The Intel International Science and Engineering Fair is the largest pre-college scientific research event in the world, and is owned and administered by the Society for Science & the Public a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Washington, DC. Each May, more than 1500 students from 65 nations are flown in to compete in the fair for scholarships, tuition grants, internships, scientific field trips and the grand prize: one $75,000 or two $50,000 college scholarships. All prizes together amount to over $4,000,000. Two awards ceremonies are held including: Special Awards Organization Presentation (which now includes the Government Awards Presentations) and the Grand Awards Ceremony. The International Science and Engineering Fair was founded in 1950 by Science Service (now the Society for Science & the Public) and has been sponsored by the Intel Corporation since 1997. The competition is frequented by some of the brightest young minds in the country, and because of this technological and scientific breakthroughs are often the result of the experiments submitted.
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Although it is an international event, the United States almost always hosts it (the 1995 fair was held in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada]). Locations for 2011–2019 fairs have been decided, and they will rotate between Los Angeles, California; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Phoenix, Arizona. The host city prepares a convention center and arranges hotel accommodations for the event, hosts numerous events and manages college tours around the convention center.
The 2005 Intel ISEF took place in Phoenix, Arizona, May 8–14.
In 2006 it was held in Indianapolis, Indiana, May 7–12.
In 2007 it was held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, May 13–19.
In 2008 it was held in Atlanta, Georgia, May 11–17.
In 2009 it was held in Reno, Nevada, May 10–15.
In 2010 it was held in San Jose, California, May 9–14.
In 2011 it was held in Los Angeles, California, May 8-13.
In 2012 it is to be held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, May 13-18.
Contestants are selected from regional, district, and state ISEF affiliated fairs. These fairs usually encompass multiple states or entire regions of a country. The regional fair committee is responsible for managing the fair when their city hosts the event.
Individual science projects and team science projects both compete for prizes. Teams are composed of two to as many as four high school students (grades 9-12).
The structure of the competition is as follows:
Additionally, time is set aside for students to experience the host city, with ISEF coordinating signups for various tours and activities. A significant component of the program is social, as students interact with each other during mixers and ceremonies.
Several special awards are given each year at ISEF, including:
ISEF also holds a "People's Choice Awards" to allow the public to vote for its favorite entries.[1]
The Intel Science Talent Search is a related but separate science research competition for high school seniors studying in the United States. Begun in 1942 as a partnership with Westinghouse then in 1998 with Intel, Society for Science and the Public, a Washington-based nonprofit organization selects 40 contestants annually to present each's original research to the general public and members of the National Academy of Sciences.[2]