Regeneron Science Talent Search vs Zero Robotics High School Tournament
Comparing two elite STEM opportunities. Both are competitions for high school students.
| Regeneron Science Talent Search | Zero Robotics High School Tournament | |
|---|---|---|
| Prestige Tier | Tier 1 — Elite | Tier 2 — Highly Competitive |
| Type | Competition | Competition |
| Organization | Society for Science | NASA |
| Acceptance Rate | Approximately 0.2-0.3% (2% of ~2,000 applicants become Top 40 finalists; 15% become Top 300 scholars). Highly selective with ~2,000 projects submitted annually. | Unknown; appears highly selective with approximately 15-16 teams reaching finals |
| Applicants | Approximately 2,000 projects submitted per year; historically 147,000 students have competed since 1942 | Unknown exact number; appears to be a national competition with teams from across US and potentially international participants |
| Deadline | 2026-11-05 | — |
| Cost to Apply | Free | Free |
| US Only | Yes | No / International |
| Grades | High school seniors only | High school (grades 9-12) |
| College Impact | Regeneron STS is considered one of the most prestigious high school science competitions and carries significant weight in college admissions, particularly for top-tier universities (Ivy League, MIT, ... | Extremely positive for college admissions. This is a prestigious NASA-sponsored competition with real ISS execution component, which is exceptionally rare for high school students. Demonstrates: advan... |