Most strong projects never lose at a science fair. They lose months earlier, when a registration window closes that the family never knew existed. This page is every major science and research competition for the 2026-27 season in one place, in deadline order, with the eligibility traps marked. Bookmark it, and check each competition's own site before relying on a date, since dates marked with ~ are expected from prior cycles rather than confirmed.
The one rule that matters most
Regional science fair registration is the only door to ISEF, and it closes months before your project needs to be finished. You cannot apply to ISEF directly. You qualify through an ISEF-affiliated regional or state fair, and those fairs close registration quietly, typically between November and January. Find yours now at findafair.societyforscience.org and put the registration date in your phone before you do anything else on this page.
The full calendar
| Deadline | Competition | What it is | Watch out |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 15, 2026 | Breakthrough Junior Challenge | 3-minute video explaining a science concept | Global, ages 13-18. Production quality is not judged |
| Sep 30, 2026 | Coca-Cola Scholars | Leadership and service scholarship | US seniors only |
| Oct 20, 2026 | AAN Neuroscience Research Prize | Neuroscience research report | Must concern the brain or nervous system |
| Oct 26, 2026 | Congressional App Challenge | Build an app, judged by district | US, 3-minute demo video |
| Oct 30, 2026 | Conrad Challenge (Stage 1) | Innovation and venture pitch | Teams of 2-5, international teams allowed |
| Nov 5, 2026 | Regeneron Science Talent Search | The most prestigious US research prize | Seniors only, individual research only |
| ~Dec 1, 2026 | MIT PRIMES | Year-long research program admission | Selective problem set, not a fair |
| Dec 2026-Feb 2027 | JSHS regional symposia | Oral research competition, 12-minute talk | By region, US and DoD schools |
| Nov 2026-Jan 2027 | Regional fair registration | Your ISEF gateway | The unrecoverable one |
| Jan 1, 2027 | MIT THINK | Research proposal, funded if selected | Proposal, not finished work |
| ~Early Jan 2027 | Diamond Challenge | Youth entrepreneurship pitch | Teams |
| Jan-Mar 2027 | Regional and state fairs run | Where ISEF qualification happens | Via your registered fair |
| Jan 27, 2027 | ExploraVision | Future-technology written project | Teams with teacher coach |
| ~Feb 10, 2027 | Davidson Fellows | $50K/$25K/$10K scholarships for significant work | Under 18, US. No data means not eligible |
| Feb 21, 2027 | Blue Ocean | Virtual video pitch competition | Global, ages 14-18 |
| Feb 24, 2027 | eCYBERMISSION | Team STEM competition | Grades 6-9 only |
| Feb-May 2027 | BioGENEius | Biotech research competition | State deadlines vary |
| ~Mar 8, 2027 | GENIUS Olympiad | Environment-focused fair | Needs a sustainability angle |
| ~Apr 2027 | iGEM high school | Team synthetic biology | Team, registration in spring |
| ~Apr 10, 2027 | Genes in Space | Design a space biology experiment | Must name a molecular target |
| ~Apr 15, 2027 | Stockholm Junior Water Prize | Water research | State first, water topics only |
| ~Apr 20, 2027 | Technovation Girls | Girls build an app + business plan | Teams, ages 8-18 |
| ~Apr 30, 2027 | 3M Young Scientist Challenge | Science video competition | Grades 5-8 and US only |
| May 1, 2027 | Paradigm Challenge | Youth innovation prize | Collaboration is scored |
| May 8-14, 2027 | Regeneron ISEF | The world championship, Los Angeles | Qualify via your affiliated fair |
| ~Jun 10, 2027 | Thermo Fisher JIC | Junior research competition | Grades 6-8, by fair nomination |
| ~Jul 2027 | The Junior Academy (NYAS) | Team innovation challenges | Global, next cycle |
The eligibility traps, said plainly
- Seniors only: Regeneron STS and Coca-Cola Scholars. If you are in 9th-11th grade, a November deadline you cannot meet is not your deadline. Plan STS for senior year.
- Middle school only: eCYBERMISSION (grades 6-9), Thermo Fisher JIC (6-8), 3M Young Scientist (5-8, US). These get shared in high school group chats every year. Most of you cannot enter them.
- US only: STS, JSHS, Davidson, AAN, Congressional App, and every US regional fair. International students route to ISEF through their own country's affiliated fair, and should look hard at the genuinely global ones: Breakthrough, Conrad, Blue Ocean, GENIUS, the Junior Academy.
- Will not read you at all: Genes in Space without a named molecular target, Davidson without real data, GENIUS without an environmental angle. Entering a competition whose criteria you do not meet costs time and reads badly.
Same project, many rooms
You do not need a new project per competition. One strong research project becomes a fair entry, a JSHS talk, a written prize submission, and a venture pitch at Conrad or Blue Ocean, four different framings of the same work. The students who collect results in a season are almost never running four projects. They are running one, entered well, everywhere it fits.
What the deadlines mean if you have not started research yet
Count backwards. A regional fair in March wants a finished project by February, which means research through the winter, which means a locked topic by October. The season is decided in the fall, not at the fair.
That is the part we handle. The YRI Fellowship is a 10-week research program where students work 1-on-1 with a full-time PhD mentor to produce an original first-author paper, then take the same work through the competition season. 87% of our Fellows publish, 73% place at competitions. Rolling admissions, reviewed within 48 hours: yriscience.com.
Teachers and counselors: you are welcome to link or share this calendar with students. We update it as competitions confirm dates for the season.
Free download: The 2026-27 Science Fair Blueprint
All 25 competitions, deadlines, eligibility traps, and what the judges in each one actually score. Free to share with your school.