2026 Fair Schedules and Deadlines

Fair begins on February 25 with the opening of the project upload portal and ends on March 14 with the awards ceremony.
The 2026 CT Science and Engineering Fair will be virtual for preliminary judging and in-person for finalist judging.
Week 1: March 5 & 6 – Preliminary Judging
Week 2: March 11, Finalist Interviews and March 14, Awards at Quinnipiac University

Important Dates, Times and Deadlines (before and during the fair)
Preliminary Judging Schedule to be posted when available.  Please note:  links to virtual preliminary judging rooms will be sent by email only to the participants' registered email addresses.  These links WILL NOT be posted on the website.
PDF of Preliminary Judging Schedule will be posted when available.
Finalist Judging Schedule to be posted when available.
PDF Version of Finalist Judging Schedule will be posted when available, if Google Sheets is not accessible.

State Science Fair Highlights and Changes

  • 2026 Project Quotas for Schools – 10 Middle School and 15 High School. Exceptions granted for special circumstances
  • Saturday Award Ceremonies – Saturday, March 14 (In Person) –  Separate Middle and High School Finalist Awards Ceremonies.  Special Awards Ceremony held between the two Finalist Awards Ceremonies.
  • Public Viewing – An online portal will be made available to view the work of Connecticut’s students.
  • Virtual Preliminary Judging – All students will be interviewed virtually during the preliminary round.
  • In Person Finalist Judging –The top 20% of projects will be invited to participate in finalist judging.
  • Eleven Special Categories – Biotechnology, Alternative/Renewable Energy, Applied Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Mathematics, Future Sustainability, Technical High Schools, Women in Science and Engineering and Bioinformatics/Computational Sciences.
  • Over $500,000 in Awards – More than 400 awards will be presented by the Fair and its Category and Special Award Sponsors.
  • International Competitions – Seven top placing high school projects will compete in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), in May. High school finalists and one 8th grade project will be awarded opportunities to compete at the GENIUS Olympiad in June.
  • Thermo Fisher Junior Innovators Challenge – Top placing middle school students in all categories will be given invitations to compete in this national competition.
  • E-Learning Platform –  Fall and winter workshops are available for teachers and students.