conferences and publications.
- Official Website: International Science & Engineering Fair
6. ExploraVision
- K-12 students work in teams of 2-4 to create and explore technology that could exist in 20 years.
- Each team submits a written paper, 16-minute video, model/display, and Q&A responses explaining their future tech.
- National winners earn U.S. Savings Bonds up to $240,000 and an expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C.
- Fosters critical thinking, scientific research, and collaboration skills.
- Official Website: ExploraVision
7. National STEM League
- Online competition for middle and high school students to showcase STEM projects.
- Individuals or teams submit a STEM-related project in categories like environmental science, engineering, energy, technology, mathematics, health sciences.
- Projects are judged virtually, with top national winners invited to present live at Nationals. Cash prizes up to $2,500.
- Opportunity to get wide exposure for STEM projects with flexibility.
- Official Website: National STEM League
8. Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS)
- Research competition for high school students culminating in regional and national events.
- Students research and present on STEM topics before a live symposium and panel review.
- Regional winners earn scholarships and an expenses-paid trip to compete nationally in Washington, D.C.
- National finalists can win up to $12,000 in college scholarships. Fosters advanced research skills.
- Official Website: Junior Science and Humanities Symposium
9. eCYBERMISSION
- U.S. Army led STEM competition for 6th-9th grade teams to develop solutions to real-world problems.
- Teams pick a problem, research it, hypothesize solutions, test and build a prototype, then submit their work online.
- National winners attend an awards ceremony and STEM summer camp. Develops the scientific method mindset through hands-on projects.
- Official Website: eCYBERMISSION
10. Congressional App Challenge
- Students create and submit original apps for desktop/mobile to their U.S. House Rep.
- Apps are judged by Congressional committees. Top app from each district invited to Capitol Hill.
- Winning app developers earn national recognition, tech opportunities, and sometimes cash prizes.
- Gives students full life cycle software development practice and potential mentorship from tech leaders.
- Official Website: Congressional App Challenge
11. Conrad Challenge
- Annual competition for students ages 13-18 to innovatively address global issues.
- Individual or team projects relate to aerospace, cyber technology/security, energy and environment, health and nutrition.
- Submissions include videos, presentations, reports, and prototypes. Regional finalist teams travel to DC for live judging.
- Winners earn cash prizes from $5,000 to $15,000, trips to meet scientists, and patents.
- Develops skills in innovation, scientific research, communication, and entrepreneurship.
- Official Website: Conrad Challenge
12. Technovation Challenge
- Global app competition for girls ages 10-18 focusing on entrepreneurship and coding.
- Girls work in teams to develop a mobile app that addresses a community issue. Can partner with nonprofits.
- Submissions include app code, marketing materials, business plans and videos. Regional winners present live.
- Cultivates technology skills, teamwork, leadership, and social impact among girls. Regional winners get cash prizes.
- Official Website: Technovation Challenge
13. Toshiba ExploraVision
- Project for K-12 students imagining future technology that could exist in 20 years.
- Teams outline the current problem, technological advances to create their tech, benefits, and development timeline.
- Submissions include a written paper, 4-minute video, and web graphics. Judges provide feedback.
- National winners earn U.S. Savings Bonds. Fosters early interest in innovation and entrepreneurship.
- Official Website: Toshiba ExploraVision
14. MIT THINK Scholarship
- Art and writing competition for high school juniors related to STEM.
- Students submit a piece of original writing or artwork that intersects creativity with science.
- Representatives from MIT evaluate entries based on originality, skill, and creative engagement with science.
- Winning students receive scholarship money for education expenses and are invited to an event at MIT.
- Showcases STEM through creative mediums and rewards artistic talent.
- Official Website: MIT THINK Scholarship
15. MathWorks Math Modeling Challenge
- Real world applied math contest for high school juniors and seniors.
- Teams of students have 14 hours to develop mathematical models to analyze and advise on complex open-ended real-world problems.
- Solutions require mathematical, statistical, and computational modeling components. Requires defending logic and approach.
- Winning teams earn $100,000 in scholarships and grants. Prepares for data-driven problem solving.
- Official Website: MathWorks Math Modeling Challenge
16. National Engineering Design Competition
- Framework for high school students to create an original engineering design project.
- Students brainstorm a problem to address, design/build/test a prototype solution, and compete by presenting to judges.
- Project categories like aerospace, medical, energy, environment, electronics, mechanics, materials science.
- Regional finalists present at Nationals. Top winners get up to $5,000. Fosters engineering design process skills.
- Official Website: National Engineering Design Competition
17. Science Olympiad
- 5,000 teams from elementary to high school compete in regional, state, and national levels.
- Individual and team events covering earth science, physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, technology, and more.
- Events include lab experiments, engineering challenges, robotics, technical writing, and knowledge tests.
- National winning teams earn trophies, publicity, and college scholarships up to $25,000.
- Gives a broad grounding across STEM fields and collaboration skills.
- Official Website: Science Olympiad
18. National Science Bowl
- High school and middle school teams compete in a fast-paced quiz bowl format answering math, physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, earth science, and energy questions.
- Regional tournaments lead up to the National Science Bowl championship in Washington D.C. with top teams winning up to $25,000 in scholarships.
- Tests well-rounded science knowledge and team collaboration skills. Developed by the Department of Energy.
- Official Website: National Science Bowl
19. FIRST Tech Challenge
- Robotics contest for grades 7-12 to design, build, program, and operate robots.
- Robots are built from reusable kits and complete tasks like throwing balls, pushing cubes, and lifts.
- Teams participate in regional qualifying tournaments leading to exciting live world championships.
- Top teams earn trophies, publicity and scholarship money up to $20,000.
- Develops engineering design, coding, teamwork, and hardware skills.
- Official Website: FIRST Tech Challenge
20. NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge
- Enlists high school teams to engineer model rovers addressing space exploration needs.
- Rover designs must incorporate specific features related to functions like soil sampling, astronaut transport, excavation.
- Teams demonstrate rovers at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center driving over obstacle courses.
- Winners get their designs featured by NASA, certificates, and publicity. Makes space science tangible.
- Official Website: NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge
21. Future City
- Project based competition for 6th-8th grade teams to design futuristic model cities.
- Teams outline city elements like infrastructure, governance, economy, sustainability. Build section models and write a research essay.
- Regional events lead up to finals in Washington D.C. where teams present city designs to engineer judges.
- Encourages STEM skills and civic engineering perspectives. Winners get scholarships and tech internships.
- Official Website: Future City
22. Real World Design Challenge
- Students utilize STEM skills to design commercial airplanes satisfying mission criteria.
- Individuals or teams design optimized aircraft for payload, range, cruising speed, takeoff length, and marketing applications.
- Submissions include 3D models, technical designs, flight systems, and presentations. Winners earn scholarships over $30,000 and attend U.S. gala.
- Reinforces aerospace engineering principles with practical industry experience.
- Official Website: Real World Design Challenge
23. Broadcom MASTERS
- Premier national STEM competition recognizing top middle school science and engineering projects.
- Nearly 2,000 6-8th grade students apply each year with 300 selected as finalists based on STEM project excellence.
- Finalists compete at the national finals with their projects, interviews, and objective tests. Awards up to $25,000.
- Official Website: Broadcom MASTERS
Other notable national science competitions include the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), the Envirothon environmental science contest, and the math-focused M3 Challenge. Through competitions, young scientists from public schools, private schools, and home schools develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Many contests now incorporate new technology like ArcGIS storymaps and Lego robotics into regional and national events to solve real-world problems through hands-on STEM collaboration. Science competitions empower the next generation of innovators.
Original research projects allow students to compete in regional and national competitions like the Junior Science and Humanities Symposium. Math competitions like the M3 Challenge also have regional qualifiers leading to exciting national events. These contests empower young scientists and help develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Regional competitions and national science competitions, does give students an opportunity to showcase their knowledge.
Conclusion
STEM competitions enable students to demonstrate academic knowledge, teamwork, problem solving, communication and presentation skills. Competing is also exciting, challenging, and rewarding. Students can gain confidence, win prizes, prep for college, and get on track for STEM careers. With so many great contests for science, tech, engineering, art and math interests, every student can find competitions to participate in and excel at. Check school guidance counselors, teacher advisors, and STEM websites for local and national contest calendars. Then start brainstorming projects and assembling teams. The thrill of competition awaits!
*Contributors: Written by Prasanna MG; Edited by Disha N; Lead image by Shivendra Singh
