Welcome!

The Santa Barbara County Science & Engineering Fair is open to all students in 7th through 12th grade residing in Santa Barbara County or attending any public or private school in Santa Barbara County. Home-schooled students between the ages of 12 and 18 are also welcome to participate. Students compete for over $4,000 in prizes and may qualify to advance to the California Science and Engineering Fair or the Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge.

2025 Fair Information

The 2025 Santa Barbara County Science and Engineering Fair will be held March 7, 2025 at the Corwin Pavillion, UCSB (an earlier posted date was Feb. 28 but this has changed). The format will be somewhat different than in past years, but project requirements will remain the same. Students preparing a project should refer to our Student Handbook for detailed descriptions of the contest rules and expectations.

For more information, please contact the SB Fair President.

2023 Fair Results (2024 Fair was cancelled)

The 2023 Science and Engineering Fair is complete. The list of divisional and special award winners is available online.

Our 2023 California Science & Engineering Fair Winners

Congratulations to Santa Barbara County's entrants in the California Science and Engineering Fair. Two of our students placed at the CSEF in their divisions:

Elizabeth Olivera (Homeschooled) - 1st Place in Materials Science
Amelie Grant (Dunn School) - Honorable Mention in Earth & Environment (Air/Water)

2023 Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge

Congratulations to Elizabeth Olivera was a finalist in this national competition. In the fall of 2023, she will be going to Washington D.C. to participate in that event.

What Is a Science Fair

A few years ago, the Santa Barbara County Education Office produced a video describing the different ways to participate in the Fair. If you are considering competing or volunteering, this video may help answer your initial questions.

Human Subjects Approval

Any project relying on human subjects must comply with several requirements prior to the beginning of the experiment.

The experiment must be approved by the Science Review Committee. You can download the request form here.
The project must provide a Letter of Information to the subjects and their parents (if the subjects are minors). A sample Letter of Information is available for download.
The project must retain copies of Informed Consent Forms signed by the subjects and their parents (if the subjects are minors). A sample Informed Consent Form is available for download.

Vertebrate Animal Approval

Any project relying on vertebrate animal subjects (fish, mammals, birds, reptiles, etc.) must receive prior approval from the Science Review Committee. The form, including instructions, is available for download.