PLEASE GO TO THE SCIENCE & ENGINEERING FAIR PAGE for current information on registering for the 2021 Science & Engineering Fair.
Student Information
Congratulations on your decision to join us at the 2021 Contra Costa County Science & Engineering Fair. You are among the elite in Contra Costa County who will be competing in this prestigious 3-day event—the top one-percent of our county!
There are three steps to you formally submitting your project:
- Complete the online registration.
- Complete the appropriate ISEF forms and the unique CCCSEF forms. Make sure all the required signatures are on all the forms before you submit them.
- Make the online payment to complete your registration.
You will be contacted by email after the Scientific Review Committee has reviewed your research plan, and you will be notified either that you may begin your experiment or that changes are required before you are allowed to begin. It is ESSENTIAL that you give a valid email address that you check regularly, and NOT a school-based email address, which will block incoming emails from outsiders.
As an ISEF-affiliated fair, the forms and rules are strictly followed, so taking your time and completing all required steps is very important to ensure your participation in the fair. Even if you have a teacher helping you with the paperwork, please SUBMIT THE APPLICATION PACKET YOURSELF. This will avoid any miscommunication about whether or not your application packet is correctly submitted on time.
If you have any questions, please contact CCCSEF Administrator, Janice Fujii at jjfujii9@att.net or (925) 890-2624. Email is preferred.
Deadlines
Understand the Deadlines
For projects requiring pre-approval, there are two deadlines: pre-approval prior to experimentation and final approval after experimentation. If there are any changes to procedures or experimental design after receiving pre-approval, projects are to be resubmitted for pre-approval if it alters the Risk Assessment Form 3 and/or changes work being completed in a research laboratory (Form 1C).
All other projects will receive a final approval after January 13, 2021.
December 2, 2020
December 2, 2020 is the deadline for receipt of initial forms requiring pre-approval by the Scientific Review Committee (SRC).
Projects involving invertebrate or vertebrate animals, human subjects, recombinant DNA, tissue, pathogenic agents, or controlled substances must have advance approval from the SRC. If in doubt, please submit the project research plan and required paperwork for the SRC review, which will be completed within two weeks of submission deadline.
Pre-approval projects must submit their complete application, which includes all forms required and their detailed proposed research plans, to the SRC before any research begins.
January 13, 2021
This is the deadline for receipt of ALL application forms from all students who are participating in the Science & Engineering Fair.
Fair Dates: March 11, 12, & 13, 2021 (Thursday, Friday and Saturday)
Review Resources
Read the available resources and take note of important deadlines. This will ensure that you start off the process in the right direction.
Rules Wizard
After carefully reading the resources and taking note of deadlines, please complete the Rules Wizard. This is required before you proceed with the registration process.
Step 1
Register online (PLEASE do this only ONCE.)
Before entering online registration, have all the following information written out and ready to enter. You will need all this information to complete the online application. Team leaders only should complete the registration for all team participants.
- Name of student (or names if you are submitting a team project), including middle names. If a student does not have a middle name, type: None.
- Home address, city, zip
- E-mail address (contact for all team members) Do NOT use school-based email addresses, which block incoming emails. I must be able to communicate with you regarding the status of your project application and send additional information about the fair. You may use your parent’s email address, if necessary.
- Home phone (contact for all team members)
- Cell phone number
- Grade level (all team member grade levels)
- School Name
- Adult sponsor (whoever is helping you apply, and will provide supervision throughout your experiment)
- Adult sponsor’s email
- Identify the category of the project: Biological (BIO), Physical (PHY), Environmental (ENV), Engineering (ENG), Mathematics/Computer Science (M/CS), Behavioral/Social Science (BEH)
- Final Project Title (The title submitted must be identical to the title used on all other project paperwork and forms.)
Step 2
Complete and Submit the Appropriate Forms
Each project registration requires six forms included in the General Application Packet:
1. ISEF Form 1
2. ISEF Form 1A
3. Completed Research Plan (Instructions are provided on page 2 of Form 1A. You MUST submit an originally written research plan. Research plans copied off the internet will NOT be accepted.)
4. ISEF Form 1B (one for each member of a team)
5. CCCSEF Photo/Video/Website Release Form (one for each member of a team)
6. CCCSEF Hold Harmless Form (one for each member of a team). Please complete the interactive forms online prior to printing.
A description of additional forms that may be needed is listed after Step 3.
Click here to review them.
If the project is a TEAM PROJECT, you are allowed up to three members. Include the FULL names for all members on the Checklist for Adult Sponsor (Form 1), the Student Checklist (Form 1A), the Research Plan and other required forms. In addition, each team member must submit an Approval Form (Form 1B) as well as the CCCSEF Forms Student Photo Release and Hold Harmless Agreement.
As a reminder, every project must complete the online Rules Wizard and use it to identify which forms are required and determine if your project needs pre-approval. Attach the Wizard Results to your project submission when submitting your CCCSEF Application. (Please attach ONLY the Results page.)
If your project was completed at a professional lab, company, or institution, you need to submit, in addition to Regulated Research Institution Form 1C, a letter (on company letterhead paper) verifying the institution’s permission for you to conduct research there, the dates, the name of your mentor, their contact information, and the area of your research project.
When You Need Pre-Approval
If your project research involves Hazardous Materials, Microorganisms, Human Behavior or Human DNA, Tissues, Blood or Body Fluids or Vertebrate Animals or Vertebrate Animal DNA, Tissues, Blood, or Body Fluids, you are required to complete the appropriate ISEF Forms and submit for pre-approval by December 2, 2020 BEFORE you begin experimentation.
The SRC will determine if your plan is safe and is in accordance with ISEF regulations. To ensure the SRC has all of the information needed to approve your project, thoroughly describe your procedure that involves possible risk. If the SRC doesn’t have enough information to deem your project in compliance with ISEF Safety Regulations, it will not be approved and will be returned for corrections. Notification of project approvals for applications completed correctly will be within approximately two weeks after the deadline. Please keep copies of all project application forms that you submit.
NOTE: If you are not sure if your project requires pre-approval, submit the application for the pre-approval deadline of December 2, 2020 for the SRC pre-approval process.
See Deadlines paragraph for details.
Step 3
Pay the registration fee.
**PLEASE NOTE: Payment is required for EACH student, not per project.
There will be no refunds given after January 31, 2021.
Additional Forms that May Be Required
The ISEF forms constitute written documentation of what will occur, or in some cases, has already occurred, in a research project. They are designed to provide the information that is needed to review the project to ensure compliance with the Intel ISEF rules and with laws and regulations that apply to the project. ISEF Wizard >>
If you intend to use human participants in your project, review these rules before beginning the registration process.
If you intend to use vertebrate animals in your project, review these rules before beginning the registration process.
If you intend to use potentially hazardous biological agents in your project, review these rules before beginning the registration process.
If you intend to use hazardous chemicals, activities or devices in your project, review these rules before beginning the registration process.
Once you have completed the Rules Wizard and reviewed any applicable rules, go to the application page. This is where you will find the online registration, general application packet, and additional forms that must be completed.
Before submitting any materials, please review the application packet with your adult sponsor to make sure it is accurate and complete.
Go to the Student Application page>>
State and International Competitions for Grand Sweepstakes Award Winners
May 10-15, 2020: International Science & Engineering Fair, (Senior Sweepstakes only)
April 20-21, 2020: California State Science Fair, California Science Center
October 16-21, 2020: Broadcom Masters, Washington, D.C. (select Junior Division projects only.)