Eligibility & requirements

Eligibility

  • Any New Mexico student in grades 6-12 is eligible – all public, private and home-school students.
  • Entires are limited to single individuals. Team projects require separate approval from the regional director.
  • Although the project need not be entered in a science fair, the paper must reflect actual science experimentation by the student, or theoretical work of the student in an area of pure mathematics or physics, or the development of a scientific computer model.
  • Papers that are simply literary ‘search’ papers are not acceptable for competition.
  • Students may work with a mentor or receive help. However; all assistance must be noted in the paper’s acknowledgments.

Requirements

  • Conduct original research project or engineering design (this is generally the student’s science fair project),
  • Register for the competition.
  • Write and submit a research manuscript
  • Develop and deliver a 10 minute presentation

A maximum of 12 regional winners advance to the State Competition, associated with the NM Science and Engineering Fair in Socorro.

An overview of what students should expect is shown in the graphic below.