One of the main purposes of the regional science fair competition is to bring together students from throughout the region whose projects/papers were selected as the best from their particular schools. Through a science fair project, students obtain a glimpse of the scientific method. They learn what it is like to think like a scientist, to investigate and experiment in an area of their interest. Since only the very best projects are selected for regional competition and since many people view these projects, proper procedures and rules are necessary. It is very important that a student is properly supervised, that his/her project is performed and exhibited safely, and that humane procedures are followed, especially when higher animals are used in a research project. Consequently, please follow the rules as listed. The "Planning a Good Science Fair Project" and "The Scientific Method" pages were modified from and are courtesy of the Flint (Michigan) Area Regional Science Fair booklet.
The general rules and regulations for the Junior/Senior High Division are listed further on. Specific rules that need to be adhered to are available at the Intel ISEF website http://www.societyforscience.org/ISEF/about/rules_regulations.asp
Rules and regulations for the Elementary Division are slightly different than the Junior/Senior High Division and are also listed further on this website.
Participants: Any boy or girl in grades 7-12 of a public, private, parochial or home school is eligible to participate in (1) the research project and exhibit competition, and/or (2) the research paper competition at the regional fair Junior/Senior High Division. Students may compete in a local school fair before earning the opportunity to be certified for regional competition. Many schools, especially in the upper grade levels, simply send those students interested in doing a project and/or paper directly to the regional fair. Any boy or girl in grades 3-6 of a public, private, parochial or home school is eligible to participate in the regional elementary fair. All must register according to deadlines. Online registration will end 11:59 p.m. of the specified date for each fair.
Repetition of Previous Year's Work: A project exhibited in the previous regional science fair may not be re-entered without substantial expansion and development.
RSEF Junior/Senior High Division – Project and Paper Registrations: Student registration forms are available to be completed online or available online in PDF format to download after the school is signed up; be sure to print or photocopy a copy (before submission) for backup. Please check that the form is completely filled out. Complete the correct registration form and return it to your advisor/educator to send to the Regional Science Fair Office. If registrations are completed online, educators/advisors will not need to send a copy of the registration, but should keep a form for themselves. For online registration, remember to PRINT AND KEEP a copy for your files! Registrations either completed online or by hard copy are due by the deadline of Friday, December 18, 2009. Payments for registration are due Wednesday, January 6, 2010. To participate in both the project and paper competitions, two student registrations will need to be completed along with fees for both competitions. Registration fees for either the paper or project competition is $15 per student per entry. If a student chooses to register for both the paper and project competition, there will be a $15 registration fee for each competition or $30 total. If there are additional team members, each member needs to also pay the $15 fee for each competition. NO LATE RESEARCH PAPER REGISTRATIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED. Remember to send three copies of the Research Paper (postmarked no later than December 31, 2009) OR electronically send a PDF of the Research Papers to our office to arrive by Tuesday, January 5, 2010 at 8:00a.m. It is advantageous to print copies in color if there are graphs or charts. Late registrations may or may not be listed in the fair booklet. Any project registered after deadline date will be accessed a $5 late fee per participant. Online registration will be NOT BE AVAILABLE after the deadline date. No project registrations will be accepted after Friday, January 1, 2010. All registration fees need to be paid prior to fair. No fees will be refunded after January 1, 2010. Any approved late project registrations are expected to pay the late fee as well as payment needs to accompany the project registration. Fees cannot be transferred to another student or project after Friday, January 1, 2010.
RSEF Elementary Division – Project Registrations: Student registration forms are available to be completed online or available online in PDF format to download after the school is signed up; be sure to print (or photocopy a copy) before submission as backup. Online registrations are highly preferred by the Science Fair Office. (In the past, un-entered registrations caused 40-80 hours of work after deadline, causing lists to be sent to the schools to be checked, dependent upon all registrations being entered.) Complete the correct registration form and give a copy to your advisor/educator to keep for his/her files. Educator/advisor supervision is strongly advised for project registrations. For online registration, remember to PRINT AND KEEP a copy for your files! If registering online, a copy of the registration form is not required, but is helpful for our office. Registrations either completed online or by hard copy are due by the deadline of Wednesday, March 17, 2010. Payments for registration are due by Wednesday, March 31, 2010. The registration fee for project competition is $15 per student. If there are additional team members, each member needs to also pay the $15 fee. Cancellations after fair booklet production will still be expected to pay the registration fees. LATE REGISTRATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED unless there has been direct communication and approval with the Science Fair Office. If a school is participating, all registrations need to go through the school. Payments for any late, but approved registrations, will need to accompany project registration. Late registrations may or may not be listed in the fair booklet. A $5 late fee will be accessed to any late registrations even with approval. If in doubt, call us at 507-389-2849.
[PDF] Elementary Fair MSU Campus Map (546 KiB)
