The competition is open to any high school student in grades 9 through 12, who has conducted a water-related science project and reached the age of 15 by Aug. 1 of the competition year.
Teams of up to two students may enter. Projects should be aimed at enhancing the quality of life through improvement of water quality, water resources management, or water and wastewater treatment. Projects can explore water issues on local, regional, national, or global issues. It is essential that all projects use a research-oriented approach, which means they must use scientifically accepted methodologies for experimentation, monitoring, and reporting, including statistical analysis.
All students must enter their State SJWP Competition. National competition entries are open to SJWP State winners only.
Entries into the Stockholm Junior Water Prize competition are judged based on six different criteria: relevance, creativity, methodology, subject knowledge, practical skills, and report and presentation. Unlike other science competitions, this competition weighs the quality of the scientific research paper much more heavily than the poster presentation.
The following criteria and paper guidelines are designed to provide direction for students who are entering projects into this competition. There are no specific paper guidelines for the state competition--all submissions will be evaluated. However, those students who advance to the national competition must comply with these national paper guidelines:
- State Contactsand Deadlines (PDF)
- Judging Criteria (PDF)
- Research Paper Guidelines (PDF)
Students are also encouraged to use the ISEF Rules Wizard to ensure they are following safe handling processes. It is not necessary to return the forms generated from this tool.
Are you interested in serving as a mentor, or a student looking for a mentor to provide guidance on your project? Take a look at our Mentor Guide.