How to Prepare for ISEF: A 10-Month Science Fair Timeline

The big kahuna of science fair competitions. Who doesn’t want to stand on that hallowed
stage while hundreds of the world’s most intelligent students clap for you? Who doesn’t want to shake hands with some of the biggest names in science and hear them say, “Congratulations!” as you walk across the aisle to accept your medal?

The International Science and Engineering Fair, ISEF, as we veterans call it, is that pinnacle of a science fair project– all that hard work culminating into one, amazing, exciting moment.

But before you get to that hallowed stage and shake all those hands, you have some serious planning to do. Here is everything you need to do in the 10 months leading up to ISEF, coming from someone who has done it before and accepted her own ISEF medal. We’ll work from July up to the competition, which is always held in the second or third week of May.

July: Find Your Topic and Build Lab Connections

The summer sun is shining, but it’s time to get busy! The best science fair students get a
head start on their projects while school is out and they have more free time.

• Start looking at project topics. Think about your major interests and some big world
  problems, and start reading research papers to identify where a project could fit into your chosen field. (If you haven’t read my article about finding a research topic that’s worth pursuing, you can do that here.)

• If you want to work in a research lab, try to work on some connections! It can be
  really hard to get into a lab as a younger student, so do your best to send emails, talk to family members, and network in your community. It will be a big help if you want to
  carry out your research in the wet lab setting.

  
  

August: Write Your Proposal and Register

Back-to-school season is ramping up, but you have some finishing touches to do on your
research project before you can get back to it!

• Write your research proposal. After weeks of reading papers and formulating ideas, it
  is time to write your proposal! This is a detailed document that lays out exactly what you plan to do for your experimentation, and also discusses the wider issues you are trying to address with your project.

• Register for your science fair. Whether you are competing through your school or
  independently, it is really important to take care of your registration early on so that the science fair administration can approve your project. This will likely include registering for an account, filling out some paperwork, and then having a parent or teacher sign off.

• Finalize your lab plans. If you have decided to work in the wet lab, this is the time to
  finalize everything. Make sure you have a solid relationship with a mentor, have
  sufficient knowledge for carrying out your experiments, and have completed any relevant safety trainings before you get started.

  
  

September to January: Experiment and Document Everything

School is back in session and you are raring to go with your research project! Aren’t you glad you did all that prep work early on so you didn’t have to worry so much?

• Experiment, experiment, experiment! This is your solid block of time to carry out your
  methods and generate as much data as you can. Set time goals of when you want each experiment to be done, and keep in mind there might be a need for some wiggle room – science projects are notorious for not working on the first try, so you should always anticipate needing to repeat certain methods.

• Update your research notebook. This is a crucial step that a lot of science fair students miss. You should be making daily entries of any work that you did, whether reading a research paper or carrying out an experiment, and logging those entries in a research notebook. That can be on paper, on a Google Doc, or in one of those lovely bound notebooks; it doesn’t matter the format as long as it is helpful to you. The most important thing is that you write everything down so you can go back to it if you need to.

  
  

February: Finalize Data, Write Your Paper, Design Your Poster

The school year is at that lovely point where it starts to feel very long – but you still have more work to do before you are ready to compete in the science fair.

• Finalize your data. Most ISEF-qualifying competitions happen in March and April, so
  February is the time to start prepping. Make sure all of your data is analyzed and start
  drawing the important conclusions. Make some graphs, charts, or visuals to help convey the important takeaways from your experiment.

• Write your research paper and project pitch. Once all your data is gathered, add it into
  your research proposal and fine-tune everything to make your research paper. You should also be writing your project pitch, which is a 3-5 minute summary of your research that you will present to judges.

• Design your poster. This is a key visual aid that will go with you to all of your science
  fairs. Getting the poster design right is key– look for a blend of 70% visuals and 30%
  text, and make sure the best of your data is well-represented.

  
  

March to April: Compete in Regional and State Fairs

It’s go time! In addition to studying for AP exams and completing projects for school, it’s time to start competing in your ISEF-qualifying regional and state science fairs.

• Practice your pitch and Q&A. Students who advance to ISEF have their pitches
  memorized and have a lot of practice with the question-and-answer portion of judging. Ask strangers, family members, teachers, or friends if they will listen to you pitch and ask you questions so you can get feedback. Learning to anticipate what judges may ask and preparing firm answers will be a big help on judging day.

• Look and feel your best! Before any competition, make sure to get a good night of
  sleep, dress professionally, and build up a positive mindset. That will help keep your
  confidence going during long days of judging.

  
  

May: ISEF Week

It’s time for ISEF! You’ve qualified and made it to that hallowed stage.

• Pack the right things! ISEF is a week-long event, so there are a lot of specifics you need to follow.

• Keep practicing. Just because you did well in qualifiers doesn’t mean you will do well at ISEF. You need to keep practicing and improving to give yourself the best shot at an
  ISEF award.

• Learn from your feedback. A lot of local and state science fairs offer judging feedback
  that could help you refine your pitch or poster. Take that feedback when it’s offered and do your best to incorporate it into your overall project.

So there you have it! My 10-month timeline for a shot at the International Science and Engineering Fair. And to help you along the way is ScienceFair.

ScienceFair: Your Shortcut to the ISEF Stage

Ready to make ISEF your reality? A 10-month timeline is only as strong as the guidance behind it.

Our coaches, including myself, are past science fair winners, including ISEF Grand Awardees, Regeneron STS Finalists, Presidential Scholars, and Davidson Fellow Laureates, paired with Ivy League research mentors who help you shape a publishable research question.

Book a call with an academic advisor to build your personalized path to the stage.