Computer Science

Premier national competitive programming competition (Bronze to Platinum divisions). Official site: usaco.org

Eligibility: Grades 9-12

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

App Dev / CS

District-level coding contest hosted by US Members of Congress to encourage STEM innovation.

Eligibility: US Middle/High

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

AI for Good

Global artificial intelligence and tech social impact challenge for secondary students.

Eligibility: Ages 13-18

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Entrepreneurship / CS

International competition solving real-world community problems with mobile apps and AI.

Eligibility: Girls Ages 8-18

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Open Source Dev

Global program pairing student developers with open-source software organizations for stipend projects.

Eligibility: Age 18+ / High School

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Cybersecurity

National Youth Cyber Education Program putting students in charge of securing virtual networks.

Eligibility: Middle & High School

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Competitive Prog.

Prestigious international programming contest modeled after IOI exclusively for young women.

Eligibility: Female High School

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Competitive Prog.

The premier international high school computer science olympiad globally. Official site: ioinformatics.org

Eligibility: National Qualifiers

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Mobile App Dev

International virtual hackathon focused on building impactful mobile apps without prior complex syntax.

Eligibility: Global Youth

Application relevance: Tier 3 — foundation level. Best used early to build skills and demonstrate genuine interest; pair it with a higher-tier activity later.

Data Science / AI

Open machine learning competitions tackling predictive modeling and complex data analytics challenges.

Eligibility: Open / High School

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Cybersecurity

Innovative online cybersecurity gamified challenge offering scholarships and national recognition.

Eligibility: US High School

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Computational Thinking

International contest promoting computational thinking and logic puzzles for all skill levels.

Eligibility: Grades 5-12

Application relevance: Tier 3 — foundation level. Best used early to build skills and demonstrate genuine interest; pair it with a higher-tier activity later.

Competitive Prog.

Regular timed algorithmic contests establishing a recognized global competitive programming rating.

Eligibility: Open Global

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

STEM & Coding

Algorithmic CS

Global algorithmic competitions specifically structured for secondary school developers.

Eligibility: High School

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Software / Hackathon

Official student hackathon league hosting 24-48 hour rapid prototyping competitions worldwide.

Eligibility: High School & College

Application relevance: Tier 3 — foundation level. Best used early to build skills and demonstrate genuine interest; pair it with a higher-tier activity later.

Computer Science

Team and individual competition covering computer science concepts from assembly language to graph theory.

Eligibility: Grades 3-12

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Mathematics

Flagship MAA contests serving as the first qualifying step for the US IMO team. Official site: maa.org

Eligibility: Grades 10 & 12 Below

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Mathematics

15-question, 3-hour invitational exam for top 2.5%-5% scorers on the AMC 10/12.

Eligibility: AMC Qualifiers

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Mathematics

One of the largest and most prestigious high school math competitions run by Harvard and MIT students.

Eligibility: High School Teams

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Mathematics

International high school math competition organized by Princeton University undergraduate math club.

Eligibility: High School Teams

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Mathematics

The ultimate worldwide mathematics tournament for pre-university students. Official site: imo-official.org

Eligibility: National Team Winners

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Mathematics

Renowned Canadian math competitions testing problem-solving, organized by University of Waterloo.

Eligibility: Grades 11-12

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Mathematics

Annual student-run math competition hosted on Stanford campus for top high school problem solvers.

Eligibility: High School Teams

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Mathematics

UC Berkeley's flagship tournament testing advanced high school mathematics and proof writing.

Eligibility: High School Teams

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Mathematics

International math problem-solving competition with deep emphasis on creative mathematical proofs.

Eligibility: Global High School

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

STEM & Coding

Mathematics

World's largest multiple-choice math competition encouraging positive mathematical culture.

Eligibility: Grades 1-12

Application relevance: Tier 3 — foundation level. Best used early to build skills and demonstrate genuine interest; pair it with a higher-tier activity later.

Applied Math / Modeling

14-hour intensive mathematical modeling competition tackling real-world societal problems.

Eligibility: US High School Juniors/Seniors

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

STEM Research

The world's largest pre-college STEM research competition. Official site: societyforscience.org/isef

Eligibility: Affiliated Fair Winners

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

STEM Research

America's oldest and most prestigious STEM research competition for high school seniors.

Eligibility: US High School Seniors

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Science Communication

Global video competition explaining complex concepts in physics, life sciences, or math.

Eligibility: Ages 13-18 Global

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Physics

World championship physics contest testing theoretical depth and experimental skills.

Eligibility: National Team Qualifiers

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Physics

National exam series leading to the selection of the US Physics Team. Official site: aapt.org

Eligibility: US High School

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Chemistry

World competition testing high school students in advanced theoretical and practical chemistry.

Eligibility: National Team Qualifiers

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Chemistry

Multi-tiered ACS contest selecting the top chemistry students across the United States.

Eligibility: US High School

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Biology

Global premier contest in biological sciences for top secondary school students.

Eligibility: National Team Qualifiers

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Biology

Premier biology competition hosted by CEE identifying top future bio-innovators.

Eligibility: US High School

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Environmental Science

Most prestigious international award for high school water research and conservation projects.

Eligibility: Ages 15-20

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Earth Science

Global competition covering geology, meteorology, oceanography, and terrestrial astronomy.

Eligibility: National Qualifiers

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

All Sciences

Fast-paced buzzer quiz competition testing knowledge across all science and math disciplines.

Eligibility: Middle & High Teams

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

STEM Research

Tri-service sponsored research competition promoting original STEM investigation and presentation.

Eligibility: US High School

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Summer Research

Combining on-campus coursework with off-campus graduate research at MIT/Harvard labs. CEE sponsored.

Eligibility: High School Rising Seniors

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Math & CS Research

Year-long research program in mathematics, computer science, and computational biology.

Eligibility: High School Students

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

STEM & Coding

STEM & Coding

Astrophysics/Biochem

Immersion program where teams complete research projects in Astrophysics, Biochemistry, or Genomics.

Eligibility: Rising Seniors

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

STEM & Coding

Biomedical Research

8-week medical research program working alongside Stanford faculty in state-of-the-art labs.

Eligibility: Rising Juniors/Seniors

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

Physics / Engineering

2 week internship in Geneva learning

Eligibility: Ages 16-18

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

STEM & Coding

STEM & Coding

STEM & Coding

STEM & Coding

STEM & Coding

STEM Research

6-week research program at Boston University in science or tech labs.

Eligibility: Rising Seniors

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.

CS & Business

International contest solving local community problems with mobile apps.

Eligibility: Girls Ages 8-18

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Cybersecurity

National youth cybersecurity competition securing virtual networks.

Eligibility: Middle/High School

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

Open Source

Global open-source software development contest for pre-university youth.

Eligibility: Ages 13-17

Application relevance: Tier 2 — regional or competitive selection. Adds credible depth to an application and shows sustained subject commitment beyond the classroom.

CTF / Ethical Hacking

CMU-hosted hacking contest in cryptography, reverse engineering, and web sec.

Eligibility: Middle/High School

Application relevance: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.