Elementary (Grades 4 and 5)

The list of competition categories for students in grades 4 and 5 includes consumer science, earth science, life science, physical science and team projects. 

• Consumer science: Test and comparison of consumer products for their intended use.  

• Earth sciences: Astronomy, climatology, geology, geography, meteorology, mineralogy, oceanography, physiography, seismology and speleology.

• Life sciences: Animal behavior, biology, botany, environment and ecology, food and nutrition, health and medicine, zoology and social sciences, including anthropology and psychology.

• Physical science: Examines the nature and interaction of energy and or nonliving matter, including the fields of chemistry, engineering and physics.

• Team projects: All disciplines—multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary. Projects consist of two or three team members. Each school or OST program may have two teams participating per grade level category, regardless of subject category.

Secondary (Grades 6-12) 

The list of competition categories for students in grades 6 through 12 include behavior and social science, biochemistry, botany, chemistry, computer science, consumer science, earth and space science, engineering, environmental science, mathematics, medicine and health, microbiology, physics, team projects and zoology.  

• Behavior and social science: The human and animal behavior and social and community relationships—anthropology, archaeology, educational testing ethology, ethnology, linguistics, learning, perception, psychology, public opinion surveys, reading problems, sociology and urban problems.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Biochemistry: The chemistry of life processes—blood chemistry, cell biology,  enzymes, food chemistry, hormones, molecular genetics, photosynthesis and protein chemistry.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Botany: The study of plant life. Botany includes agriculture, agronomy, algae, forestry, horticulture, hydroponics, plant genetics, plant pathology, plant physiology, and plant taxonomy.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Chemistry: The study of nature and composition of matter and laws governing it, including fuels, inorganic chemistry, materials, metallurgy, organic chemistry (other than biochemistry), physical chemistry, pesticides, plastics and soil chemistry.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Computer science: The study and development of computer hardware and software and associated logical devices.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Consumer science: The testing and comparison of consumer products for their intended use. Consumer science applies only to 6th, 7th, and 8th grade participants.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Earth and space science: Astronomy, climatology, geology, geography, meteorology, mineralogy, oceanography, physiography, seismology and speleology.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Engineering: The study of technology and projects that directly apply scientific principles to manufacturing and practical uses. These include aeronautical, automotive, civil, chemical, electrical, environmental engineering, heating and refrigerating, marine, mechanical, photographic, sound, and transportation.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Environmental science: The study of pollution (air, water and land) sources and their control as well as ecology.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Mathematics: The development of formal logical systems or various numerical and algebraic computations, and the application of these principles. These include abstract algebra, calculus, complex analysis, geometry, number theory, probability and statistics.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Medicine and health: The study of diseases and health of humans and animals including allergies, dentistry, dermatology, nutrition, ophthalmology, pathology, pharmacology, pediatrics, sanitation, and speech and hearing.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Microbiology: The biology of microorganisms including bacterial genetics, bacteriology, fungi, protozoology, virology and yeast.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Physics: The theories, principles, laws governing energy and the effect of energy on matter such as acoustics, atomic, biophysics, fluid and gas dynamics, magnetism, nuclear, optics, particle, plasma, quantum mechanics, semiconductors, solid state, superconductivity and thermodynamics.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).

• Team projects: All disciplines—multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary. Projects consist of two or three team members. Each school or OST program may have two teams participating per grade level category, regardless of subject category.  This allows for two teams for grade 6, two teams for grades 7-8 combined, two teams for grades 9-10 combined, and two teams for grades 11-12 combined per school or OST program.

• Zoology: The study of animals including animal ecology, animal genetics, animal husbandry, animal physiology, cellular physiology, circadian rhythms, cytology, entomology, herpetology, histology, ichthyology, invertebrate neurophysiology, invertebrates, ornithology and paleontology.  Please note: Only three projects are allowed per school/OST program per grade category (6, 7-8, 9-10, & 11-12).