For Junior Division Students and Sponsors
Project registration and display and safety clearance will take place on Friday, February 16, 2024 between 4:00 and 7:00 PM
TBD: All Junior Division (Grades 6-8)
All Categories
Sponsors may register and clear projects without students in attendance but ALL materials including technology must be brought for clearance by the RGV RSEF Display and Safety Committee members between 4:00-7:00 PM.
Any materials not cleared at this time may not be brought into the display area on Saturday, February 17th.
Information for students on science projects can be found at the following link: Science Project Resources
The Intel International website provides many helpful links including:
Regional Fair registration fees are $25.00 per student being advanced from a district fair.
If a student is home schooled, email rgvrsef@rgvrsef.com to make arrangements to be able to compete.
A UTRGV link will be posted shortly with payment information for advancing students.
Students
This year’s Science and Engineering Fair will use a paperless system called STEM Wizard. This online process improves students’ paperwork, the process of reviewing students’ projects, and increases communication between students, teachers, and fair coordinators.
Each student is to be registered by their District Fair and must complete inputting their project information in order to advance to the Regional Science and Engineering Fair.
- Before starting, be sure that your teacher has already created his/her account.
- On your landing page, you must update your profile and add a signature in order to continue.
- Once completed, under Navigate to your Role, select Student.
- Complete all steps before you start your experimentation.
*Please be advised that in order to be compete at the RGV Regional Science and Engineering Fair, students must compete at the District level, unless home schooled.
Students
Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge (JIC) has replaced the Broadcom MASTERS competition for top 10% of Junior Division students
Eligibility
1. Nominee(s) must be in the 6th, 7th or 8th grade when they compete at your fair.
2. Nominee(s) must place in your fair’s category judging and be in the top 10% of nominees (usually place 1st in a RGV RSEF Junior Division category).
3. Nominee(s) must meet the eligibility requirements in the official rules. - Students who have previously won an award as a finalist in the Society’s middle school competition (formerly the Broadcom MASTERS), other than the Rising Star or Team Award, are not eligible to compete in Thermo Fisher JIC.
Important Dates
Applications for nominees will be open from February to June 2024
Winners will be announced September 2024.
Winning projects will be showcased in October 2024
Regional, State and ISEF Judging Criteria:
Judging Criteria for Science Projects
I. Research Question (10 pts)
___ clear and focused purpose
___ identifies contribution to field of study
___ testable using scientific methods
II. Design and Methodology (15 pts)
___ well designed plan and data collection methods
___ variables and controls defined, appropriate and complete
III. Execution: Data Collection, Analysis and Interpretation(20 pts)
___ systematic data collection and analysis
___ reproducibility of results
___ appropriate application of mathematical and statistical methods
___ sufficient data collected to support interpretation and conclusions
IV. Creativity (20 pts)
___ project demonstrates significant creativity in one or more of the above criteria
V. Presentation (35 pts)
a. Poster (10 pts)
___ logical organization of material
___ clarity of graphics and legends
___ supporting documentation displayed
b. Interview (25 pts)
___ clear, concise, thoughtful responses to questions
___ understanding of basic science relevant to project
___ understanding interpretation and limitations of results and conclusions
_ degree of independence in conducting project
___ recognition of potential impact in science, society and/or economics
___ quality of ideas for further research
___ for team projects, contributions to and understanding of project by all members
Judging Criteria for Engineering Projects
I. Research Problem (10 pts)
___ description of a practical need or problem to be solved
___ definition of criteria for proposed solution
___ explanation of constraints
II. Design and Methodology (15 pts)
___ exploration of alternatives to answer need or problem
___ identification of a solution
___ development of a prototype/model
III. Execution: Construction and Testing(20 pts)
___ prototype demonstrates intended design
___ prototype has been tested in multiple conditions/trials
___ prototype demonstrates engineering skill and completeness
IV. Creativity (20 pts)
___ project demonstrates significant creativity in one or more of the above criteria
V. Presentation (35 pts)
a. Poster (10 pts)
___logical organization of material
___clarity of graphics and legends
___ supporting documentation displayed
b. Interview (25 pts)
___ clear, concise, thoughtful responses to questions
___ understanding of basic science relevant to project
___ understanding interpretation and limitations of results and conclusions
___ degree of independence in conducting project
___ recognition of potential impact in science, society and/or economics
___ quality of ideas for further research
___ for team projects, contributions to and understanding of project by all members
Verified as current from: https://www.societyforscience.org/isef/grand-award/criteria/ 1-31-2023