How to Win the Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair

The Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair is the state's top pre-college science competition, and a direct path toward the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). To get there, students first qualify through an affiliated regional fair, then advance to the state fair, run by the Minnesota Academy of Science. This guide covers how to qualify, what the state fair requires, and how to build a project that advances.

Getting Started: Eligibility and the Path to State

The first thing to know is that you don't enter the state fair directly, you qualify through one of Minnesota's regional science fairs. To be eligible for the state fair, you must first compete at an affiliated regional fair and be selected to advance, and you must be in grades 6–12. Once you've done that, a few key requirements apply at the state level:

A safety and ethics review

All projects must go through a Scientific Review Committee (SRC) for approval before you begin, to ensure your experiment is conducted safely and ethically. Build this into your timeline early, since projects involving human subjects, vertebrate animals, or hazardous materials especially need review before experimentation starts.

An abstract

You'll write an abstract, which is a brief overview of your project, why it was done, how, and what you found, capped at 250 words for both middle and high school projects.

Team rules, if you're competing with others

Teams can have up to three members, all in the same division (Junior or Senior), and teams can't mix middle and high school students. You also can't change a team project to an individual one (or drop members) within the same year.

Minnesota's Regional Science Fairs

Find your regional fair by county, then aim to advance to the state fair. Dates below are for the 2026 cycle, always confirm the current schedule and deadlines on each fair's official site, as they shift annually.

What the State Fair Is Like

At the state fair, professional scientists and engineers judge your project using both the materials you upload to zFairs and your in-person presentation, and every project is reviewed by several general-awards judges plus special-awards judges.

Beyond the competition, it's a genuine STEM community event: a chance to meet professionals, network with peers, see their projects, and attend workshops. The specifics shift each year, so check the current year's details page for what to expect.

How to Build a Project That Advances

Minnesota's fairs reward the same things at every level: originality, rigor, and clear communication. A few essentials, with deeper guides for each.

Start with a strong, original question, one that addresses a real problem and reflects real curiosity. It's the foundation everything else rests on, and our guide to crafting the perfect science fair question walks through how to find and sharpen yours. Ground your work in thorough research, a solid literature review, reputable sources, reliable data collection, and careful analysis, and follow the scientific method or engineering design process rigorously throughout.

Then invest in how you present it. Build a clear display board that communicates your question, methodology, results, and conclusions, and make sure it passes the fair's display and safety inspection.

Most importantly, rehearse your delivery and prepare for the judges' questions, the interview carries real weight, and our guide to the science fair Q&A with judges covers how to handle it.

Choosing the right category matters too, since it determines who evaluates your work; our guide to selecting an ISEF project category explains how. And if you can find a mentor who's competed before, our guide on how to get advice from a science fair winner shows how to find one.

Beyond the State Fair: Advancing to ISEF

The top projects at the Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair can advance to the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), the world's largest pre-college science competition. To be eligible for ISEF, you'll need to be in grades 9–12 (and under age 20 by the competition) and win at this ISEF-affiliated fair. Our step-by-step guide to qualifying for ISEF maps out the full path.

Equip Yourself to Win With ScienceFair

Winning at the Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair, and advancing to ISEF, takes a strong, original project, rigorous research, and a confident presentation. That's exactly what ScienceFair helps you build. Every coach on our team is a past science fair winner, and alongside our Ivy League research mentors, they'll help you refine your idea, strengthen your research, and prepare for the judges' Q&A.

Ready to make your run? Schedule a call with our academic advisor.