For Students: How do I become an Intel ISEF Finalist?

The students competing at Intel ISEF have worked very hard to earn the right to compete against other students from over 50 countries. They:

• are high school students.
• are alumni of an Intel ISEF affiliated fair.
• have projects that have followed strict rules for safety and security.
• follow proper scientific procedures including ethical treatment and informed consent.
• have procedures that often must be approved before experimentation can begin.

The affiliated fair for Santa Clara County is the Synopsys Silicon Valley Science and Technology Championship. This fair is open to grades 6 through 12, and also sends students on to the California State Science Fair. Click this link to see a list of all the fairs in California—remember, not all of these fairs are Intel ISEF affiliated fairs. An affiliated fair agrees to pay for the finalists’ Intel ISEF expenses and may send 2 individual projects and one team project to Intel ISEF. A team may include two or three students. Teams are judged on a slightly different rubric, and each member is expected to bring different skills to the project.

Intel ISEF accepts projects in 16 different categories, including environmental science, mathematics, engineering, and computer science. Students looking for help designing a great science fair project should check out the Science Buddies website.

For Teachers: Intel ISEF 2010 Outreach

There are two options available to give your students the experience of visiting the Intel ISEF 2010 fair on May 13, 2010:

• For classes of students 6-8th grade there will be a structured program that includes hands-on activities and a college presentation
• All visitors will be able to view the projects and discuss the work with over 1,500 high school students from around the world.

Teachers interested in the structured 6th-8th Grade Program should fill out this Microsoft Excel form and e-mail it to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Teachers bringing other grade levels for a Project Only visitation should fill out this Microsoft Excel form and e-mail it to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Note: If you are a teacher interested in viewing projects or for organizations interested in presenting on visitation day, please send your inquiry via e-mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

For organizations interested in providing a hands-on activity, please see the form on this link.