There is no way to apply to the Canada-Wide Science Fair. Every Alberta student gets there by placing at their own regional fair, and the 2027 national fair runs May 29 to June 5 in Hamilton. Calgary's fair has the first deadline, with schools registering by December 4 and every project and its ethics forms due February 4.
Alberta's regional fairs
| Fair | Where | Fair day |
|---|---|---|
| Calgary Youth Science Fair, Grades 5 to 12 | Olympic Oval, University of Calgary | Apr 8 to 10, 2027 |
| Central Alberta Regional Science Fair, Grades 4 to 12 | Red Deer Polytechnic | Mar 20, 2027 |
| Southeast Alberta Regional Science Fair, Grades 7 to 12 | Medicine Hat College | Mar 20, 2027 |
| Edmonton Regional Science Fair, Grades 7 to 12 | Edmonton | Mar 14 to 15 last year |
| Sci-Fusion, Lethbridge's fair, Grades K to 12 | Lethbridge | Apr 10 to 11 last year |
| Wood Buffalo Regional Science Fair, Grades 4 to 12 | Fort McMurray | Judged Mar 27 last year |
| Peace Country Regional Science Fair, Grades 5 to 12 | Peace River | Mar 25 last year |
| Youth Science Canada Virtual STEM Fair, Grades 7 to 12 | Online | Spring |
Rows marked last year have not posted 2027 dates yet. Expect them close to the same time, and ask your school's science fair coordinator for the registration date.
Which fair is yours
Your fair is set by where you live or go to school, not by which one you like. Edmonton's takes students whose home or school address is in the Edmonton region, Sci-Fusion takes southwestern Alberta schools, the Southeast fair takes southeast Alberta students, and Peace Country covers northwest Alberta, including Slave Lake and Valleyview. Wood Buffalo takes students across the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo.
Much of rural Alberta sits outside all seven. If your community has no fair, or yours is not running this year, the Youth Science Canada virtual fair is your route instead, and it leads to the Canada-Wide the same way.
How registration works
- Through your school first. Calgary and Wood Buffalo both work through your school's science fair coordinator. In Calgary, schools register from October 1 to December 4, and you can only enter on your own from December 10.
- Ethics forms before you start. Calgary needs every project's ethics forms in with the registration by February 4. In Medicine Hat, experiments on animals are not allowed, and an experiment with people needs the committee chair to rate it low risk before you begin.
- A short description. Medicine Hat's registration opens in February and asks for a project description of 250 to 1,000 characters.
- Small fees, or none. Red Deer charges $10 a project, payable on the day or after. Wood Buffalo is free because sponsors cover it.
- Three kinds of project. Red Deer accepts experiments, innovations and research projects, so a project does not have to be a lab experiment.
From your region to the Canada-Wide and beyond
Each regional fair sends its top projects on, and the number is small. Red Deer sends up to six of its top senior projects. Medicine Hat sends up to five across its junior, intermediate and senior divisions, with expenses paid. Peace Country sent five finalists to nationals in 2026. At the Canada-Wide Science Fair you present against roughly 400 finalists from across the country.
The top projects there can be picked for Team Canada at Regeneron ISEF, the largest pre-college science competition in the world, held in Los Angeles in May 2027. Travel is paid for students selected. There is no direct entry to it either.
What a fair result is worth
Placing at a fair counts later, when you apply to university.
| Award | Who it is for | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Trent Canada-Wide Science Fair Scholarship, apply by Mar 2 | A Canada-Wide senior medal or honourable mention in the past two years, and an 80% average | $4,500 a year |
| USask Canada Wide Science Fair Scholarship, apply by Mar 1 | Engineering, agriculture or science, and fair entrants come first | $5,000 |
| University of Alberta Canada-Wide Science Fair Scholarship, apply by Jan 10 | Canada-Wide finalists and medalists entering the U of A | Varies |
| Southeast Alberta fair awards, at the fair | Senior projects in Grades 11 and 12 at the Medicine Hat fair | Certificates to scholarships |
Trent's renews each year you keep an 80% average, for $18,000 in all. The USask award gives preference to anyone who took part in a regional or national fair from Grade 9 on, so even an entry with no prize helps.
Science contests that are not fairs
- APEGA Science Olympics is one day of timed, hands-on engineering problems for teams of Grade 10 to 12 students. Peace River's registration closes November 7 for a November 21 event, Edmonton's December 13 for February 13, and Calgary's March 28 for May 29. It is free in Peace River and Fort McMurray and $80 to $100 a team in Edmonton and Calgary.
- Sci-Fusion runs a Science Olympics the same weekend as Lethbridge's fair, a design and build contest held on the day.
- MindFuel Tech Futures Challenge has teams design and build a STEM answer to a real problem from January to May, with industry mentors.
Where to go from here
The science fairs list keeps each fair's dates as they are posted. If you want a project with a real lab behind it, the research programs guide covers mentored placements, and Build my combo finds the awards you can apply for in about a minute.