Regulated/Registered Research Institution Use

RRI Project:  Grades 9 to 12 only
The student research or engineering project is conducted under the guidance of…

  • Regulated/Registered Research Institution (RRI). (Government regulations for institution’s use of animals in accordance with rules of IACUC or Good Laboratory Practice,(GLP), etc.) —
  • Professional research staff at a company or government lab. —
  • Professional research scientist or engineer providing advice and guidance. —
  • Mentors, other than teachers, who provide substantial guidance, data or sophisticated equipment not available in schools. —

Judges will use Form 1C to determine student’s contribution to the research.

Note: Middle school projects may NOT be conducted in the facilities of a Regulated Research Institution.

The forms that are required for your specific project may be determined by using the Rules Wizard on the ISEF web site.

You may present only the work you have done yourself for an individual project.

All the students on a team project must be eligible for the Championship; check eligibility here. This means that your lab partner(s) must attend school in Santa Clara County.

If you are a student working with a mentor or headed for a Regulated Research Institution (RRI) to gain valuable experience during the summer months, you may be planning to enter a project in the Synopsys Championship. 

Important things to remember:

1) Your mentor or the PI of the lab where you are working should read the ISEF Rules and Guidelines before you begin. Projects may “fail to qualify” if the PI does not understand that ISEF rules are more stringent than those for NIH etc.

2) We accept RRI projects only from students in grades 9-12 with the proviso that they were working legally at the RRI.

3) Certain application forms require dated signatures or institutional documents before experimentation. For a summer project, use the forms below.