Welcome to the 2026 Science Fair Season!
Registration is now open and closes March 8, 2026 at 11:59 PM
We are using a new platform for registration this year:
Frederick County Science and Engineering Fair is a regional Regeneron ISEF affiliated science fair.
It is open to all students (private, public or homeschooled) who live in or attend school in Frederick County, Maryland.
Students DO NOT need to qualify through a school fair to participate in this county level fair.
Students may enter only project per year. Project must be conducted for no more than a year between January 1, 2025 and the fair.
Students may work in teams of up to 3 people.
Our new registration platform MySciFair integrates the required paperwork into sign up. No need to send separate forms in.
Event Details:
March 27 -28, 2026
Tuscarora High School
-5312 Ballenger Creek Pike, Frederick, MD 21703
NO WALK-INS WILL BE ACCEPTED.
SET-UP Friday, March 27, 2026 - 5:30PM - 7:30PM (You must check in project during this time to be eligible for judging on Saturday) (Gymnasium)
JUDGING Saturday, March 28, 2026 (Gymnasium) (Only students allowed in the gymnasium during judging)
HS JUDGING: Saturday (March 28, 2026) 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM (All HS participants must be present the entire time)
MS JUDGING: Saturday (March 28, 2026) (MS participants must be present for their category time)
9:00AM - 11:00AM - must be present entire time for the following categories: Animal Sciences, Biochemistry, Biomedical & Health Sciences, Computational Biology & Bioinformatics, Earth & Environmental Sciences, Energy: Sustainable Materials and Design, Environmental Engineering, Mathematics, Physics & Astronomy, Robotics & Intelligent Machines, Technology Advances the Arts
10:00AM - 12:00PM - must be present entire time for the following categories: Behavioral & Social Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, Cellular & Molecular Biology, Chemistry, Embedded Systems, Engineering Technology: Statics and Dynamics, Materials Science, Microbiology, Plant Sciences, Systems Software, Translational Medical Science
OPEN TO PUBLIC: 3:00 - 4:00 PM
AWARDS CEREMONY: 4:00 PM (Auditorium)
REMOVE PROJECTS by 5:15 PM (Not responsible for projects not picked up.)
LOTS of prizes and specialty awards for all grades, 6-12!
PROJECT CATEGORIES (For help selecting the proper category for your project): https://www.societyforscience.org/isef/categories-and-subcategories/ The category you entered at the school level may be different than the county level.
HS OVERALL WINNER & RUNNER UP advance to compete in the International Science & Engineering Fair (ISEF), in Phoenix, Arizona May 9-15, 2026.
Top MS winners qualify to enter the national Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Competition (JIC)! 300 semifinalists are selected from across the nation and the top 30 compete in Washington DC!
*Please contact science.fair@fcps.org or Colleen.Beall@fcps.org with any special accommodations required for judging on Saturday.