- All students who have previously participated any our fair or any ISEF affiliated fair and must submit a Continuation Form (Form 7) along with their application. The SRC will determine if their project qualifies as a “continuation project” or not.
- Projects involving:
- Biological materials or living organisms
- Hazardous chemicals, activities, or devices
- Regulated substances
- Projects involving human subjects, including testing devices or software apps, conducting surveys, or performing interviews.
- Final deadline for SRC/IRB pre-approval: November 13, 2026
- Recommended early submission for expedited review: November 2, 2026
(Submitting by this earlier date increases the likelihood of a faster SRC review.)
2027 Championship Application is NOW OPEN
September 28, 2026
To begin, visit the Application Instructions page. Online registration must be completed in a single session, so have all necessary information ready before you begin. This includes the project title and category, sponsor contact details, and student/parent information for each participant. PLEASE NOTE: We only process applications that have been paid for so do not forget to complete Step 5 (Pay & Submit).
SRC Pre-Approval is Required For:
Important Deadlines:
Virtual Student Clinic: Thursday, Sept 24, 2026 at 4:30pm
September 17, 2026
We recommend that students and teacher sponsors attend this session. Bring your questions and get guidance. This How to Start a Project clinic is designed to guide students through the creative process of developing and refining their own innovative project ideas. Register for the session here. For those that can not attend, the slide presentation will be recorded and uploaded to our Announcement & Resources page after the session.
Teacher Training Session Now Available
September 3, 2026
Planning to sponsor a student project? Our latest Teacher Training session (recording here) is now available on our Teachers page!
We strongly encourage every teacher planning to sponsor a project to take the time to watch this training video. It provides important information and guidance to help you and your students prepare a successful science project.
2027 Changes from Previous Rules & Procedures
August 21, 2026
Attention: Our 2027 Changes from Previous Rules & Procedures page is now live. Please take a moment to review the changes, and don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Regeneron Science Talent Search Application Now Open
June 6, 2026
The Regeneron Science Talent Search 2027 application is open now until November 5th. In addition to the Regeneron ISEF and the Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge programs, the Society for Science & the Public also owns and produces the Regeneron STS, the nation’s oldest and most prestigious competition for high school seniors.
2026 Regeneron ISEF Announces Award Winners
May 15, 2026
ISEF, the International Science & Engineering Fair, celebrating its 76th anniversary, visited Phoenix, AZ this year with more than 1,700 finalists participating with the sponsorship of Regeneron. Finalists represented approximately 60 countries, regions and territories. Congratulations to all the participants from the Synopsys Championship and to the award winners announced on May 14 (special awards) and May 15 (scientific category awards). ISEF winners from the Championship are listed here.
California Science & Engineering Fair Results
April 16, 2026
Congratulations to our outstanding Santa Clara County students! 123 Synopsys Championship participants (101 projects) qualified to compete at the California State Science & Engineering Fair on April 12, 2026. Winners were announced online and are posted on the CSEF web site. SCVSEFA has a summary page of all 49 winning participants from the Synopsys Championship.
Special congratulations to Elizabeth Zhang who was awarded Project of the Year in the Senior Division and Riya Mehrotra for qualifying for ISEF!
Regeneron STS 2026 Announces Top Winners
April 3, 2026
Congratulations to Jonathan Du, from Los Altos, CA for winning 9th Place. Forty finalists, including eleven (11) students from California, participated in the finals week competition of Regeneron STS March 5 – 11, 2026. Regeneron STS is the nation’s oldest science and mathematics competition for high school seniors. The competition was in-person this year, culminating in a public Exhibition of projects and a formal awards ceremony on March 10th.
Congratulations to the 2026 Synopsys Championship Winners
March 30, 2026
SCVSEFA announced the 2026 Synopsys Championship winners on the web site on March 29, click here to see results, including the students who qualified for CSEF and Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge (JIC) nominees.
2026 Synopsys Championship Award Ceremony & Winners
March 19, 2026
The 2026 Synopsys Championship Awards Ceremony is set for March 29th at the Heritage Theater in Campbell. See the Winner Summary page for a list of students who are invited to the ceremony.
The Awards Ceremony is an ‘Invitation Only’ event for each student. Middle school students are allowed 2 guests and should arrive at 12:40 PM. High school students are allowed 2 guests and should arrive at 3:10 PM. Details can be found here.
If any students have changed their email addresses since applying to the 2026 fair, they should notify fairmanager@science-fair.org at once.
