The YRI Global Research Proposal Competition 2027 is a free competition for high school students worldwide: you write a research proposal of up to 1,000 words on any subject and submit it by January 10, 2027 at 11:59 PM EST. First place wins a full scholarship to the YRI Fellowship, valued at $2,997, with a PhD mentor to turn the proposal into a research paper.
You do not need to have done the research, and you do not need a lab, a dataset or any experience. You need a good question and a clear plan. This guide covers who can enter, the prizes, exactly what the proposal must include, how it is judged and how to write a strong one.
The official page, entry form and full rules are at /research-proposal-competition.
The YRI competition at a glance
| Organizer | YRI Fellowship (yriscience.com) |
| Also called | The YRI Global Essay Competition 2027 |
| Who can enter | High school students worldwide, grade 8 to grade 12 or the equivalent |
| Entry fee | Free |
| Subject | Any academic field |
| Length | Up to 1,000 words, references excluded |
| Format | One PDF, written in English |
| Deadline | January 10, 2027 at 11:59 PM EST |
| First place | Full YRI Fellowship scholarship, valued at $2,997 |
What the competition is
This is a proposal competition. You choose the topic, write the question, read what is already known, and explain how you would investigate it. You do not submit results or a finished paper.
That keeps the door open to almost any student. A student with no lab access, no mentor and no prior research has the same chance as anyone else, because the judges are reading the thinking, not the equipment.
Who can enter
The official rules set out who is eligible:
- Open worldwide to students enrolled in grade 8 to grade 12, or the equivalent, on the closing date.
- No research experience needed. Most entrants will not have any.
- Free to enter. No purchase or enrollment of any kind is required to enter or to win.
- One proposal per student. No group entries.
- Any subject: STEM, social sciences, humanities, or a mix.
- Written in English and submitted as a PDF.
- Parent or guardian details. Students under 18 must give a parent or guardian name and email when they enter.
Prizes
First place: a full YRI Fellowship scholarship
The winner receives a 100% scholarship to the YRI Fellowship, valued at $2,997. That means 10 weeks with a PhD mentor, 1:1, turning the proposal into a research paper submitted for publication.
Second and third place: two half scholarships
The next two proposals each receive a 50% scholarship to the YRI Fellowship: half the $2,997 tuition covered, with the same 10 weeks and the same PhD mentorship.
Distinguished proposals: a Distinguished Certificate
Other proposals the panel singles out receive a Distinguished Certificate, signed by the YRI Founder or a participating professor.
The fine print
Scholarships are awarded as tuition for the Fellowship and have no cash value. Before a winning project starts, YRI confirms project feasibility, mentor availability and any ethics or safety requirements.
Why does the first prize matter? In the YRI Fellowship, 87% of Fellows publish and 73% place at competitions. A winning proposal is the first step toward a published paper with the student's name first. See the YRI success rate and the Published Work page for what Fellows have produced.
What the proposal must include
Your proposal should follow this structure, in this order:
Word limit
The proposal can be up to 1,000 words, excluding references. The abstract counts toward the limit. Plan for that: a 200-word abstract leaves 800 words for everything else.
Originality and AI rules
These rules are strict, so read them carefully:
- The proposal must be your own work, with sources cited.
- You may discuss ideas with teachers, parents or mentors, but the question, the plan and the writing must be yours.
- AI tools may help you brainstorm or understand a concept. Any meaningful AI use must be disclosed in the entry form.
- AI-written proposal text submitted as your own is not allowed.
- Entries that are plagiarized, AI-written or submitted more than once are disqualified.
- Shortlisted students may be asked to discuss their proposal.
Keep your name out of the PDF
Entries are judged anonymously. Leave your name and school out of the PDF. Your details go in the entry form, not the document.
How proposals are judged
Academic evaluators read every proposal against the same six criteria:
Two points from the official page shape how you should write:
- You are judged relative to your academic level. No one expects a graduate thesis.
- A clear, original, realistic plan beats an ambitious one with no way to carry it out. Winning proposals are not the most ambitious. They ask one focused question and show exactly how it could be answered.
The evaluators' decisions are final.
Key dates
- Entries: open now
- Submissions close: January 10, 2027 at 11:59 PM EST
- Results: to be announced. Winners are notified by email at the address on their entry, and results are also announced on the competition page.
Late submissions are not considered, so aim to submit well before the final day.
How to write a strong YRI research proposal
The competition page includes a sample first page with notes on what makes it strong. Its title is "Phones Before Bed and Next-Day Quiz Scores in High School Students." It shows four things every strong proposal does.
1. Ask one clear question
The question should be specific enough to answer, and something you could answer yourself. The sample asks: do students who use their phone in the hour before sleep score lower on next-day quizzes? It is small, specific and testable.
A weak version of the same idea would be "How do phones affect teenagers?" That is too broad to answer in a single study.
2. Show what is already known
Use two or three sources to show what researchers have already found, and point to the gap your question fills. The sample notes that studies link evening screen light to later sleep, but few look at a single school day and a classroom test. That one sentence tells the judges why the question is worth asking.
This is where the "use of existing research" criterion is scored. For help, see our guide on how to write a literature review.
3. Give a plan you can carry out
Say who you would study, what you would measure and how, using what a high school student actually has access to. The sample plans a two-week sleep and screen diary from 60 classmates, matched to their quiz scores and compared across groups. No lab, no expensive equipment, and every step is clear.
This covers both the "methodology" and "feasibility" criteria. If your plan needs equipment or data you cannot get, the judges will notice.
4. Think through ethics
In a sentence or two, cover consent, privacy and safety. The sample lists parent consent, school approval and names removed before any analysis. Short, specific and complete.
Write the abstract last
The abstract is the first thing the judges read, but it is easiest to write once the rest is finished. In up to 200 words, state the question, why it matters, how you would answer it and what you expect to find. See how to write a research abstract.
Edit for clarity
Clarity is one of the six criteria. Read your proposal aloud. Cut any sentence that does not help the judge understand your question or your plan. Check that you are under 1,000 words with the abstract included.
Common mistakes to avoid
- A question that is too big. Focus beats ambition here.
- No sources. The literature review is a required section, and "use of existing research" is a judging criterion.
- A plan you could not carry out. Feasibility is scored.
- Skipping ethics. It is a required section, even if your project seems low risk.
- Your name or school in the PDF. Judging is anonymous.
- AI-written text. It leads to disqualification.
- Going over 1,000 words with the abstract included.
- Submitting late. Late entries are not considered.
Choosing a topic for the YRI competition
Any subject is eligible: science, social science, humanities, or something that crosses between them. Historical analysis, economic modeling and philosophical inquiry are all welcome.
The entry form lets you choose from fields such as artificial intelligence and computing, biology, medicine and health, physics, chemistry and mathematics, engineering and robotics, environment and climate, economics and business, psychology and social science, and history, philosophy and humanities, or interdisciplinary work.
The best topic is one you already wonder about. For inspiration, see what YRI Fellows research, our guide on how to choose a research topic and these research question examples.
How to enter
Entering takes one form and one PDF:
Questions students ask
Do I need research experience? No. Most entrants will not have any. The judges are looking for curiosity, independent thinking and a well-reasoned plan.
Do I need to do the research first? No. You explain what you would investigate and how. No results, no finished paper.
Can I pick any topic? Yes. Any academic field is eligible.
Can I work with a friend? No. One proposal, one student. You can discuss ideas with others, but the work must be yours.
Can I use AI tools? For brainstorming or clarifying concepts, yes, and you must disclose it. AI-written proposal text is not allowed.
Does it cost anything? No. Entry is free, and no purchase or enrollment is needed to enter or to win.
What does first place get? A full scholarship to the YRI Fellowship: 10 weeks with a PhD mentor, 1:1, turning your proposal into a research paper submitted for publication.
What comes after the competition
For the winners, the proposal becomes the start of a YRI Fellowship project. Every student who enters leaves with something useful: a written research question, a literature review and a method. That is the same foundation a Fellow builds in the first weeks with a PhD mentor.
Students who want to go further do not need to wait for results. The YRI Fellowship pairs students 1:1 with a PhD mentor for 10 weeks, with free help until the paper is published. It is $2,997, or 3 payments of $999, with scholarships decided case by case. See Tuition, What Is YRI? and the Student Stories for more.
Enter the YRI Global Research Proposal Competition 2027
Pick a question you care about, write a clear plan to answer it, and submit it free by January 10, 2027. First place wins a full YRI Fellowship scholarship and a PhD mentor to turn your plan into a published paper.
Enter the YRI Global Research Proposal Competition 2027
Sources
- YRI Global Research Proposal Competition 2027: eligibility, prizes, proposal sections, judging criteria, deadline, official rules and FAQ
- The Research Fellowship: what the first-place scholarship covers
- Tuition: Fellowship price and payment plan
- What Is YRI?: about the organizer
