Regeneron STS 2027: Deadline November 5, Eligibility and How to Apply

Applications for the Regeneron Science Talent Search (STS) 2027 close on Thursday, November 5, 2026, at 8pm Eastern. STS is for students in their final year of secondary school who live in the U.S. or its territories, whatever their citizenship, plus U.S. citizens abroad in certain school situations (see eligibility below). Research from any year of high school counts.

What is STS?

The Regeneron Science Talent Search (STS) is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious high-school STEM competition, focused on original science, technology, engineering or mathematics research by high-school seniors.
In the world of science fairs and competitions, STS stands out because entrants submit full research reports (rather than just a science-fair poster) and the winners receive significant awards plus national recognition.

Why Students and Parents Should Care

STS is nationwide and highly competitive, attracting the best of the best.

Serious research skills: designing experiments, writing a scientific paper, thinking like a scientist. This helps for other competitions and even college applications.
Big rewards: major scholarships and awards. The first-place winner receives $250,000.
Recognition and networking: Being a “Top 300 Scholar” or “Top 40 Finalist” means your work is seen by top scientists, you attend Finals Week (for the Top 40), and you join a network of high-achieving peers.
For parents: supporting the project, helping arrange mentorship, ensuring eligibility, guiding timelines, and helping your student manage this alongside school and extracurriculars.

Key Facts at a Glance

Open to: Students of any citizenship in their final year of secondary school (public, private, parochial, charter or home school) who live full-time in the U.S. or its territories. U.S. citizens abroad can also enter if they are in their final year at a Department of Defense school or an accredited American or international school overseas, are an exchange student at a foreign school, or attend a foreign school because their parents are temporarily working abroad. Proof of citizenship and school accreditation is required. You must not have graduated before the deadline or entered STS before.

Age: Over 13 with parent or guardian consent, or 18 to under 21, or an emancipated minor over 13.

Research from any year of high school is eligible. Juniors and parents planning ahead can count work done before senior year.

Individual research only: Projects must be independent (not part of a team project) and you must be the sole entrant for what you submit.

Original research required: You must have data, results, conclusions. A mere literature review or idea is not eligible.

Rules and ethical expectations: Must follow the official rules, including human/animal research protocols, hazardous materials, and scientific integrity.

Deadline and timeline (2027 cycle)

Application period: June 1 to November 5, 2026

Application closes: Thursday, November 5, 2026, at 8pm Eastern

Top 300 Scholars announced: January 7, 2027

Top 40 Finalists announced: January 21, 2027

Finals Week, Washington, DC: March 11 to 17, 2027

Public exhibition of projects: Sunday, March 14, 2027

Winners announced: Tuesday, March 16, 2027

The organiser is also hosting a webinar, “Advice from Past Regeneron STS Winners,” on Wednesday, October 21, at 8 pm Eastern.

Awards

Each of the 300 Scholars receives $2,000, and each Scholar’s school also receives $2,000.
Each of the 40 Finalists receives at least $25,000.
First place receives $250,000.
About $3.1 million is awarded each year.

Application components

Research report on an original, independent project, following the organiser’s research report guidelines.
Three recommendations: the educator recommendation, the project recommendation (usually your mentor), and the high school report (your transcript).
Application sections: about you, your project, and your prior research and activities.
Short essays.
Test scores (optional).
Disclosures of all support you received with the research and the application.

Step-by-Step: How to Plan for STS

1. Choose your research topic (early)

Start thinking junior year or early senior year: many successful entrants have been working for 6 months to a year or more.

The topic should be original, independent, and data-based (not just a review).
It can be conducted at your school, a research institution, or at home with proper oversight, but you must clearly show your contribution to the project.
If you involve mentors or adult researchers, you must disclose their support and make sure your role is clearly your own.

2. Conduct the research and write the report

Apply the standard scientific method: hypothesis, experiment, data collection, analysis, conclusion.
Write your research report (the “paper”) like a journal article: introduction, methods, results, discussion, references.
Review the STS “Official Rules” for specific protocols (e.g., if using vertebrate animals or human subjects).
Collect all your data, validate your results, and be ready to explain your process clearly.
Build a timeline: data collection → analysis → writing → application submission.

3. Prepare your application materials

The application has six parts. Work through them in this order:

Research report. Original, independent work, following the organiser’s research report guidelines.
Three recommendations. Ask your educator for the educator recommendation and your project mentor for the project recommendation, and arrange your high school report (transcript). Ask early so no one is rushing. The system will require your recommenders’ emails.
Application sections. About you, your project, and your prior research and activities. The judges look at your research and at you (motivation, persistence, leadership) in a holistic review.
Short essays. Tell your story: why the research matters, what you learned, what comes next.
Test scores (optional).
Disclosures of all support. You must disclose all support received with the research and the application. This is the part mentored students most need to get right: state plainly what you did and what your mentor and others did.

Save your work early, and download your submission preview for your records.

4. Submit early and avoid deadline stress

Applications close Thursday, November 5, 2026, at 8pm Eastern.
Customer support closes 24 hours before the deadline, on November 4 at 8pm Eastern. Requests submitted by then are guaranteed to be resolved before the close. Don’t wait until the last minute.
All parts (recommendations, transcript, paper) must be submitted by the deadline, with no exceptions.

5. After submission: what happens

Officials check eligibility first: independent work, deadline met, all materials submitted.
Entries are checked for completeness, eligibility and rules compliance, then evaluated by three or more doctoral-level scientists, mathematicians or engineers. Selection is holistic. The research report matters, but judges also weigh your contribution to the work, your academic record, and your potential as a future leader.
The Top 300 Scholars are announced on January 7, 2027. Further review leads to the Top 40 Finalists, announced January 21, 2027.
If you’re a Top 40 Finalist, you’re invited to Finals Week in Washington, D.C. (March 11 to 17, 2027), where you present your research publicly, meet peer finalists, attend workshops, and compete for top awards.

6. Leveraging the experience (even if you’re not a finalist)

Regardless of outcome, you’ve completed serious research and written a full paper, which is excellent for college applications, other science fairs and competitions, and summer research programs.
You can enter other national competitions or science fairs (for example, your school can send you to a regional science fair, then maybe Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) if affiliated).
You’ll have built confidence, communication skills, and deeper scientific understanding.
Parents: encourage reflection. What did your student learn? What would they do differently next time?

FAQ (for Students and Parents)

Q1. Can I apply if I worked on a team project?
No. STS requires independent research, i.e., a single student project. Even if you did most of the work but the project was submitted as a team elsewhere, it may be ineligible.

Q2. I’m homeschooled. Can I apply?
Yes. Homeschooled students are eligible. They need to have their “school” added to the lookup function or provide transcript/course documentation.

Q3. Does citizenship matter?
Not if you live in the U.S. or its territories. Students of any citizenship can enter if they are in their final year of secondary school and live there full-time. It matters abroad: U.S. citizens in their final year can enter from a Department of Defense school, an accredited American or international school overseas, a foreign school as an exchange student, or a foreign school while their parents work abroad temporarily, with proof of citizenship and school accreditation. Non-citizens attending American schools abroad are not eligible.

Q4. Can I use test scores (SAT/ACT) or AP scores in my application?
Test scores are optional for STS. The focus is more on your research, your essays and application, your project, and your story rather than standardized test cut-offs.

Q5. Do I need to publish my research?
No. You don’t need a publication. You may enter published work (if you are sole or first author), but it is not required. What matters is your contribution and data.

Q6. Is the research limited to certain fields (biology, chemistry, engineering)?
No. Projects in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics are all acceptable. The competition values innovation and potential in STEM broadly.

Q7. I used AI tools like ChatGPT to draft my application essay or report. Is that okay?
No. The rules say students may not use ChatGPT or other generative AI to answer the application questions, draft the Research Report, or generate citations. AI used within the research project itself is permitted, but it must be disclosed and cited.

STEM Competition Context

If you’re already participating in science fairs or science competitions, here’s how STS fits:

Many students begin with a regional school science fair, then progress to state science fairs, and sometimes national and international fairs. STS is one of the top-tier national competitions, so preparing for STS means you’re playing on a national stage.
Your research project for STS can often double (or be adapted) for other competitions, but STS expects a higher level of depth: full research report, independent work, original data.
Think of STS as the “grand challenge” if you’re serious about science competitions: winning or placing in STS significantly boosts your STEM résumé.
Even if you don’t win STS, the preparation process (research, writing, application) will make you stronger in other science fairs and competitions. It builds discipline, scientific communication and critical thinking.

Tips for Success

Lead with these three:

Ask recommenders early. Missing recommendations or a missing transcript invalidate an application. Teachers and mentors are busy; give them plenty of time to write a thoughtful letter.
Disclose mentor support fully and plainly. It is required, and a clear account of what you did and what your mentor did is a strength rather than a weakness.
Submit days before the close, not on the evening of November 5.

Then:

Start early. Don’t wait until senior year fall. Progress through junior year and align a project you can build on.
Choose a mentor. Whether it’s a teacher, university lab, local research institution or your own guided at-home project, a mentor helps you stay on track, access resources, and refine your work.
Keep excellent records. Document your experiments, data collection, revisions, obstacles, and how you overcame them. Judges appreciate clarity, honesty, and perseverance.
Tell your story. Your background, why this research matters, what you learned, and what you plan next all matter in the application and essays.
Request recommendations early. Teachers and mentors are busy; give them plenty of time to write a thoughtful letter.
Upload everything early and preview. Don’t wait for the last minute. Save a copy of your submission. Ensure everything is there (transcript, recommendations, paper).
Review the official rules. Especially if your research involves human participants, animals, cell lines, or hazardous materials. Make sure you comply.
Manage your time. You’re in senior year, so balance research, school, extracurriculars and the application. Set milestones (e.g., final draft of report, upload by date, ask recommender by date).
Be authentic. STS explicitly says they’re not looking for perfection or a certain test score cutoff. They want potential, passion, commitment.
Be prepared for Finals Week if you make the Top 40. Polish your presentation, and be ready to talk to scientists, visitors, and media.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Submitting team research or splitting a team project (not allowed under STS rules).
Waiting too late for recommendations or for transcript upload. Missing parts invalidates the submission.
Ignoring official rules for human/animal/hazardous materials and then discovering your project is ineligible.
Using generative AI to answer application questions, draft the report, or generate citations (not allowed under STS rules).
Overlooking the “why” of your research: what question are you asking, why does it matter, what did you learn.
Doing shallow work just to enter. Depth, originality, and clear data matter. Don’t treat it like a basic school science competition project if you aim for STS.
Not backing up your work, or waiting until deadline day to deal with technical issues. (Last-minute tech problems are a big risk.)

Fast Forward for Students and Parents

For a student who is serious about doing original research, interested in being part of a national science competition, and ready to invest effort, the Regeneron STS is an extraordinary opportunity. For parents: support your student by helping with planning, scheduling, finding mentorship, ensuring they meet eligibility and deadlines, and managing stress and balance.

Even if your student doesn’t win the top prize, the process itself (choosing a meaningful project, conducting rigorous research, writing a full report, applying to a national competition) will pay dividends for college applications, other science fairs and competitions, and for cultivating a future scientist mindset. To plan next steps, see the ISEF affiliated fairs by state and our guide to winning at science fairs in 2026.

Doing research for STS? Future Forward Labs pairs students with PhD mentors to carry a research project from question to finished report. Learn how our mentoring works here or start by booking a briefing session with our enrollment office. 👇