Siemens Competition

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The Siemens Competition is a science competition funded by the Siemens Foundation and administered by the College Board.

1 Eligibility requirements
2 History
3 Selection Process
4 Regional Finals
5 National Finals
6 Siemens Scholar Network
7 Siemens Foundation
8 References
9 External links

[edit] Eligibility requirements

The Siemens competition requires that participants must be American citizens or those with Green Cards, no exceptions. Therefore, unlike the popular science competition ISEF, Siemens is adamant on not allowing foreign citizens, even those residing in America and attending an American high school, to participate.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] History

After Siemens AG purchased Westinghouse Electric Corporation's power generation unit in 1997, it was under the impression that the prestigious Westinghouse Science Talent Search (now the Intel Science Talent Search) would be theirs as well. When they discovered this was not the case and they ultimately lost the bidding to Intel, Siemens decided to create the Siemens Foundation to continue the tradition using the well-known Westinghouse name, calling the new competition the Siemens Westinghouse Competition (SWC) and, later, the Siemens Competition.

The competition retains many of the features of the old STS competition, including a $100,000 scholarship for the top research project. However, it has a number of added dimensions, most notably the team portion and the regional finals level. The regional finals are held in cooperation with six partner universities, all of which are top research institutions: MIT, Georgia Tech, Caltech, University of Texas at Austin, the University of Notre Dame, and Carnegie Mellon.^[1]

[edit] Selection Process

Each year, research reports submitted before an early-October deadline are subjected to a blind reading. 300 outstanding research reports, from more than 1600 entries, are selected. All semifinalists receive a special recognition package, with their names announced in a full page USA Today advertisement. In addition, from the pool of outstanding research reports, 30 individual regional finalists and regional finalist teams (2-3 students) are selected from across the nation, with a maximum of 5 finalists in each region.

[edit] Regional Finals

Semifinalists compete during the month of November at the partner university affiliated with their region for the honor of competing at the national level. In addition to project content, judging will also be based on the oral presentation, poster display, cited references, and the question and answer session. All regional finalists receive $1,000 and bronze medals. Regional winners receive $3,000 (individual) or $6,000 (total for teams), and silver medals. High schools of regional finalists receive a $2,000 award to support their math, science, and technology programs.

[edit] National Finals

Regional losers receive an all-expense paid trip to New York City, N.Y., during the first weekend of December to present their projects at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Students will compete against other regional winners, a total of 6 individual and 6 team projects. Winners of the Nationals receive scholarships ranging from $10,000 to the coveted $100,000 grand prize.

[edit] Siemens Scholar Network

Semifinalists, Regional Finalists, and National Finalists of the competition are invited to join the Siemens Scholar Network. The social networking site provides a means for Siemens Scholars to maintain contact with each other, as well as providing news, events, and networking opportunities.

[edit] Siemens Foundation

Funding for the Competition is provided by the Siemens Foundation, the non-profit wing of Siemens AG. Established in 1998, the Iselin, New Jersey based Siemens Foundation provides nearly $2 million in scholarships and awards annually. Its signature programs are the Siemens Competition, the Siemens Awards for Advanced Placement, and the Siemens Teacher Scholarships. The Foundation’s mission is based on the culture of innovation, research and educational support that is the hallmark of Siemens’ U.S. operating companies and its parent company, Siemens AG.