How do Sci-Fair Finalists conceive of winning topics?

lalaloo6
Sun, 16 Mar 2008 10:49:44 +0000

^^ @wtrbear: I totally agree with you there, but also don’t let NOT getting chosen for something like ISEF discourage you, or make you feel that your research was not worthwhile. Don’t do the research for the awards (though if you do, I COMPLETELY AGREE with the suggestions for bio/chem projects); if you think it’s interesting and have great ideas, even if you don’t have the awards, you can write about your experience and ideas for future research on college apps and get into great schools. I think ideas for future research are actually really key here - schools want to admit people who will continue doing great research in college. Where “Great” does not necessarily means “Wins high school awards”, but could also mean “has potential for solving real problems” or for being recognized at higher levels (i.e., in college/grad school/beyond). I honestly don’t think, at least in my region/state, that the projects that are given awards and that qualify for ISEF are always the ones with the most interesting science or potential for impact. That has just been my experience with science fairs.