How to Succeed at ISEF

Written By Vaishnavi Kolluru

This article will be in bullet-point format for easy referencing. Not much fluff because I want to pack a lot of info without making this overwhelming.

Leave hate comments if I’m wrong about anything or if you have an alternate perspective (correct me, don’t just curse at me lol). Y’all check the comments too because I want you to hear what’s correct, not necessarily what I say. So help me out if you’ve got feedback.

If you want to know how to get to ISEF, read these first:

Contents

  • Why I’m Qualified to Write This

  • Judging Tips: How to Win

  • Setting Expectations: What’s ISEF Like?

Why I’m Qualified to Write This

This was my first and last ISEF, but I got a 1st place special award from the American Chemical Society ($4,000) and 2nd place in the Biochemistry category ($2,000). Here’s my project information: https://projectboard.world/isef/project/bchm018-breastmilk-natures-vaccine-against-covid-19. 

So yeah listen up lol

That being said I’m not Rishab Jain so don’t take this as gospel but I’ve got pretty good advice.

Judging Tips: How to Win

  • Designing the poster: 

This is one of the most important things which is why it’s first. I will link a few sources below and you should think deeply about every single point. ISEF is not a science competition; it’s a competition of how well you can sell your project. During judging, you’re more of an actor than a scientist. 

One tip from me - don’t get caught up in aesthetics and advanced design softwares. Design for clarity, choose a coherent color scheme, and aesthetics will come together naturally. I wrote a bit about it in my previous article (linked at the beginning).

  • Remember the rules. If you haven’t already, read the SRC rules pertaining to your project. Study the Display and Safety rules. Don’t screw this up.

Put a positive spin on criticism. I was grilled about the commercial value of my research. I didn’t say “none.” I said “down the line, we can make a vaccine using the information I found.” Ngl it was a dumb question though - I did a proteomics study lol.

A few questions that stumped nearly everyone I spoke to (myself included) that you should think about: 1) What other interpretations of this research can be made? 2) What other methods could you use to come to the same conclusion / verify your results? 3) How can you make your methods more accurate? 4) Can you use an alternate method to quantify [some parameter]?

Questions are easier at lower fair levels. The CCCSEF guide linked above should be adequate for these fairs.

  • Don’t practice too much. Practice enough that you are comfortable enough to give your presentation when interrupted anywhere. Know your project very well. Don’t practice the whole speech multiple times, though. It’ll prevent you from listening to the judges when they ask things. You’ll feel like giving your speech instead of engaging in discussion. They’ve already read your poster, so they sometimes don’t need your spiel. 

  • Supplements to your poster: I printed my research paper in color. I also had a rotating model of a protein just for eye candy. You don’t need crazy supplements. Keep it as simple as you can.

  • Choose the correct category. I’m not gonna lie, I think I chose the wrong category. My project methods are biochem, but my results and impacts lie elsewhere. Keep in mind that whatever category you choose, you should be prepared to be grilled on that specific topic only. My judges took a lot more interest in my explanations of the nitty-gritty of mass spec and HPLC over my actual results. Thank god I had relevant background in biology lol. On that note…

  • Know the background information very well. I had Biology Olympiad knowledge to help me answer questions while the judges grilled me. I understood how mass spec and HPLC work on a pretty deep level. I knew that in addition to immune supplementation, human milk immune complexes were related to allergy development. Know how your machines work. Know the anatomy. Know about similar/tangential studies. Be ready to think critically. 

  • Go to the judging tips symposium thingy during ISEF. I didn’t go because I was busy with something (poster approval thing I think), but I thankfully had a friend who sent me his notes on it. Here they are. Go to the symposium during your year, though: I don’t know what he missed and what might change for the future.

  • Stay social during judging. Stop reading research papers when you don’t have a judge. Stop scrolling social media. Keep your social battery active. When you don’t have an interview scheduled, go talk to everyone in your category. Jump from person to person. It doesn’t matter what you say or do; just stay social. I literally mewed at this girl from across the room and we laughed about it and started talking (W rizz?). You need to keep talking so you don’t have to restart your social battery every time a judge walks by. Address judges by name when you shake hands (Dr. Lastname) and they’ll be flabbergasted even though you have their names on your printed schedule. Smile a lot. Make them feel welcome. Also, if your judge lurks at your booth early, you are not permitted to discuss your project. You should talk to them, though. I told my lurking judge about my career plans and stuff (it came about naturally, don’t just start spewing your resume if they don’t ask) and I think she thought it was cool. They judge you more favorably if they like you.

  • Sometimes judges aren’t qualified even though they’re supposed to have like a triple PhD or something idk. I’d say about a quarter of my biochemistry judges didn’t understand basic biological concepts. They tried to grill me, but their question was rooted in logical fallacy. This will likely happen, and will be really frustrating. Just remain calm, keep your voice level, look them in the eye, smile, all that. Explain like they’re a layperson. Don’t stress about the result of this interaction on your score. I had a few of these judges and won second place still. You’ll be fine. Remember that and be calm with them. The last thing you want is your score dropping because you started coming off as rude.

Also, make sure you are able to tell the difference between an unqualified judge and a judge who is trying to test if you have a basic understanding of the topic. They’ll both ask dumb questions. Make sure you assess and address them accordingly.

Setting Expectations: What’s ISEF Like?

After I returned from ISEF, I realized that Society for Science is exceptional at marketing. Not only that, they know how to make students market for them, too. 

All the award ceremony photos I saw in ISEF and STS promotional materials were kids crying tears of joy and jumping. I watched ISEF vlogs and got really excited. But obviously, they edited out the hours and hours of nothing that happens at ISEF. I didn’t think about that beforehand. 

Let me give you my honest rating of each major event. Here’s a more detailed/explanatory schedule of events for the 2024 ISEF.

  • Poster Setup - Lots of waiting. I got lucky, but some of my friends were waiting for upwards of three hours. You can’t leave your booth, or you risk losing your chance to get D&S approved, resulting in an even longer wait. Hop on call with a friend, though. It makes it more fun than just scrolling or whatever.

  • College Fairs - I was already committed to a college, so I went to the fairs to troll the colleges that rejected me. I took stickers, candy, slime, and popping toys. Just chat them up; they’re getting paid to talk to you, so let them entertain you. 

  • Pin Exchange - Exchange pins for a bit, get competitive for pins, it can be fun if you decide to make it fun. I chose to stop exchanging pins pretty quick, and I chose to eat and hang out with some friends instead. That was chill too. You won’t form connections with kids all over the world, though, unless you make a conscious effort to talk outside of collecting pins. It’s not a great event to meet new people with. It’s decent though.

  • Opening Ceremony - I think most people were on their phone the whole time.

  • Panels - I think most people were on their phone the whole time.

  • Student Mixer - Bouncy houses, games, but long lines. Fun food selection, but I resorted to the mosh, which was alright. It was less intense than your average Prom. I’d rate the Prom pit a 5/10, and ISEF gets a 3/10. I was still sweating after, so it wasn’t all bad. Make sure you eat: it’s the night before judging! I didn’t (was at the pit pretty much the whole time), but got lucky with some boxed fried rice served at the Mixer that I could take back to my room.

  • Judging - By far the best event to get to know people with, in my opinion. Reason explained in previous section. But it will be boring if you let it get boring; you can have some long breaks between interviews.

  • Universal Studios - Me and roomie stuck together. It was fun, but our chaperone cut it very short. Was good though. 

  • Category Networking Sessions - Kinda bland. You chill with your category friends, except there’s judges there to make things strained and awkward. So no real comedy, just talk about “yeah I did my project all by myself” and “yeah I got into a lab by myself” and “yeah I’m so passionate about [insert academic discipline].” Then the judges leave and you proceed to discuss the moral implications of skibidi toilet.

  • Public Day - same as judging, except more breaks and less pressure. Just talk to your category people to pass the time.

  • Awards Ceremonies - I slept during both the Special and Grand Awards ceremonies. They’re in alphabetical order, so once I had my American Chemical Society and Biochemistry awards, respectively, I fell asleep.

As I hope you can see, ISEF isn’t “the best week of your life.” It isn’t “super fun and exciting.” Don’t idolize ISEF. Approach it without emotion, and you’ll do well (at least, that’s how I work best). It ight tho

Vaishnavi Kolluru
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Reflection on My Science Fair Journey: Actionable Tips and Life Lessons, Part 2 - Doing Well In Research Competitions