- Grades6 to 12
- Cost$25 to $150
Deadlines coming up
Everything in the directory with a known upcoming deadline, soonest first. Dates marked as estimated have not been confirmed against the official site for the current cycle.
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatEither
WhereIn person
Business
Wharton Investment Competition
Manage a virtual portfolio for a fictional client and defend your strategy to Wharton judges.
Science
Breakthrough Junior Challenge
Explain a hard scientific idea in a three-minute video, for a $250,000 scholarship package.
0 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatTeam
- WhereBoth
2 days left
- Grades8 to 12
- CostFree
PreparationDeep understanding of one concept in physics, life sciences or mathematics
FormatIndividual
WhereOnline
Math
HMMT
One of the hardest and best-run student math tournaments in the world, held twice a year in Boston.
6 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- Cost$20 to $100
PreparationRegular practice on olympiad-level problems
FormatEither
WhereIn person
Scholarships and challenges
Coca-Cola Scholars Program
A $20,000 achievement-based scholarship for graduating seniors, awarded to 150 students a year.
Art and design
YoungArts
A national arts award across ten disciplines, and the sole route to a United States Presidential Scholar in the Arts nomination.
Math
AMC 10 and AMC 12
The 75-minute exam that opens the door to the US math olympiad ladder.
11 days left
- Grades12 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereOnline
21 days left
- Grades10 to 12
- CostFree to $35
- FormatIndividual
- WhereBoth
27 days left
- Grades1 to 12
- CostFree to $70
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatIndividual
WhereIn person
Science
USA Biolympiad
An open biology exam that narrows to twenty finalists and the four-person United States team at the International Biology Olympiad.
36 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- Cost$125 to $125
PreparationFamiliarity with a full first-year high school biology curriculum
FormatIndividual
WhereOnline
Coding
Congressional App Challenge
Build an app, compete only against students in your own congressional district, and win a display in the U.S. Capitol.
Scholarships and challenges
National Merit Scholarship Program
The scholarship competition you enter by sitting the PSAT/NMSQT in your junior year, whether you meant to or not.
Writing
Patriot's Pen
A short patriotic essay contest for middle school students, free, with national awards.
Civics and social science
Voice of Democracy
Record a three-minute audio essay on a patriotic theme and compete for scholarships from local post to national level.
Writing
Bennington Young Writers Awards
A three-category writing prize from a college known for its writing programme, with scholarship money attached.
Writing
The Concord Review
The only journal in the world that publishes academic history papers by secondary students.
44 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatEither
- WhereOnline
47 days left
- Grades11 to 12
- CostFree to $30
- FormatIndividual
- WhereIn person
52 days left
- Grades6 to 8
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereBoth
52 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereBoth
52 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereOnline
53 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- Cost$40 to $100
PreparationA research essay with endnotes and a bibliography, at a standard close to undergraduate work
FormatIndividual
WhereOnline
Science
Regeneron Science Talent Search
The oldest and most prestigious science research competition for United States high school seniors.
Music
From the Top Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award
A scholarship award for outstanding young classical musicians with financial need, including a national radio appearance.
53 days left
- Grades12 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereBoth
57 days left
- Grades3 to 12
- CostFree
PreparationRepertoire ready for broadcast performance, plus demonstrated financial need
FormatIndividual
WhereBoth
Robotics
FIRST Robotics Competition
Build a 125-pound robot in six weeks, then compete in a stadium alliance game.
Science
National Science Bowl
A fast buzzer competition across all sciences and maths, run free by the Department of Energy since 1991.
61 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- Cost$500 to $8,000
- FormatTeam
- WhereIn person
69 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- CostFree to $50
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatTeam
WhereIn person
Science
HOSA
Over sixty competitive events across clinical skills, health knowledge and leadership, from middle school upward.
75 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- Cost$20 to $1,500
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatEither
WhereIn person
Civics and social science
National High School Mock Trial Championship
Argue a full fictional case as attorneys and witnesses in a real courtroom, judged by real judges.
Business
Business Professionals of America
Competitive events in business, IT, digital media and management, with a strong technical event list.
82 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- Cost$50 to $1,500
- FormatTeam
- WhereIn person
82 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- Cost$20 to $1,500
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatEither
WhereIn person
Writing
Scholastic Art and Writing Awards
The longest-running recognition programme for creative teenagers in the United States, across 29 categories.
Engineering
American Rocketry Challenge
Design a rocket that carries eggs to an exact altitude and returns them intact, to the second.
Writing
Profile in Courage Essay Contest
Write about an elected official who took a politically courageous stand, for a $10,000 first prize.
Civics and social science
C-SPAN StudentCam
Make a short documentary on a national policy question, free, with a large cash prize pool.
83 days left
- Grades7 to 12
- Cost$15 to $40
- FormatIndividual
- WhereOnline
83 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- Cost$100 to $1,000
- FormatTeam
- WhereIn person
88 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereOnline
124 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- CostFree
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatEither
WhereOnline
Engineering
ExploraVision
Pick a technology, project it twenty years forward, and write the paper explaining how it gets there.
133 days left
- Grades1 to 12
- CostFree
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatTeam
WhereOnline
Academic
National Latin Exam
A single low-cost exam sat at school, with medals and a very high award rate for prepared students.
140 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- CostUp to $10
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatIndividual
WhereIn person
Academic
Scripps National Spelling Bee
The most watched academic competition in America, reached through school, district and regional bees.
Civics and social science
National Civics Bee
Write a short essay about a problem in your community, then defend it in a live civics quiz.
Engineering
eCYBERMISSION
Solve a problem in your own community using science or engineering, entirely online, for free.
Writing
JEA Write-off Competitions
On-site journalism contests held at national conventions across news, feature, sports, design and photojournalism.
Coding
International Olympiad in AI
The newest international science olympiad, with a scientific round and a practical machine learning round.
142 days left
- Grades1 to 8
- CostFree to $225
- FormatIndividual
- WhereIn person
142 days left
- Grades6 to 8
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereBoth
146 days left
- Grades6 to 9
- CostFree
- FormatTeam
- WhereOnline
168 days left
- Grades9 to 12
- Cost$10 to $30
- FormatIndividual
- WhereIn person
172 days left
- Grades1 to 12
- CostFree to $500
PreparationProgramming plus an understanding of machine learning fundamentals
FormatTeam
WhereBoth
Art and design
Poetry Out Loud
Memorise and perform published poems, from a classroom contest all the way to a national final in Washington.
Debate and speech
NSDA National Tournament
The largest academic competition in the world, reached by earning qualifying points on your district circuit.
Math
Purple Comet! Math Meet
A free, online, team-based maths contest open to any school or club in the world.
173 days left
- Grades8 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereIn person
179 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- Cost$100 to $3,000
- FormatEither
- WhereIn person
187 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- CostFree
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatTeam
WhereOnline
Scholarships and challenges
Jack Kent Cooke Young Scholars Program
A five-year, individually advised scholarship for high-achieving students with financial need, applied for in grade 7.
Engineering
The Paradigm Challenge
Solve a real social problem however you like, from age four upward, with a large prize pool.
187 days left
- Grades7 to 7
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereOnline
218 days left
- Grades1 to 12
- CostFree
StructureDivisions by grade or level
FormatEither
WhereOnline
Writing
Foyle Young Poets
A free international poetry award for 11 to 17 year olds, with a hundred winners chosen each year.
234 days left
- Grades6 to 12
- CostFree
- FormatIndividual
- WhereOnline
325 days left