Competitions for High School Students with April deadlines
EC Finder currently lists 274 competitions with application deadlines in April for high school students. Of these, 112 are free to participate in and 113 offer virtual participation. Examples include 9th Circuit Civics Contest, Advanced Vertical Robotics (AVR) Competition, and Aerospace Jam - High School Aerospace Robotics Competition.
- 274
- listed
- 112
- free
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- virtual
- 271
- with a listed deadline
Frequently Asked Questions
- What are competitions for high school students with april deadlines?
- Competitions for High School Students with April deadlines are curated extracurricular listings for high school students. Each listing includes eligibility, cost, and deadline details where known, so you can compare options and find the right fit for your college application profile.
- When do applications for these competitions need to be submitted?
- These opportunities have application deadlines in April. Exact dates vary by program, so check each listing for specifics.
- Are any of these competitions free?
- Yes — 112 of the 274 competitions listed here are free to participate in.
- Can I participate virtually?
- Yes — 113 of the 274 competitions listed here offer virtual or online participation.
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274 activities found·Browse by category
9th Circuit Civics Contest
Essay or video contest on "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness," analyzing one core right historically and today.
Advanced Vertical Robotics (AVR) Competition
National HS competition using UAVs and ground vehicles in realistic mission scenarios like search and rescue. Focus on robotics systems integration.
Aerospace Jam - High School Aerospace Robotics Competition
Robotics competition centered on space exploration and aerospace-themed robot challenges. Summer event with awards and recognition.
AFSA National High School Essay Contest
An annual essay competition co-sponsored by the American Foreign Service Association and the U.S. Institute of Peace that asks high schoolers to write about diplomacy's role in resolving conflict, with a top prize including a Semester at Sea scholarship.
AFSF Annual Architectural Design Competition for High School Students
An annual design competition run by the Architectural Foundation of San Francisco in which Bay Area high schoolers respond to a real urban site brief (such as a waterfront redevelopment), submitting individual or group architectural proposals judged by design professionals.
ALA Girls Nation
American Legion Auxiliary program in which two graduating-senior delegates ("senators") from each state's Girls State program travel to Washington, D.C. for a seven-day mock legislature, writing and debating bills, campaigning for office, and visiting Capitol Hill and national landmarks; the 2026 session runs July 18-25.
All American High School Film Festival
Students submit short films across 13+ categories; official selections screen at a live festival/Teen Indie Awards with scholarship prizes.
All American High School Film Festival (AAHSFF)
The world's largest student film festival, where high school filmmakers submit short films for a chance to screen at an AMC theater in Times Square and compete for scholarships at an annual New York City awards weekend.
American Academy of Neurology Neuroscience Research Prize
National competition co-sponsored with the Child Neurology Society for original high school research on the brain and nervous system, judged on relevance, creativity, and data interpretation.
American Ballet Theatre Summer Intensive
ABT's flagship summer ballet training program held in New York, California, and Florida, offering advanced dancers instruction in ABT's National Training Curriculum with merit-based scholarships available.
American Battlefield Trust Postcard Contest
An annual creative contest from the American Battlefield Trust in which students in grades 4-12 design an illustrated postcard reflecting on the importance of preserving Civil War and Revolutionary War history.
American Legion Boys Nation
One of the most selective civic-education programs in the country: two delegates chosen from each state's American Legion Boys State program (about 100 nationally from a pool of 20,000+ Boys State participants) travel to Washington, D.C. to serve a week as mock U.S. senators, drafting bills, holding committee hearings, and meeting elected officials.
American Legion Dept. of California Oratorical Contest
Students deliver prepared/impromptu speeches on the U.S. Constitution, advancing through Post/District/Area/Department finals.
American Legion National Oratorical Contest
A Constitution-focused public-speaking scholarship contest where students deliver prepared and extemporaneous speeches on the U.S. Constitution, advancing from post to state to national, with a $25,000 national top prize.
American Philosophy Olympiad
High schoolers write a proctored philosophical essay (in French or Spanish); top two scorers represent the USA at the International Philosophy Olympiad.
American Rocketry Challenge (formerly TARC)
The world's largest student rocketry contest, where teams design, build, and launch a rocket to hit precise altitude and duration targets carrying an egg payload, competing for over $100,000 in prizes.
AMS Freshman Undergraduate Scholarship
A national scholarship from the American Meteorological Society for graduating high school seniors planning to study atmospheric, oceanic, or hydrologic science in college. Awards $2,500 per year for the first two years of college based on academic record, test scores, an essay, and letters of recommendation.
ångstromCTF
A capture-the-flag competition organized entirely by students at Montgomery Blair High School focusing on system/network administration, programming, and reverse engineering. Beginner-to-intermediate friendly and online.
ARML (American Regions Mathematics League)
Prestigious national team math competition held simultaneously at multiple host sites, spanning Team, Power, Individual, and Relay rounds.
ASA Data Visualization Poster Competition
American Statistical Association competition where students submit statistical posters, physical or digital, with regional judging feeding national judging.
ASCAP Foundation Leiber & Stoller Scholarship for Songwriters
A national songwriting scholarship for college-bound high school seniors who submit their best original song, awarding $2,500 renewable annually for up to four years of college.
Aspen Music Festival and School - High School Division
One of the most selective summer classical music programs in the country, giving roughly 40-50 accepted high schoolers five weeks of private lessons, chamber coaching, and orchestral performance in Aspen, Colorado.
ASTA National Orchestra Festival
National in-person orchestra festival run by the American String Teachers Association, giving high school orchestras adjudicated performances and clinics with professional musicians.
Ayn Rand Institute Essay Contests (Anthem, The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged)
Annual international essay contests in which middle and high school students read one of Ayn Rand's novels and write an analytical essay on its themes and characters, with top prizes up to $25,000.
Bay Area BioGENEius Challenge
The most rigorous biotechnology project competition. You must have original research (e.g., from a science fair project) to enter.
Bay Area Cyber League Competitions
Year-round regional competitions for high school and community college students in the greater Bay Area. Includes fall and spring competitions with Discord community support.
Bay Area Urban Debate League (BAUDL)
The Bay Area Urban Debate League partners with Oakland and San Francisco public school districts to give high school students access to competitive policy debate, including the Julia Burke Debate Institute summer program. BAUDL runs a season of local and national-circuit tournaments and helps cover participation and travel costs to make debate accessible to under-resourced students.
BearMUN
BearMUN is UC Berkeley's dedicated high school Model United Nations conference, run by the Berkeley Model United Nations (BMUN) student secretariat to extend their collegiate MUN program to high schoolers. The 2026 conference runs December 5-6 on the UC Berkeley campus with roughly 500 delegates across 16 committees.
Berkeley Ballet Theater Summer Intensive
A pre-professional ballet training program with Junior/Senior Summer Intensive tracks for ages 11-18, requiring a placement class before enrollment, offered alongside youth division classes and tuition-waived boys' classes at this Berkeley dance school.
Berkeley Chess School Scholastic Tournaments
Weekly USCF-rated scholastic chess tournaments held across the Bay Area (Berkeley, Walnut Creek, Alameda) and open to K-12 players including high schoolers, run by the Berkeley Chess School since 1982.
Berkeley Model United Nations (BMUN)
High school delegates simulate UN bodies at UC Berkeley, researching countries, writing position papers, and debating global issues across dozens of committees.
Berkeley Playhouse TeenStage
Berkeley Playhouse's audition-based youth theater training track for grades 8-12, in which students rehearse and perform in full-scale musical productions (2026 season includes Cats) alongside stagecraft and assistant-stage-manager tracks, with financial aid available.
Bill of Rights Institute We the Students Essay Contest
An annual essay contest on U.S. government/founding-principles themes with a grand prize of $7,500 plus a scholarship to the Constitutional Academy summer program in Washington, D.C.
Blue Ocean Student Entrepreneur Competition
A large virtual pitch competition where high schoolers worldwide identify an unmet need and record a video pitch for an original business idea grounded in Blue Ocean Strategy principles.
Botball
An autonomous robotics competition where middle and high school teams design, build, and program fully autonomous robots — no remote controls allowed — using standardized kits and real programming languages.
Botball Educational Robotics Program (KIPR)
A team robotics competition for middle and high schoolers who design, build, and program fully autonomous robots (no remote control) using a standardized kit to complete timed tasks at regional and international tournaments.
Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Slam Festival
Brave New Voices is an annual international youth poetry slam festival founded and produced by Youth Speaks, a San Francisco spoken-word organization. Teen poetry teams from across the world compete in spoken-word slam rounds alongside workshops and community events; the 2026 festival (its 29th year) will be held in the San Francisco Bay Area in July.
BruinMUN (UCLA)
One of the largest West Coast HS Model UN conferences, hosted by UCLA, with 27 committees including novice-friendly options.
BU Brain Bee (Boston University)
Regional Brain Bee run by Boston University's Undergraduate Program in Neuroscience.
Building Young Entrepreneurs (B.Y.E.)
A Silicon Valley Center for Entrepreneurial Development initiative that equips African American youth in Silicon Valley with entrepreneurship skills, guiding participants from idea generation through researching, developing, and pitching a business for startup investment funding.
Business Professionals of America (BPA)
A national Career and Technical Student Organization with over 60,000 members in 2,000+ middle school, high school, and college chapters, in which students compete in Workplace Skills Assessment Program events spanning business, finance, and technology and attend regional, state, and national leadership conferences.
California 4-H Presentation Program (Regional Presentation Events)
A public-speaking development program within California 4-H open to members ages 9-18, in which students give prepared demonstrations/illustrated talks or impromptu speeches on assigned topics (e.g. Democratic Process, Mindfulness, Inspiring Others). Students first qualify at county-level events (Jan-March) before advancing to regional competitions, including a Bay Area regional held in Sonoma.
California Charter Schools Student Pitch Competition
Charter high schoolers develop business/social venture concepts and submit a pitch deck plus video; finalists pitch live at the CCSA conference for cash prizes.
California Envirothon
Teams study soils, wildlife, forestry, aquatic ecosystems, and a current issue topic, then compete in a day-long field and knowledge competition; state winner advances to nationals.
California FCCLA STAR Events (Culinary Arts & Nutrition)
Competitive events run through school FCCLA chapters where CA students prepare timed culinary dishes, plan sports-nutrition strategies, or tackle nutrition and wellness challenges, advancing from regional to state to national competition.
California High School Speech Association (CHSSA) State Championship
California's statewide governing body for speech and debate; students qualify locally to compete at one of the largest state championships in the country.
California National Debate Institute (CNDI)
The premier West Coast summer debate camp near UC Berkeley.
California Poetry Out Loud
Students memorize and perform published poems, advancing from classroom to county/state competitions; state champion wins cash and represents CA at National Finals.
Camp BizSmart: Innovate This!
An in-person weekend Maker's Lab competition on the Monterey Central Coast (with an optional Santa Clara University residential option) where teams of teens ages 13-18 assume C-level executive roles to design a water-filtration product for the Monterey Bay Aquarium and pitch it to investors for a cash prize.
CaseCatalyst
A fully virtual four-week case competition in which high school teams solve real challenges submitted by partner startups, mentored by university students and consulting professionals, with top teams earning startup internships.
CATE Creative Writing Student Showcase
The California Association of Teachers of English (CATE) runs an annual statewide creative writing showcase inviting California students, including high schoolers, to submit poetry, short stories, or essays responding to an annual prompt. Local CATE council divisions select top entries, which are published on the CATE website; the 2026 prompt is 'Preserving Narratives, Amplifying Perspectives,' exploring AI and human voice.
CCEE National Economics Challenge – California State Round
California Council on Economic Education's state portal for NEC, used to register California teams and run the state-level contest.
Chinese Bridge Speech Contest (China Institute of America)
Regional qualifying round of the international "Chinese Bridge" competition for non-heritage U.S. high school learners of Mandarin, featuring a keynote speech, culture quiz, and talent showcase, with top winners advancing to a summer camp in China.
CHSSA State Tournament
State governing body for CA high school speech/debate; local leagues culminate in a state tournament across debate, oratory, and interpretation events.
CLTAC Mandarin Chinese Speech Contest (Northern California)
Regional Mandarin speech competition run by the Chinese Language Teachers Association of California; long‑running and respected in NorCal.
Congressional Art Competition
A nationwide U.S. House of Representatives art contest in which high schoolers submit work to their congressional district office, with winning pieces displayed for a year in the U.S. Capitol.
Congressional Art Competition (CA-04, "An Artistic Discovery")
High schoolers submit an original 2D artwork representing their congressional district; winner's art displays in the U.S. Capitol for a year and wins a DC trip.
Conrad Challenge (Energy & Environment)
Student teams design an innovation and business plan solving a real-world problem in tracks including Energy & Environment, progressing through Activation and Innovation stages to the Innovation Summit.
Contra Costa Ballet Summer Intensive
A 2-4 week ballet summer intensive for dancers ages 8-18 at Contra Costa Ballet Centre in Walnut Creek, requiring in-person or video audition for ages 9+, with daily technique, pointe, jazz, character, and repertoire training for intermediate/advanced levels.
Cooper Hewitt National High School Design Competition
A free national design competition run by the Smithsonian's Cooper Hewitt museum, inviting individuals or teams of high schoolers to design a solution to a community-focused annual prompt and submit it virtually for judging, with regional and national recognition.
Council for Economic Education – Student Programs Hub
Central page listing CEE's student-facing econ opportunities (NEC, personal finance challenge, stock market game, etc.).
DAR Patriots of the American Revolution High School Essay Contest
A Daughters of the American Revolution essay contest focusing on people of the American Revolution, judged for historical accuracy and use of primary sources, advancing from chapter to state to national levels.
David McCullough Essay Prizes
Prestigious essay competition for high school students in Gilder Lehrman Affiliate Schools, honoring narrative or analytical essays on American history.
Debate & Leadership Institute (Founding Forward)
A five-day student debate and leadership program hosted on Founding Forward's (formerly Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge) 75-acre campus in Valley Forge, PA, combining competitive debate training with civic leadership workshops.
Debating Matters: Transatlantic (Bill of Rights Institute)
A four-day in-person debate program that brings together U.S. and U.K. high school students in London for structured transatlantic debate on contemporary issues, run by the Bill of Rights Institute.
Delaware BioGENEius Challenge
A state-affiliate biotechnology research competition run by the Delaware Biotechnology Institute at the University of Delaware, feeding into the International BioGENEius Challenge with original biotech/genetics research.
DownBeat Student Music Awards
A national jazz-education honor from DownBeat magazine open to junior high, high school, and college entries. Students submit instrumental/vocal recordings across performance, composition, arranging, and engineering categories.
Drones in School / MultiGP STEM Alliance
FPV drone racing STEM program where student teams design, build, and race their own drones, competing in a national school-league pathway.
Earth Science Week Contests (AGI)
Annual national contests held during Earth Science Week (mid-October), sponsored by the American Geosciences Institute. Students enter the photography, video, visual arts, or essay contest with work tied to that year's Earth Science Week theme.
EarthEcho International Youth Leadership Council
A competitively-selected leadership council (ages 15-22) founded by Philippe Cousteau Jr. that leads campaigns and programs on ocean and water conservation.
EduHam Online (Hamilton Education Program)
A free curriculum-based program created by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jeffrey Seller, and Gilder Lehrman where students study Founding-Era primary sources and create an original performance piece, with a national student showcase.
English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition
A performance-based program running since 1983 in which students memorize and perform a Shakespeare monologue and sonnet, advancing from classroom to regional ESU Branch rounds and ultimately a national final in New York City.
Envision Intensive Law & Trial
10-day residential trial advocacy program at Stanford culminating in a mock trial in a real courtroom.
Esporterz Esports & Coding Camp
An in-person esports and coding camp based in Larkspur (Marin County, Bay Area) where teens play competitive and casual video games on pro-gaming PCs, learn basic coding and robotics, and take part in outdoor STEM activities during weeklong summer sessions.
Essentially Ellington
National high school big-band jazz competition/festival from Jazz at Lincoln Center. Directors submit recordings of transcribed Ellington and jazz arrangements, and top bands are invited to New York to compete at Frederick P. Rose Hall each May.
FBLA Data Science & AI (Competitive Event)
A national FBLA high school competitive event, new for the 2025-26 season, testing members' knowledge of data analysis, machine learning, and AI principles through a 100-question, 50-minute objective exam at district, state, and national leadership conferences.
FBLA Personal Finance (Competitive Event)
National objective-test competitive event within Future Business Leaders of America where students demonstrate knowledge of budgeting, saving, credit, and investing.
FCCLA Entrepreneurship STAR Event
A national Family, Career and Community Leaders of America competitive event in which members individually or in teams design and present a business plan for a small business rooted in Family and Consumer Sciences, advancing from regional and state rounds to FCCLA's National Leadership Conference.
FCCLA Hospitality, Tourism, and Recreation (STAR Event)
A national FCCLA competitive event in which students research a hospitality or tourism business, build a basic business plan and website, and demonstrate customer-service problem-solving through an onsite case study, judged via portfolio, presentation, and case study performance.
FIRST Global Challenge
An international robotics olympics-style event with typically one team per country tackling a global-challenge-themed game each year, emphasizing international collaboration on grand challenges.
FIRST LEGO League Challenge
An entry-level FIRST program using LEGO-based robots plus a research/innovation project and core-values teamwork, primarily middle school but relevant for younger high schoolers and as a feeder to FTC/FRC.
FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC)
A robotics competition for middle and high schoolers who build smaller-scale robots to compete in a new game released each September, emphasizing engineering design and teamwork.
Fracchia Prize – San Francisco Historical Society
Annual research-essay contest on San Francisco history; open to any student attending a high school in San Francisco, with 1,200–1,600-word original essays.
Free Expression Essay Competition (PEN America)
An annual essay competition from PEN America in which high school students ages 15-17 write 1,000-word essays on threats to free expression in the U.S. or abroad, with top entries winning cash prizes.
Future We Want Model United Nations (FWWMUN – NYC)
Large international MUN conference where students debate global issues and write UN-style resolutions in New York.
G4C Student Challenge
An international game design competition from Games for Change inviting students ages 10-25 to build original digital games addressing a UN Sustainable Development Goals theme (recent themes include hunger, road safety, and biodiversity). The program supports entrants with in-school and after-school game-making courses, student game jams, and mentorship from game industry experts before the final submission and awards, which include scholarships and industry opportunities.
Gallaudet University National Literary Competition
Annual national competition open to deaf and hard-of-hearing students in grades 6-12, judging writing and storytelling/poetry performance in both ASL and English.
GAMA Aviation Design Challenge
A national high school competition run by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association in which teams of at least three students use free X-Plane-powered flight simulation curricula to learn flight science, then modify an aircraft design and compete in a virtual fly-off scored on aerodynamic and performance metrics.
GameGala
Billed as the largest game-specific K-12 contest in the U.S., GameGala started in California in 2018 with 80 participants and has grown into a global virtual competition (hosted by the K12 Ventures Foundation) where students build original games solo or in teams of up to three. High schoolers compete in their own age division for placement awards and special recognitions like the Innovation Award and Best Teamwork.
Games for Change Student Challenge
The largest student-facing game design competition in the U.S., inviting middle and high school students nationwide to design a digital game addressing a real-world issue tied to the UN Sustainable Development Goals; the top Game of the Year winner receives a $1,000 scholarship.
Genes in Space
Design a DNA experiment (PCR, etc.) to be performed on the International Space Station. Winners get their experiment launched to space.
Georgetown Entrepreneurship Academy
A two-week residential Georgetown University summer program where high schoolers learn startup fundamentals, prototype testing, and market research, culminating in a team pitch competition.
Get Lit - Words Ignite Classic Slam
One of the largest youth spoken-word poetry competitions in the country, in which middle and high school teams (using the Get Lit curriculum) each memorize and perform a classic poem paired with an original spoken-word response. Teams advance through qualifying rounds to a live finals judged by professional poets and performers.
GGJ Next (Global Game Jam Next)
The middle- and high-school-focused arm of the worldwide Global Game Jam, offering flexible short game-design jams (as brief as 4-6 hours, spread across one or more days) for school clubs and student teams, with a pathway into the Games for Change Student Challenge for a shared $10,000 scholarship prize.
Global Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge (GYEC)
Teams have a 12-hour window to develop and pitch a sustainable business idea addressing a global issue, submitting a brief and video, with country winners advancing to finals.
Harvard Debate Council Summer Workshops
Public Forum, Policy, Congressional/Model Congress, and World Schools training.
Harvard Model Congress Boston
A large congressional simulation conference run by Harvard undergraduates where high schoolers write and debate legislation, argue mock trials, and role-play crisis scenarios across dozens of committees.
Harvard-MIT Mathematics Tournament (HMMT)
A large student-run team math tournament held twice a year with individual and team rounds.
High School Entrepreneurship Olympiad
A national two-round competition for teams of up to five high school students: a 30-question, 60-minute multiple-choice assessment followed by a startup-strategy case challenge judged on clarity and feasibility, with up to $5,000 in prizes awarded by percentile tier.
High School Esports League (HSEL / Generation Esports)
One of the largest and longest-running scholastic esports organizations in North America, now operating under Generation Esports/PlayVS. High schoolers compete online in regional, conference, and national tournaments across titles like Rocket League, Valorant, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, with scholarships awarded to top performers at HSEL Nationals.
High School Health Research Challenge (HSHRC)
A virtual competition run by the High School Health Research Forum in which full-time students in grades 9-12 worldwide submit original, evidence-based proposals addressing a societal health issue; the 2026 season was listed as forthcoming as of this research.
HOSA – Human Growth and Development (Competitive Event)
A HOSA-Future Health Professionals competitive event in which active HOSA members take a 100-question written exam (with a tiebreaker essay) on biophysical, cognitive, social, and emotional human development across the lifespan.
HOSA — Future Health Professionals
260,000+ member org competing in health-science events incl. public health categories.
Houston Brain Bee (Rice Neuroscience Society)
Regional Brain Bee chapter run by Rice University's Neuroscience Society, with winners advancing toward the national Brain Bee.
HSCTF (High School Capture the Flag)
An international online hacking competition designed for high schoolers where teams of up to 5 crack codes, reverse engineer, design algorithms, and solve web/crypto challenges. Student-organized and beginner-accessible.
Hult Future Leaders Challenge
Teams tackle a real corporate business challenge (2026 brief set by LEGO) over 11 weeks with masterclasses, pitching to judges with top 10 teams advancing to a Global Final.
iGEM High School Division
International synthetic biology competition where high school teams design, build, and test genetically engineered systems using standard biological parts.
Independent Innovator Challenge (IIC) - 2026
The Independent Innovator Challenge (IIC) is an annual national innovation competition that lets K–12 students from anywhere in the U.S. submit invention/innovation projects directly, serving as a pathway into the U.S. National Innovator Challenge (NIC) for students who do not have another qualifying organization. Students develop inventions, create logbooks, pitch videos, slides, and prototypes. Top innovators receive awards including invitations to the U.S. National Innovator Challenge.
International / USA Brain Bee
Live Q&A neuroscience competition for high schoolers testing knowledge of the brain, neuroanatomy, histology, MRI, and patient-diagnosis skills, running through local, regional, national, and international levels.
International Brain Bee
A global neuroscience quiz competition open to teens ages 13-19 that tests knowledge of brain anatomy, imaging, and neurological disorders through local, national, and international rounds, run by a consortium including the Society for Neuroscience and APA.
International Linguistics Olympiad (IOL) - U.S. Teams
One of the 12 International Science Olympiads, with the U.S. sending two four-student teams selected via top NACLO performance to compete in individual and team analytical linguistics contests.
International Neuroscience Olympiad (INO)
Global brain-science competition using exams, events, and collaborative learning to make neuroscience accessible to students worldwide.
International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA)
Top USAAAO scorers compete internationally against 40+ countries.
International Psychology Olympiad (IPsyO)
A global competition in which high school students demonstrate psychology knowledge and research skills through a qualification test, a reading-based exam module, and a team-based research proposal presentation. Students from around 80 countries, including the US, have participated since its 2021 founding.
International Public Policy Forum (IPPF)
Teams of 3-6 research and write a policy debate brief on a global issue, advancing through written elimination rounds to live oral debates in NYC.
International Thespian Festival
A week-long national theatre festival at Indiana University bringing together thousands of high school Thespians for workshops, college auditions, and the Thespy Awards recognizing excellence in school theatre performance and technical design.
International Youth Neuroscience Association (IYNA) Ideaathon
Virtual competition where teams propose a solution to a neurological problem (e.g., "Design a better treatment for epilepsy").
Intuit Hour of Finance Challenge
A national financial literacy initiative in which middle and high school classes complete an interactive one-hour online game covering credit and budgeting decisions during an annual spring challenge window, competing for school-level recognition and prizes.
JA Be Entrepreneurial: Rapid Business Planning
A Junior Achievement of Northern California learning experience where high schoolers use Design Thinking and the Lean Canvas framework to turn a business idea into a one-page business plan across six sessions; participants may go on to compete in the JA Social Innovation Challenge.
JA Titan
A Junior Achievement business-strategy simulation in which high school students compete as CEOs of a phone company, making pricing, marketing, R&D, and corporate-social-responsibility decisions across a series of tutorial, strategy, and competition sessions delivered in classrooms, after school, or remote-live.
JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Convention
The nation's largest gathering of scholastic journalists, held twice yearly by the Journalism Education Association and National Scholastic Press Association, featuring hands-on workshops plus on-site student media contests across newspaper, broadcast, and yearbook.
Kaggle: Spaceship Titanic
Free beginner-friendly ongoing ML competition on a public dataset.
Kasparov Chess Foundation All-Girls National Chess Championship
An annual national scholastic chess championship run by the Kasparov Chess Foundation (founded by World Champion Garry Kasparov) exclusively for girls, drawing 650+ participants, alongside the foundation's Young Stars training and online KCF Academy instruction.
Leangap Summer Startup Program
An intensive entrepreneurship program based at UC Berkeley (with a fully online option) where high school students validate a business idea, build a prototype, and launch a real startup over four weeks. The program culminates in a Demo Day pitch to investors and Silicon Valley business leaders.
LifeSmarts California
Teams complete online quizzes on personal finance, technology, consumer rights, and workforce topics, competing to become State Champion and qualify for Nationals.
Long Island Brain Bee (Zucker School of Medicine)
Regional Brain Bee for Long Island high schoolers hosted by the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell.
MATE ROV Competition
An international underwater robotics competition where student teams design, build, and pilot remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to complete ocean-industry-themed engineering missions, then present their work like a startup company to professional judges.
MATE ROV Competition - Monterey Bay Regional
Northern California regional of the international MATE ROV underwater robotics competition, held in Watsonville, CA, where student teams design, build, and pilot remotely operated vehicles through ocean-themed engineering missions.
Mechanics' Institute San Francisco Scholastic Chess Championship
A free, all-day scholastic chess tournament hosted each spring by the Mechanics' Institute - the oldest continuously operating chess club in the U.S. - drawing 300+ young players from kindergarten through 12th grade to Yerba Buena Gardens in San Francisco. The Institute also runs year-round scholastic classes, school-break chess camps, and free chess instruction for Title 1 San Francisco schools.
Medusa Mythology Exam (National Mythology Exam)
An annual national exam for grades 9-12 testing knowledge of classical (Greek and Roman) mythology, administered by Excellence Through Classics, a committee of the American Classical League. Students take the exam through their school and can earn gold, silver, or ribbon awards.
MetaCTF CyberGames
An annual jeopardy-style capture-the-flag hosted by MetaCTF with challenges across binary exploitation, cryptography, web exploitation, forensics, and reverse engineering, open to all skill levels including high schoolers.
MTNA Student Competitions
Among the most prestigious student music competitions in the U.S., with three-tiered state, division, and national finals Performance Competitions (piano, strings, brass, woodwind, voice) plus Composition and Chamber Music competitions, Senior division ages 15-18.
NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC)
A nine-month NASA engineering challenge in which student teams design and build human-powered or remote-controlled rovers to navigate a simulated lunar/Martian obstacle course at a culminating event at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.
NASEF Scholastic Esports Clubs
A national nonprofit offering free scholastic esports clubs, tournaments (including the Minecraft-based Farmcraft and Beyond the Game Challenges), STEM/social-emotional-learning curriculum, and career pathways for middle and high schoolers. Broader than and distinct from its California-specific CIF Esports Initiative partnership.
National Catholic Forensic League (NCFL) Grand National Tournament
4,000+ students from 430+ schools compete in debate, oratory, dramatic performance, and extemporaneous speaking.
National Christian Forensics and Communications Association (NCFCA)
A national homeschool speech/debate league culminating in a national championship in June.
National Cyber Scholarship Competition (NCSF)
A timed CTF-style competition reached via CyberStart that awards hundreds of college scholarships plus SANS course/GIAC certification vouchers to top-scoring high schoolers.
National Economics Challenge (Council for Economic Education)
Nationwide high school economics competition where teams of 3-4 students answer questions in micro, macro, and international economics, advancing from state to national finals.
National Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY)
The largest youth film festival in the world, held annually in Seattle, screening and awarding short films made by filmmakers age 24 and under, with dedicated student and high-school-specific award categories.
National French Contest (Le Grand Concours)
Students of French take a written exam on grammar, vocabulary, reading, and culture, competing against peers at a similar study level.
National Geographic Slingshot Challenge
Global youth environmental-action challenge where individuals or teams create a one-minute video proposing an innovative solution to protecting nature, cleaning air, restoring the ocean, reducing waste, or addressing climate change. Top submissions receive $10,000 each.
National German Exam
Leveled standardized exam (Levels 1-4) testing German proficiency; top scorers earn certificates, medals, and scholarship consideration.
National High School Musical Theatre Awards (Jimmy Awards)
A national celebration of student musical theater performers, where nominees who win one of 51 regional awards programs travel to perform at a Broadway showcase in New York City for scholarships and recognition.
National History Bee and Bowl
Nationwide history quiz competitions run by International Academic Competitions, with an individual buzzer-based Bee and a team-based Bowl, split into Varsity (grades 11-12) and Junior Varsity divisions that advance from regional tournaments to national championships.
National JA Stock Market Challenge
A Junior Achievement competition in which teams of high schoolers who have completed the JA Take Stock in Your Future curriculum simulate 90 days of stock trading in 90 minutes, with top teams advancing to an in-person final in Boston.
National Japanese Exam (AATJ)
Online, standards-based proficiency exam in reading, listening, grammar, and culture for middle school, high school, and college learners of Japanese, administered by the American Association of Teachers of Japanese.
National Junior Classical League (NJCL)
The largest classics organization for students in the world, running local chapters plus a national convention with academic testing, the Certamen quiz-bowl, and creative arts competitions centered on Latin, Greek, and classical culture.
National Latin Exam
Standardized exam testing Latin grammar, vocabulary, and culture at the student's level; top scorers earn certificates, medals, and scholarship opportunities.
National Mythology Exam (Medusa, HS Level)
HS students studying classical mythology take a 40-question exam on Greco-Roman myth with an annual theme, earning certificates and awards.
National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB)
A regional and national quiz-bowl style academic competition for high school teams testing knowledge of ocean biology, chemistry, physics, geology, and policy, run at universities and research institutions across the country.
National Portuguese Exam (AATSP)
Annual proficiency exam for grades 10-12 students of Portuguese in the U.S., administered by the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese, with medals awarded to top scorers.
National PTA Reflections - Literature
A long-running national arts program with a dedicated Literature category, with entries advancing from local PTA to council, region, state, and national levels.
National Robotics Challenge (NRC)
An open-platform robotics competition, founded in 1986, open to students from 6th grade through graduate school who design and build robots from self-sourced materials across a dozen competition categories at an annual championship.
National Robotics League (NRL)
A combat-robotics competition in which high school students design, build, and battle their own robotic creations, developing manufacturing and technical problem-solving skills through regional events and a national championship.
National Russian Essay Contest (NREC)
Annual timed essay competition run by the American Council of Teachers of Russian for U.S. middle and high school students of Russian, judged nationally with multiple award levels.
National Spanish Exam
Standardized exam assessing Spanish listening, reading, and grammar at the student's level; top scorers earn certificates and national recognition.
National Speech & Debate Tournament (NSDA)
The largest academic competition in the world; 7,000+ students qualify through state/district tournaments to compete in policy, LD, public forum, congress, and individual speech events.
National Student Production Awards (NATAS)
The national-level video production competition run by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (the Emmys); regional chapter winners in news, craft, and programming categories advance to compete for this national high school broadcasting honor.
NCF-Envirothon
North America's largest high school environmental education competition. Teams of five test their knowledge across soils/land use, aquatic ecology, forestry, wildlife, and a rotating current environmental issue, plus an oral presentation, progressing from local to state to the international NCF finals.
New York Times Student Editorial Contest
Students ages 13-19 write a persuasive editorial judged by Times journalists.
NFFTY Screenplay Competition
Filmmakers/writers 24 and under submit short screenplays/pilot scripts; finalists win cash and passes to NFFTY, the world's largest festival for young filmmakers.
NFTE National Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
The flagship business plan and pitch competition of the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, where students advance through local, regional, and national elimination rounds to compete for cash prizes.
NFTE West Region Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
The Bay Area/Northern California qualifying competition of the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship's West Region, where students from NFTE's Entrepreneurship Essentials, Startup Tech, and BizCamp courses pitch student businesses for scholarships and seed capital, with winners advancing toward NFTE's national showcase; NFTE has served Bay Area students for over 25 years.
NFTE Youth Entrepreneurship Showcase
NFTE's reimagined flagship pitch competition where students develop and pitch original business ideas through classroom, regional, and national rounds with entrepreneur mentorship.
NGPF PAYBACK Challenge
An annual national challenge from Next Gen Personal Finance in which high school students play the PAYBACK college-simulation game and then write an essay or make a video on applying what they learned to future financial decisions, competing for scholarship prizes.
NHSMUN (National High School Model United Nations)
One of the world's largest and longest-running Model UN conferences, held in New York City, where secondary school delegates debate global issues, draft resolutions, and interact with actual UN staff and diplomats.
NJCL National Certamen
A quiz-bowl-style competition run by the National Junior Classical League testing knowledge of Latin/Greek language, Roman life, mythology, history, and literature, held at the NJCL National Convention.
NorCal House of Chess
A Northern California chess organization that has run roughly 200 rated tournaments, including monthly Scholastic Quads (4-player mini-tournaments with trophies/medals) and FIDE-rated Swiss events open to K-12 students. Several partner clubs founded by former NHC students now run parts of the scholastic program and use proceeds for charitable causes.
NorCal Stock Market Challenge (Junior Achievement)
A one-day, live stock market simulation event hosted by Junior Achievement of Northern California where high school teams build and manage investment portfolios in real time and compete against other regional teams.
Northeastern University Oakland: Experiential Entrepreneurship
A two-week residential pre-college program on Northeastern University's Oakland campus where high school students form teams, learn business planning, product development, pitching, and negotiation from Bay Area mentors, visit local innovative businesses, and culminate in a pitch presentation to entrepreneurs.
Northern California Esports League (NCEL)
A scholastic esports league operated by the Butte County Office of Education in partnership with NASEF, serving predominantly rural and small Northern California schools with both middle school (NCEL-MS, the first middle-school esports league in the nation) and high school divisions. Students compete in titles such as League of Legends, Rocket League, Fortnite, NBA 2K, and Overwatch while building communication and teamwork skills.
Northern California High School Ethics Bowl
Teams discuss real-world ethical cases in a collaborative (non-adversarial) format judged by academics/professionals; winners advance toward the National Championship.
NSDA National Speech & Debate Tournament
Largest academic competition in the world, organized by the National Speech & Debate Association. 2026 tournament held in June in Richmond, Virginia (Altria Theater, Greater Richmond Convention Center, area high schools). To compete, students must be NSDA members with at least 25 honor-society points and qualify through district tournaments.
NSLC International Diplomacy
NSLC's International Diplomacy program has high schoolers take on the role of UN diplomats, debating current events and practicing negotiation across a joint session split between Georgetown University and Columbia University. Students explore international relations theory alongside communication and leadership skills.
NYIT High School Business Competition
A team-based competition run by New York Tech's School of Management where high school juniors and seniors spend four weeks solving a real business problem posed by a partner company and present findings to its executives.
Oakland Rotary Enterprise Institute
A three-day retreat in Aptos, CA, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Oakland since 1982, where sponsored high school juniors from Oakland schools form leadership teams to create and operate a mock company, developing marketing and business strategy skills with mentorship from returning student peer counselors and business leaders.
Olive Hyde Art Guild Scholarships
Scholarships for Fremont high school seniors and Ohlone College students pursuing visual arts; includes a $2,000 first prize and several additional awards.
Olympiada of Spoken Russian
Oldest ACTR program for U.S. secondary schools, where students of Russian compete in conversation, poetry recitation, and Russian civilization at regional/state competitions.
Optimist International Oratorical Contest
A club-sponsored oratory contest on an annual civic topic with over $150,000 in scholarships awarded annually.
Orchestra Cup (National Orchestra Championships)
Elite, invitation-based national high school orchestra championship held at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, where top school orchestras perform for renowned adjudicators.
Penn Certamen
An annual Classics quiz-bowl competition hosted by the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Classical Studies, drawing roughly 200 middle and high school students from multiple states; revived in 2026 by student organizers and a faculty advisor after a hiatus.
Penn Model Congress
A four-day spring congressional simulation hosted by University of Pennsylvania students where high school delegates from across the country debate bills and discuss current political issues.
Penn State Language and Linguistics Day
Free annual on-campus event where nearly 100 high schoolers attend hands-on linguistics workshops and compete in a linguistics competition.
PlayGround Young Playwrights Contest
Bay Area high schoolers write short plays on an annual prompt ("Tales of the City" 2026); finalists get a professional staged reading with actors at the PlayGround Festival.
PlayGround Young Playwrights Project
Bay Area playwriting contest and mentorship program for high school students across all nine Bay Area counties, with winning short plays given professional staged readings at Potrero Stage in San Francisco.
PlayVS High School Esports - California
PlayVS is the CIF-recognized platform powering official California high school esports leagues. Students compete on their school's varsity/JV teams across seasonal titles such as League of Legends, Rocket League, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and Madden NFL.
Poetry Out Loud
A national poetry recitation competition, run by the National Endowment for the Arts and Poetry Foundation, where students memorize and perform poems, advancing from classroom to school, state, and national finals in Washington, DC.
Princeton Model Congress
The oldest model congress program in the country, bringing roughly 700 high schoolers to Washington, D.C. to debate bills, sit as Supreme Court justices, and role-play executive branch decision-making.
Princeton University Mathematics Competition (PUMaC)
A student-run team mathematics competition hosted at Princeton in the fall with individual and team rounds.
Project Citizen (Center for Civic Education)
A portfolio-based civic education project in which middle and high school students identify a local public policy problem, research it, and develop and present a public-policy proposal to classmates, community stakeholders, or local officials; California implementation is coordinated by the California We the People and Project Citizen network.
ProjectCSGIRLS (Bioinformatics)
While CS focused, many winning projects use code to solve genetics problems (Bioinformatics). Open to 8th-12th grade (Select tracks).
ProStart
A two-year, industry-backed culinary arts and restaurant management career pathway for high schoolers, offered through participating high schools nationwide (including California) via the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. Combines classroom instruction and industry mentorship with the annual National ProStart Invitational competition.
Purple Comet! Math Meet
A free, online team-based math competition open to middle and high school students worldwide, run annually since 2003, where teams collaborate to solve a set of challenging problems within a fixed time window.
Redbird Risk Management Challenge
A free week-long residential program at Illinois State University's Katie School of Insurance and Risk Management where high school seniors form teams to manage a simulated corporation through risk scenarios, learning actuarial and risk-management fundamentals; next held in 2027.
Redwood Writing Contest
Co-hosted by the Redwood Writing Project and the Redwood Council of CATE at Cal Poly Humboldt, this annual North Coast California writing contest invites students in grades 3-12 to submit original personal essays, poetry, or short stories organized by grade band. Winners are published in a contest anthology, invited to an awards ceremony, and top entries advance to the statewide CATE Student Writing Showcase.
Reed Magazine Emerging Voices Contest
Creative writing and art contest exclusively for Santa Clara County, California high school students, with winners published in San Jose State University's Reed Magazine.
REEX Summer Program
A residential summer program at Howard University for rising juniors and seniors of color interested in commercial real estate, combining masterclasses, site visits, case studies, and a national team competition around real estate entrepreneurship.
Regional Brain Bee at Rutgers (Newark)
Regional Brain Bee hosted by Rutgers Brain Health Institute in Newark, NJ.
Rita Moreno Awards
Regional high school musical theatre awards program covering San Mateo to Santa Barbara counties, California, recognizing top student performers who compete for a chance to represent the region at the national Jimmy Awards in New York.
RoboBoat
International autonomous surface vehicle competition where student teams design, build, and program boats to complete maritime tasks like coastal surveillance and port security.
RoboCupJunior USA
A student robotics competition open to teams up to age 19 who design, build, and program fully autonomous robots to compete in soccer, rescue, or theatrical performance (OnStage) leagues, with top teams advancing to the international RoboCup.
Robofest
An annual robotics festival hosted by Lawrence Technological University with a Senior Division for grades 9-12, featuring autonomous-robot game challenges, BottleSumo, vision-based tasks, and a robotics-themed exhibition and arts competition.
RoboRAVE International
An international robotics competition, founded in New Mexico in 2001, in which teams of 2-4 students of any age build and program autonomous robots on any hardware platform to compete in events like line following, sumo, and firefighting at regional Opens worldwide and a World Championship.
RoboSub
International autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) competition, held annually in Irvine, California, where high school and college teams design, build, and program AUVs to complete simulated maritime missions.
Russian Scholar Laureate Award (RSLA)
National ACTR award recognizing one outstanding 10th or 11th grade Russian-language student per eligible school each year.
Sacramento Valley Model UN Conference (SVMUNC)
Sacramento Valley Model UN Conference is a free, student-led Model United Nations program serving public high schools across the greater Sacramento region, including the annual FranklinMUN conference hosted at Franklin High School in Elk Grove. Delegates debate global issues in committee simulations with support from college mentors including UC Davis Model United Nations.
San Francisco Shakespeare Festival - Upstart Crows
An audition-required summer teen intensive at San Francisco Shakespeare Festival for actors ages 14-18 with prior acting experience, focused on Shakespearean text, voice, and movement work, culminating in a performance; need-based scholarships are available.
Santa Clara Valley Model UN (SCVMUN)
One of the oldest/largest West Coast HS MUN conferences, held in San Jose, drawing 800+ delegates from 60 schools.
Save the Cat! Screenplay Challenge
A prestigious international screenplay competition based on the popular Save the Cat! story methodology; writers under 18 may enter features or TV pilots with parent/guardian permission. Every entrant receives a full professional script analysis, and the grand prize includes a trip to Los Angeles and a live table read at the Lee Strasberg Institute.
School Enterprise Challenge
Students worldwide create, launch, and manage a real school-based business through a 10-stage curriculum from market research to financial reporting, using a free online platform.
School of American Ballet Summer Course
A five-week intensive ballet training program in New York City run by the official school of New York City Ballet, admitting intermediate and advanced dancers ages 12-18 through a national audition tour.
Science Olympiad – Dynamic Planet (Division C)
Team event mastering a rotating earth-science topic through timed testing stations.
SCMUN (USC Model United Nations)
USC's Model UN team hosts a HS conference with 16 traditional and historical/crisis committees exploring global issues.
SeaPerch
A national underwater robotics program where students build a remotely operated vehicle from a low-cost kit and compete in regional and international challenges built around ocean engineering scenarios.
Selma Moidel Smith Student Writing Competition in California Legal History
Essay competition inviting students to research and write about a topic in California's legal and judicial history.
SIFMA Foundation Capitol Hill Challenge
A national investing competition, now in its third decade, that pairs members of Congress with public middle and high schools in their districts; student teams manage a hypothetical $100,000 portfolio of stocks, bonds, and other assets, with priority given to Title I schools.
Signet Classics Student Scholarship Essay Contest
An annual essay contest from Penguin Random House open to high school juniors and seniors, who write on a themed prompt tied to a classic novel for a chance at a $1,000 scholarship and a library of Signet Classics for their school.
Simply Neuroscience Synaptic Hacks
Annual hackathon focused on neurotechnology and computational neuroscience.
SkillsUSA - Robotics & Automation
A career-and-technical-education competition within SkillsUSA where small teams tackle robotics/automation challenges, advancing from state to national championships. Requires an active school SkillsUSA chapter.
SMART Competition (IEEE Region 6)
An IEEE Region 6-sponsored engineering competition in which high school teams use professional design software (Bentley Systems) to redesign a fictional school gymnasium for structural integrity, energy efficiency, and renewable power generation. Teams submit engineering solutions that are judged by practicing engineers.
Solar Car Challenge
A 15-month educational program culminating in a national race where high school teams design, engineer, and build road-worthy, solar-powered cars from scratch, then compete on a closed track or in a cross-country event.
Space Settlement Design Competition
An international competition in which high school students are organized into simulated aerospace companies to respond to a Request for Proposal by designing a space settlement, culminating in judged regional and international finals with roles mirroring real aerospace firms.
Sphinx Competition
Annual national competition in Detroit for young Black and Latinx classical string players. Finalists perform with the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra and compete for nearly $100,000 in prizes plus mentorship and instrument access.
SPOA + Sony Student Photo Contest
A free national photography contest for students in grades 6-12, run by School Photographers of America in partnership with Sony. Students submit original photos in categories like Action Shot, Candid Photo, and Detail Shot; winners receive cameras donated by Sony.
Stanford Model United Nations Conference (SMUNC)
Stanford's flagship high school MUN conference with multiple committees where delegates debate, negotiate, and draft resolutions on international issues.
Startup UCLA Summer Institute: Social Entrepreneurship (SESI)
A UCLA-run Social Entrepreneurship Summer Institute offered as a two-week virtual course (or an optional Los Angeles residential track) in which high school students in grades 10-12 develop a social-impact venture from idea to a final pitch presentation and earn a Certificate of Achievement.
Stoa USA
A national speech/debate league for privately-educated/homeschooled students, culminating in NITOC nationals.
Stock Market Game
Virtual stock trading competition where students manage investment portfolios and learn about markets, economics, and financial literacy.
Stockholm Junior Water Prize (US/CA)
Students conduct an original water-related research project, competing through state and national judging; the US winner receives a cash prize and represents the US at the international finals in Sweden.
Stossel in the Classroom Essay Contest
Libertarian-leaning economics/policy essay contest on videos/topics by John Stossel; strong for persuasive writing at the econ/policy intersection.
Student Poetry Award (Poetry Society of America)
An annual national award, endowed under the Whitbread and Bourne bequests, for the best unpublished poem submitted by a student in grades 9-12, judged anonymously by the Poetry Society of America.
Student Television Network (STN) Convention & Contests
STN is a national student media organization supporting high school broadcast journalism, film, and media students through an annual convention and a slate of named competitions including Broadcast Excellence, Film Excellence, STN Challenge, and Story of the Year. Students and advisers attend live conventions (2027 in Long Beach) with contests, workshops, and awards recognizing top student broadcasters and filmmakers.
STUFFit Student Film Festival – Animation Category
A national student film festival with dedicated Senior and Junior Animation categories for high schoolers (ages 12-18); students submit an original animated short under 10 minutes made within the last 12 months for festival screening and judging.
Susan Polgar Foundation National Open for Girls and Boys
A national scholastic chess tournament founded by GM Susan Polgar, featuring a girls' workshop, simultaneous exhibitions with titled players, and blitz side events. The foundation has awarded nearly $8 million in prizes and scholarships to young players since 2003.
Technology Student Association (TSA) Robotics
TSA runs robotics-focused events within its broader STEM competitive program at state and national conferences, requiring an active school TSA chapter.
Teen Investor Cup
An online guided investing competition in which students in grades 8-12 manage a simulated $100,000 portfolio over several weeks, with optional coaching calls and cash prizes for top performers.
The Art of Neuroscience
Create an artistic representation of the brain (video, image, sculpture).
The Blank Theatre Young Playwrights Festival
A nationwide playwriting competition for writers ages 9-19 whose 12 winning plays receive fully staged professional productions in Los Angeles with mentorship from working playwrights.
The Fountainhead Essay Contest (Ayn Rand Institute)
Essay analyzing Ayn Rand's "The Fountainhead."
The New York Times Student Editorial Contest
A free global contest via the NYT Learning Network asking teens to write a 500-word persuasive open letter/editorial, with winning entries published by The New York Times.
The Tech Challenge
Annual team engineering design competition at The Tech Interactive in San Jose where students build and test devices to solve a real-world problem.
Think Essay Prize (Royal Institute of Philosophy)
International essay competition; winning essay published in Think journal.
Top Trader Stock Market Competition (UT Dallas)
A fully online summer stock and ETF trading competition hosted by UT Dallas's Naveen Jindal School of Management, in which high schoolers invest $1 million in virtual currency and compete for a cash prize pool.
TSA Board Game Design
A Technology Student Association high school competitive event in which participants develop, build, and package an original board game with instructions, pieces, and cards, then demonstrate and explain their design process to judges in a semifinal interview round.
TSA Data Science and Analytics
Teams research a societal issue with provided datasets, present at TSA conferences.
U.S. Cyber Challenge (Cyber Quests & Camps)
A national STEM initiative to identify cyber talent. High school students compete in Cyber Quests (online CTF-style rounds) to qualify for free week-long Cyber Camps at federal cyber centers. Camps include lodging and are by invitation.
UC Berkeley Business & Entrepreneurship Academy with NFTE
A two-week, in-person Summer Discovery academy at UC Berkeley for grades 9-12 taught by an NFTE-certified instructor, covering market research, the Lean Canvas, financial planning, and marketing strategy, culminating in a professional business pitch judged in a classroom showcase.
UC Davis C-STEM RoboPlay Challenge
Robotics competition from UC Davis's C-STEM Center where K-12 students apply algebra, math, and programming to robot-based challenges; recognized in UC admissions.
UrbanPlan Americas Student Competition
Developed with UC Berkeley's Fisher Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics, UrbanPlan is a project-based real estate development simulation in which teams of high school students act as a fictional developer, balancing budgets, zoning, and community needs to pitch a project for city council approval. Top student teams compete nationally in the UrbanPlan Americas High School Competition.
USA Biolympiad (USABO)
The premier US high school biology olympiad, genetics-heavy, run by the Center for Excellence in Education, progressing from an online Open Exam through a semifinal to 20 finalists at a residential national finals, selecting the US team for IBO.
USA Computing Olympiad (USACO)
The most prestigious algorithmic programming competition in the U.S., serving as the pathway to the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI). Four divisions (Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum) allow students to progress based on performance.
USA Debate Team (World Schools Debating Championships)
NSDA's selective national team trains at Harvard before representing the U.S. at WSDC.
USA Mathematical Talent Search (USAMTS)
A free, online, proof-based contest with one puzzle and four proof problems per round, run by AoPS and sponsored by the NSA, giving students a full month per round plus personalized grader feedback.
USCCB Religious Liberty Essay Contest
A national essay contest for high school juniors and seniors on a topic related to religious liberty, run by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and open to students of any school type. Top essays win scholarships and publication.
USIYPT (US Invitational Young Physicists Tournament)
A national "physics fight" tournament where student teams spend months investigating open-ended physics research problems, then defend their findings against rival teams before a panel of judges.
VEX IQ Robotics Competition
The snap-together entry-level tier of the VEX/REC Foundation ecosystem, where robots play a cooperative Teamwork Challenge plus a solo Robot Skills Challenge, best positioned as a beginner/feeder option.
VEX V5 Robotics Competition
The largest and fastest-growing middle/high school robotics program globally, where student teams build robots for a new annual engineering challenge and compete in tournaments up through a World Championship.
VEX V5 Robotics Competition (VRC - HS Division)
Largest global competitive robotics program for middle and high school students. Teams design and build V5 robots for a yearly game with extensive competition opportunities.
Victory Briefs Institute (VBI)
A top national debate camp at University of San Diego offering LD, Public Forum, and World Schools training.
Vocabulary Bowl
Free, global vocabulary mastery competition on Vocabulary.com where individual students or entire schools compete to master the most words.
WAMUNC (Washington Area Model United Nations Conference)
A large high school Model UN conference hosted by George Washington University students in Washington, D.C., welcoming delegates of all experience levels to debate international policy issues.
We the People – California
Students study the Constitution and testify as constitutional experts in simulated congressional hearings; state champion advances to nationals in D.C.
We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution
A civics curriculum and competition from the Center for Civic Education in which student teams research constitutional issues and testify before a panel of judges acting as legislators, advancing from regional and state rounds to National Finals in Washington, DC.
We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution National Finals
A constitutional law simulation where teams "testify" before judge panels; state champions advance to D.C.
World Robot Olympiad
International robotics competition spanning RoboMission, RoboSports, Future Innovators, and Future Engineers categories, with national qualifying rounds leading to a World Final.
Write the World Screenwriting Competition
An online screenwriting competition from the global teen writing platform Write the World, open to writers ages 13-19 to submit an original short screenplay for peer and professional feedback and judging, part of Write the World's monthly competition series.
Writopia Lab - San Francisco Bay Area
Writopia Lab's Bay Area chapter runs writing workshops out of hubs in Oakland and San Francisco, offering high schoolers trimester-long weekly workshops, school-break and summer intensives, and private sessions across fiction, memoir, poetry, and playwriting. Students can submit work through Writopia's affiliated competitions, including the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards regional partnership and the Worldwide Plays Festival.
Yale Model Congress
The oldest student-run model government conference in the Ivy League, bringing several hundred high school delegates to Yale's campus to simulate congressional debate and lawmaking.
Young Family Historians Essay Contest
Essay contest focused on family history and genealogy, asking students to research and write about their own family history using historical methods.
Young Investors Challenge
A free online investing competition open to US and Canadian students 21 and under, in which participants manage a simulated $100,000 stock portfolio over a 10-week period using live market data, competing for cash prizes across age divisions.
Youth America Grand Prix (San Francisco Regional)
Pre-professional ballet dancers perform variations before international judges at a regional semi-final; top scorers advance to master classes and the international YAGP Finals scholarship competition.
Youth Cinema Project
Youth Cinema Project (YCP), a signature program of the Latino Film Institute, teaches filmmaking to students through in-school, after-school, summer, and CTE film production pathway programs. YCP operates in school district partnerships across California, including Northern California sites in Daly City and Napa, guiding students from screenwriting through production to a culminating short film.
Youth Economics Initiative (YEI): EconBowl
The self-described world's largest coalition of high school economics clubs runs EconBowl, a fall economics competition with a $1,500 prize pool, alongside school-based EconClubs, a members-only spring EconOlympiad, and a speaker series, partnering with organizations including Bank of America and Stanford.
Youth Speaks Teen Poetry Slam / Brave New Voices
Bay Area teen poets compete in Olympic-style slam rounds; top poets represent the region at Brave New Voices, a national youth poetry festival and slam.
ECFinder provides links to outside extracurricular opportunities for informational purposes only. Students and families should research each program before applying. ECFinder does not operate or control the listed organizations and is not responsible for their actions or policies.