Whether you’re passionate about science, technology, art, or writing there’s a competition tailored just for you.

This ultimate guide highlights some of the most prestigious and engaging online competitions for students.

Participating in these contests not only help you develop valuable skills but also opens doors to scholarships, colleges, and a vide variety of opportunities.

This ultimate guide highlights some of the most prestigious and engaging online competitions for students.

1. International Research Olympiad (IRO) Description: The International Research Olympiad (IRO) is a prestigious competition that invites students from around the world to showcase their research skills and innovative ideas.

Winners receive recognition, scholarships, and opportunities for further academic development.

Finals took place at Harvard University this year!

To be eligible to compete, you must meet at least one of the following criteria: Be enrolled in a recognized high school/secondary school or homeschool program.

This includes both traditional public and private high schools, as well as accredited online programs.

Be under 18 years old as of March 8, 202

4. Age may be verified using official documentation, such as a government-issued photo ID or birth certificate.

If you meet either of these criteria, Great!

You qualify to participate in the International Research Olympiad.

Be sure to register for the competition!

Registration: The International Research Olympiad has a registration fee of $25 USD for the Opens round.

Learn about fee waivers for students with financial need here.

The costs for the subsequent semifinals and finals round are covered by the International Research Olympiad and its sponsors.

In the 2023-24 edition of the contest, the International Research Olympiad had students fly to Cambridge, MA, USA for the in-person finals.

As an academic organization, the International Research Olympiad does not earn profits from the competition, and registration fees are solely utilized for development of the IRO exam platform, marketing and advertisement, and contest expenses.

How to Prepare?

There are multiple mock open exams available on the website.

Mock exams are one of the best ways to prepare for any competition.

Access Multiple Mock Open Exams Here. https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=N3jywbAqfNU

2. Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Description: One of the oldest and most prestigious award programs for creative teens, the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards occurs annually and hosts numerous entry categories to compete in.

These range from short stories, poetry, painting, to film and animation and many others.

Eligibility: Grades: 7-12 (Age 13 or Older) Residing in the United States, U.

S. territories, or Canada Awards: Tier-based awards system; all students enter regional selection and top entries are awarded Gold Keys.

These submissions advance to the national awards where students receive Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals in their categories.

Special prizes and/or scholarships are given as well.

Dates: Submission deadline varies by region but typically falls between December and January.

See here to find your local deadline.

Cost: $10 per submission or $30 per portfolio

3. Wharton Global High School Investment Competition Description: The Wharton Global High School Investment Competition is a free, experiential investment challenge for high school students (9th to 12th grade) and teachers.

Students work in teams of four to seven, guided by a teacher as their advisor, and have access to an online stock market simulator.

Together, they learn about strategy-building, teamwork, communication, risk, diversification, company and industry analysis, and many other aspects of investing.

Why Join the Competition?

It’s run by the Wharton School, a world leader in business education You get to explore the exciting world of securities and strategies You learn about risk, diversification, company and industry analysis and more investing basics You develop teamwork, leadership and communication skills You enhance your college and scholarship applications by building your résumé You have a chance to compete against teams from around the world You learn finance skills that will last a lifetime It’s free and fun!

Eligibility: Student teams must be comprised of members from the same high school and be current high school students.

If the high school has various branches, teams must be comprised of students and an advisor from the same branch.

Home-schooled students or privately tutored students working towards a G.

E.

D. (high school diploma) or non-U.

S. equivalent may also compete.

Participants must not have earned a high school/secondary school diploma before the competition begins on September 30, 202

4. Awards: All students on teams that submit and meet the minimum requirements for the competition deliverables will receive participation badges in February 202

4. All semifinalists and global finalists will also receive special certificates recognizing their achievements.

Each student member of the global champion team will receive a complimentary spot in our online summer program, Future of the Business World, Essentials of Leadership, Moneyball Academy: Training Camp FLEX or Moneyball Academy: Training Camp*.

Global champion team members receive a complimentary spot in the Wharton online summer program, Future of the Business World or Essentials of Leadership (worth $4,099).

Each student member from all 10 global finalist teams will receive a course fee waiver for the Wharton online course, Understanding Your Money (worth $329).

4. Davidson Fellows Scholarship Description:  The Davidson Fellows Scholarship ****is sponsored by the Davidson Institute.

The scholarship considers students who have completed a significant piece of work in one of its offered categories, including Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, Literature, Music, Philosophy, and Outside the Box.

Students submit a 10-minute video showcasing their project, essays explaining its significance, and teacher recommendations.

Eligibility: Be 18 or younger as of the application deadline to be eligible.

Be a U.

S. citizen residing in the United States, or a Permanent Resident of the United States residing in the United States, or be stationed overseas due to active U.

S. military duty.

There is no minimum age for eligibility.

Teams of two are eligible.

Both team members must meet eligibility requirements.

Please check out this Frequently Asked Questions video with information on eligibility, category requirements, and application tips!

Cost: Free Awards: Scholarships worth $50,000, $25,000, and $10,000, and the title of a ‘Davidson Fellow’

5. USA Computer Olympiad (USACO) Description: The USACO is one of the most prestigious and popular online competitions for computer programming.

It feeds into the International Olympiad in Informatics, one of the major international science olympiads.

Competition is extremely high, and the competition itself is split into multiple cutoff examinations of increasing difficulty.

Eligibility: Pre-college students in the U.

S.

Awards: Award level is based on the division that the student competes in, which includes Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum.

Participants start out in the Bronze division.

Dates(2023

- 2024): Dec 15-18: First Contest Jan 26-29: Second Contest Feb 16-19: Third Contest Mar 15-18: US Open Cost: No cost for students if the school registers for USABO 202

4. National exam transportation is the student’s responsibility.

Students must pay country visa costs for the country that the IBO will be held in.

Room and board are available for both in-person exams.

Financial aid is available.

6. NASA International Space Apps Challenge Description: Hosted by NASA, thousands around the world come together for this global hackathon and address challenges in teams of one to six members.

Teams develop projects with the use of free and open data from NASA and its Space Agency Partners.

Each year, a theme for the event is chosen.

In 2023, the theme was “Explore Open Science Together. ” The NASA International Space Apps Challenge is a hackathon for coders, scientists, designers, storytellers, makers, technologists, and innovators around the world to come together and use open data from NASA and its Space Agency Partners to create solutions to challenges we face on Earth and in space.

Eligibility: Anyone, but those under the age of 18 must be registered by a parent or legal guardian.

Applications close on June 15, 202

4. Awards: Global Winners receive an invitation to the Winners Celebration, in which winners will visit a NASA center for an award ceremony and engage with NASA leaders and learn about scientific developments at NASA.

Cost: Free Resources

7. NASA App Development Challenge Description: The NASA App Development Challenge (ADC), a Next Gen STEM activity, is a coding challenge in which NASA presents technical problems to middle and high school students seeking student contributions to deep space exploration missions.

The ADC, in cooperation with NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program, is one of NASA’s Artemis Student Challenges, whose mission is to build foundational knowledge and introduce students to topics, techniques, and technologies critical to the success of the agency’s Artemis program.

By responding to the ADC, students take a part directly in the Artemis Generation endeavors to land American astronauts, including the first woman and first person of color on the Moon.

In this year’s challenge, teams of middle school or high school teams have 10 weeks to create a video showcasing their application visualizing the flight path of Artemis II, while indicating which of SCaN’s antennas are available to communicate with Earth in real-time.

Timeline: August 14, 2024: Registration Opens September 25, 2024: STEM Gateway Registration Closes September 28, 2024: Lead Teacher Training (Lead Teacher chooses one to attend) September 30, 2024: Lead Teacher Training (Lead Teacher chooses one to attend) October 2, 2024: Live Virtual Kickoff Event October 16, 2024: Live Virtual Connection: Creating Visualizations of Trajectory Data November 6, 2024: Live Virtual Connection: Link Budgets November 20, 2024: Live Virtual Connection: Planning a Mission December 11, 2024: ADC Video Submission Deadline January 15, 2025: Join the Artemis Generation Webinar Eligibility: High School and middle school students Awards: Opportunity to travel to Johnson Space Center Cost: Free

8. Doodle for Google Description: Doodle for Google is an art contest where you have the chance to design a Google logo based on an annual theme.

Using any art material, submit your doodle and a write-up explaining its significance.

The theme for 2024 was “My wish for the next 25 years. ” Entries are judged on creativity, originality, and theme communication at the State and National levels.

This competition is competitive, as thousands of applicants send entries each year.

US states and territories will vote for their favorite entries to determine 5 national finalists.

A Panel of employees from Google will select 1 national winner out of the 5 finalists.

Eligibility: Open to all high school students Awards: Win a $30,000 college scholarship, a $50,000 technology package for your school, Google hardware, and a 24-hour feature of your artwork on Google’s homepage.

Cost: Free

9. Engineer Girl Annual Essay Contest Description: EngineerGirl’s annual contest focuses on engineering’s impact.

The 2024 Writing Contest prompts students to explore the lifecycle of an object used daily.

Entries, up to 1,200 words, can adopt first or third-person perspectives, emphasizing at least three engineering disciplines.

Winners will be announced in the summer.

Judging criteria will consider the presentation of engineering, perspectives considered, and the quality of writing.

Eligibility: Elementary, Middle School, and high school students Submission Deadline: February 1, 2024 Prizes: For each age group, first-place winners will be awarded $1,000, second-place entries will be awarded $750, and third-place entries will be awarded $500 For more information about this competition read this PDF. 1

0. Hack3 Description: A 24-hour global high school hackathon, students first engage in workshops hosted by industry professionals, with topics ranging from breaking into blockchain to machine learning on AWS.

Then, they work in a team to develop a software project that solves a pressing issue.

The competition is beginner-friendly (no coding experience required).

Eligibility: High School Students Awards: Ranged in the past from Amazon Fire Tablets, Raspberry Pis, up to $250 in cash, and Hack3-Exclusive NFTs Cost: Free 50+ Most Prestigious Competitions Rishab Jain, a Harvard student who has achieved success in numerous international competitions (ISEF, RSI, Coca Cola Scholars, Presidential Scholars) has made a full list of 50+ STEM Opportunities for high school students around the world.

NO more having to search for top-quality program…this guide has it all.