About

Entry requires a complete original research project — individual only, no team submissions — submitted as a graduate-level research report alongside essays, recommendations, transcripts, and evidence of scientific potential. Research may be conducted in any STEM discipline, in school labs, university facilities, or independent settings, but must be the student's own independent work; co-investigation with other high school students disqualifies an entry. Applications open June 1 and close in November. In January, 300 Scholars are announced — each receiving $2,000, with an additional $2,000 awarded to their school. In late January, 40 Finalists are selected from the Scholar pool and invited to Washington, D.C. in March for the Regeneron Science Talent Institute: a week of public exhibitions, judging interviews with PhD scientists, and meetings with government and scientific leaders, culminating in a black-tie awards gala at the National Building Museum where 10 top prizes are announced. All 40 Finalists receive a minimum of $25,000; the top award is $250,000.

The alumni record makes the stakes concrete. Science Talent Search alumni have gone on to earn 13 Nobel Prizes, 2 Fields Medals, 23 MacArthur Fellowships, and 14 National Medals of Science — a roster that no other high school competition at any level can match. Admissions officers at research universities understand exactly what Scholar or Finalist status means: a student capable of conducting independent research at a level that most undergraduates never reach. Scholar status alone is a significant credential. Finalist status is among the most powerful science signals that can appear on a high school application.

Regeneron STS is the right competition for a high school senior who has already completed — or is completing — genuine original research and wants it evaluated by the most rigorous and consequential scientific jury available at the pre-college level.