Student Opportunities

Science Congress

About Science Congress

The STANYS New York State Science Congress was established in 1950 as a means to stimulate interest and proficiency in the sciences. Regional science fairs were encouraged in STANYS Sections across the State, and a number of Sections have continued this tradition to today. Students with outstanding projects are selected to participate in the state level event held at a host institution in late May or early June. The event is organized by a Section for two or more years and is then passed on to volunteers from another Section.

The students present their research orally to judges, community observers, and other students, in a lecture format. They are judged on the quality of their work, as revealed by their written and oral presentations. Recognition is earned as Highest Honors, High Honors, Honors, and Honorable Mention.

Although once restricted to high school students, starting in 2005, the state competition is open to 7th and 8th graders. The competition is conducted in a friendly atmosphere and is part of a congenial weekend in which the participants have an opportunity to meet and socialize with other teenagers of similar interests.

Important New Rules and Guidelines - Student and Teacher Information

The State Science Congress will have a junior and senior division. Students in grades 6-12 may participate in the Science Congress. A student may work alone or in a team of up to three participants.

HOW TO QUALIFY FOR THE STATE SCIENCE CONGRESS: (1) Chosen from a Regional Science Congress; (2) If there is no Regional Science Congress in the student’s area, he or she may be sponsored by a local public or private school. Direct entry sponsored student research must be sent to the State Director by March 31st of the year of the competition. The State Science Congress Committee will make the final decision as to whether the student can compete. All rules and regulations must be followed. Check the STANYS website for the nearest Science Congress (www.stanys.org) to download all forms.

TEACHER AND ADULT SPONSORS: Every student must have a teacher sponsor in the school where he/she is enrolled. Parents/guardians, friends, or any other adult mentor cannot sponsor the student to our fair. HOWEVER, any qualified adult may act as a research mentor for the student. This adult sponsor is the person who is directly involved with the student and his/her research and may be a parent. The adult sponsor is responsible for the safety of the student at all times.

STANYS SCIENCE CONGRESS SECTION APPROVAL FORM: All participants must submit the official science congress approval form. The safety of the student investigator and human subjects must be carefully monitored by the adult sponsor.

STUDENTS MUST DO ALL WORK: Sponsors may help in planning and advising, but parents, teachers, or friends may not actually design, conduct or build the project. Abuses of this rule will result in disqualification. All students are expected to be able to answer questions regarding the design and development of every phase of their projects. All portions of the abstract and research paper must be the original work of the student.

DISPLAYS OR COLLECTIONS: Borrowed or purchased displays or collections are not permitted. All collections must bear a label describing how, where, and when they were assembled and must be protected by safety glass or screen.

EXHIBITS: Aquariums, live plants, or live animals are not acceptable. Storyboards displaying research results must be anchored on a self-contained, free-standing storyboard (supplied by the student).

THE RESEARCH PAPER: This report should be typed or word-processed on 8.5 by 11.0-in. paper. It should be 10 to 20 pages long for the senior division and 5 to 10 pages long for the junior division. You must provide FIVE hard copies of your paper to the State Director.

PHOTOGRAPHS: Photographs pertaining to the project are encouraged!

PRESENTATION FORMAT: The State Science Congress uses a Symposium format. A number of presentation rooms are set up. Each student will be given up to5 minutes to set up for his/her presentation. Each student will be given up to 10 minutes to present followed by up to 10 minutes of Q/A time.

Each student must have a free-standing storyboard for their project. Students may also choose to use PowerPoint or other presentation software for their presentation. A computer and projector will be provided.

The student’s name should appear on all materials, but the names of schools, research institutions, or sponsors/mentors should not appear anywhere on the materials or in presentations. Acknowledgements or thank you messages should not be included in presentations.

JUDGING: All judges will be college or university professors, science teachers and scientists. They will use a scoring rubric as a guide. A copy of the scoring guide is available on-line at www.stanys.org.

STANDARDS: The planning committee of the State Science Congress reserves the right to disqualify any exhibit on the day of the competition for work that is unsuitable in subject matter or treatment, that is potentially dangerous, or that violates any rules of the fair. Projects that lack any of the necessary paperwork or required signatures will be disqualified!

RESPONSIBILITY: STANYS and the hosting organization, though taking reasonable precautions in protecting projects, will not be responsible for broken or missing project parts. Student researchers should ensure that their name is on all aspects of their project.

REMOVAL OF PROJECTS: All projects must be removed promptly after the public viewing time.