Can I Enter My Science Fair Project in the Stockholm Junior Water Prize?

By Dr. Harman Brah, MD · Judge, California Science & Engineering Fair

Yes, if your project is water research and you are a U.S. high school student. You do not need to have entered a science fair at all, because you enter your state competition yourself by submitting a research paper online.

The real work is the format. The Stockholm Junior Water Prize judges a written paper, so a project that lives on a trifold board has to be rewritten before it can compete.

Does my project count as water research?

The U.S. competition looks for projects that aim to improve water quality, water resources management, or water and wastewater treatment. The problem can be local, regional, national or global.

That covers more ground than most students expect. Runoff, algae, stormwater, drought, treatment methods, sensors and computational water models can all fit.

What the project needs is a research approach: accepted methods for experiments or monitoring, careful reporting, and statistical analysis of real data. A project that describes a water problem without data will struggle.

California’s 2026 state winner was a two-student team from Lynbrook High School in San Jose. They designed fertilizer pellets meant to cut the nutrient runoff that drives harmful algal blooms: a real water problem, a proposed fix, and data on whether it works.

Who can enter

• Students in grades 9 to 12 at a public, private or independent high school, or home school
• Age 15 or older by August 1 of the competition year
• Residents of the 50 states, the District of Columbia or Puerto Rico
• Individuals, or teams of up to two students

If your science fair project had three team members, sort that out early. The limit here is two.

No science fair required

The Water Environment Federation (WEF), which runs the U.S. competition, says it directly: “It is not necessary for a student to have had a project in a science fair to enter.” Any eligible student can nominate themselves for their state competition.

Some local science fairs give regional awards. Regional winners still have to submit their paper online for the state round.

This is why the competition is easy to miss. There is no school nomination and no fair qualification step, so no one is likely to tell you about it.

How the rounds work

1. Regional: awards at local science fairs in winter.
2. State: you fill in the online entry form and upload your paper in spring. A panel of water professionals chooses one winning project per state, from the papers and in some cases from interviews at science fairs.
3. National: state winners are invited to nationals in May and June.
4. International: the U.S. winner competes in Stockholm during World Water Week in August.

In the 2026 cycle, state entries were due April 15, 2026. State winners had a virtual judging round in the first two weeks of May, and the top 20 finalists competed in person in Chicago, June 8 to 10.

The 2027 dates were not posted as of late October 2026. Check the WEF page before you plan around them.

In California, the state round is run by the California Water Environment Association (CWEA). It received 42 submissions in 2026.

Rewrite the board into the paper

This is the biggest change for a science fair student. WEF notes that this competition weighs the research paper “much more heavily than the poster presentation.”

At the state level there are no set paper guidelines, only a 2MB limit on the file. At nationals, papers must meet WEF’s National Paper Guidelines, so writing to them from the start saves a second rewrite if you advance.

The national guidelines ask for:

• a PDF of no more than 20 pages, including figures, tables and annexes (the title page does not count)
• an abstract of no more than 180 words, written last
• acknowledgements that state clearly how much outside help you had
• a biography of half a page at most
• Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusions and References
• numbered conclusions, each one to three short sentences, on two pages at most

There are formatting rules too: 12-point Times New Roman, 1.5 line spacing, and set margins. If your science fair abstract runs to the 250 words ISEF rules allow, it needs cutting.

Where a board falls short

A board shows what you did. The paper has to explain why it matters.

The guidelines single out the Discussion as the section judges read most closely. It should say what your results mean for the water problem, how new they are, how they compare with other researchers’ results, and whether a local agency or community could use them.

The guidelines also warn against stopping at the problem. A survey of an algae-choked lake on its own will not rank highly. Adding what causes the problem, and how monitoring could improve its management, makes the project stronger.

If you built a solution, cite earlier work and say what gap yours fills. If the project is about awareness, back it with numbers, such as survey results.

Show that you read the literature. Plagiarism can lead to disqualification.

The student does the work

The judging criteria ask what help came from parents, teachers and professionals, and whether the student took the measurements. At nationals, judges also weigh how well the student shows ownership and knowledge of the project in a video presentation.

A mentor can push on the question, the statistics and the Discussion. The student runs the experiments, analyzes the data and writes every page, and the acknowledgements say how much help there was.

One project, several outlets

A strong water project can be entered in more than one place if you plan early.

• Your county science fair. Bay Area county fairs lead to the California Science & Engineering Fair, and some are affiliated with Regeneron ISEF. Fair rules, including the 12-month research window and any SRC/IRB pre-approval, apply to that entry.
• The Stockholm Junior Water Prize. The same work, written up as a full paper.
• Regeneron STS, if you are a senior and the research is yours alone. Team projects are not eligible, so a two-person entry cannot go there. The STS report also has a 20-page limit, so much of the paper carries over.
• JSHS, another research paper competition, if the timing fits your region’s paper deadline.
• The Earth Prize, where a finished water or runoff project can serve as the proof of concept for a sustainability pitch.

Each competition has its own rules on format, timing and disclosure of help. Read them for every entry.

Our mentors help students plan one water project for the fair and the paper, with the student doing the research and writing. See our research mentorship, or read how Regeneron STS and ISEF differ.

FAQ

Does my child need to win a science fair to enter the Stockholm Junior Water Prize?

No. Any eligible high school student can enter their state competition directly by submitting a paper online. Some local fairs give regional awards, but those winners also submit online for state.

Can two students enter the Stockholm Junior Water Prize together?

Yes. Teams of up to two students may enter, and one team member submits the entry for both.

Can I use my science fair poster for the Stockholm Junior Water Prize?

Not as it is. The competition judges a written research paper, and the paper counts far more than any poster. Use the project, then write it up with an introduction, methods, results, a Discussion and numbered conclusions.

When is the Stockholm Junior Water Prize deadline for 2027?

It was not posted as of late October 2026. In the 2026 cycle, state entries were due April 15, 2026.

How old do you have to be to enter?

You must be in grades 9 to 12 and have reached age 15 by August 1 of the competition year.