Everything you
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Any student currently enrolled in Classes 5–12 at a government, semi-government or private school in India. Students must be of Indian origin and residing in India. There is no upper age limit beyond the class restriction.

Yes. Projects may be submitted individually or as a team of exactly two students. Teams of three or more are not accepted. Both team members must meet all eligibility criteria.

No. IRIS enforces a hard restriction: students who registered for a previous IRIS as a Class 12 student are not eligible to apply again. This applies regardless of whether the previous application was evaluated or shortlisted.

A single project guide (teacher or qualified mentor) is required for every project. The guide’s role is to verify the authenticity of the student’s work, not to do the research for them.

Yes, as long as the student is of Indian origin and is currently studying at a school physically located in India - including international curricula like IB, Cambridge, etc.

No. IRIS is open only to students currently enrolled at schools based in India. Students studying abroad are not eligible regardless of citizenship.

Your submission must include three components: a project synopsis, a full research paper, and a 90-second project video. All submissions are made online through the IRIS website. Physical submissions are not accepted.

IRIS has two submission windows each year - typically August 15 and October 15. Exact dates for the 2026–27 cycle are confirmed in September 2026. Both windows are equally valid for evaluation purposes.

Abstract: 250 words; Introduction & Objective: 100–150 words; Innovation: 50–100 words; Methodology: 150–250 words; Results & Conclusions: 100–150 words; Acknowledgement & References: 50–100 words. The project video must not exceed 90 seconds.

No. To preserve anonymous evaluation, projects must not disclose the school’s name, city or state in the project video, research paper, project report, presentation, or abstract.

Experimental data cannot exceed 12 months old at the time of submission. You may extend previously started work, but the bulk of recent data should be within this window.

An individual student may be associated with only one project per cycle. Different students from the same school may submit separate projects.

An MP4 file under 100 MB is recommended. The video should be uploaded directly via the IRIS website portal during the submission window.

The fee is ₹5,000 plus applicable taxes per project. An EWS (Economically Weaker Section) fee waiver is available with valid documentation. The fee is non-refundable except in the case of accidental duplicate payments.

Upload a valid EWS certificate issued by a competent authority during registration. Once verified, the fee is waived for that project. Government and semi-government school students are also eligible for consideration.

Per project. A team of two pays a single registration fee.

The fee must be paid at the time of project submission - before the relevant submission window closes. Submissions without paid fee will not enter the evaluation pool.

Travel and accommodation for the National Fair are typically supported for shortlisted finalists. Specific arrangements are communicated to selected students directly.

The Scientific Review Committee (SRC) - an eminent panel of scientists and domain experts from India’s premier research institutions - evaluates every submission against national and international standards.

IRIS does not accept textbook experiment replications, science essays or survey reports without personal experimentation, unsubstantiated hypotheses, claims that violate established scientific laws, toxicity studies causing vertebrate death, or display-only models without a research foundation.

Originality and innovation, scientific rigour of the methodology, quality and clarity of experimental data, depth of analysis, and the real-world significance or potential impact of the work.

The SRC evaluation runs from October through November, with the National Fair shortlist typically announced in December. Selected students receive direct communication via email.

Yes - strict ethical and safety standards apply. Human research requires informed consent; vertebrate animal studies must follow the “Four Rs” with no animal deaths permitted; pathogenic agents and recombinant DNA work require additional institutional approval. See the full guidelines for detail.

Shortlisted finalists present their projects at the IRIS National Fair in person - typically held in Bengaluru in January or February. Grand prizes and special achievement awards are announced at the closing ceremony.

Sealed dried plant materials, sealed soil or liquid samples, properly shielded vacuum tubes, insulated apparatus and Class II lasers with safety signage are permitted. Living organisms, open chemicals, sharp items, taxidermy, photographs of animal surgery and any student identity disclosure are prohibited.

Each booth has 220V, 50Hz single-phase power. Wi-Fi is available; participants should bring their own laptops if internet access is needed for the demonstration.

Yes - the National Fair includes a public viewing day where students from other schools, sponsors and the press visit the exhibits. Your name and school are not displayed during judging but may be shared during public sessions.

Top performers at the IRIS National Fair are selected as Team India to represent the country at Regeneron ISEF - the world’s largest pre-collegiate science fair held annually in the United States.

Regeneron ISEF 2027 will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center, Los Angeles, California, USA, from May 8–14, 2027.

Selected students attend dedicated mentoring camps in New Delhi and Gurugram between March and April. Preparation covers quad charts, scientific posters, paperwork, presentation training and ISEF-specific briefings.

Yes - since 2006, IRIS has sent 385+ Indian students to ISEF and Team India has brought home 200+ awards. The programme also has 31 minor planets named after First and Second Grand Award winners by MIT’s Lincoln Laboratories. See the full winners archive.

Travel, accommodation, registration and meal support for the Team India delegation is sponsored by IRIS supporters and the Government of India. Students do not pay out of pocket for ISEF participation.

Registrations for the 2026–27 cycle open in September 2026. The cycle culminates in Regeneron ISEF 2027 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, USA, in May 2027.

Every shortlisted finalist receives an IRIS National Fair certificate. Submissions that don’t make the shortlist do not receive certificates of participation.

No, there is no formal age cap - eligibility is determined solely by current class enrolment (5–12) at an Indian school.

Students apply individually - schools cannot nominate students directly. Teachers and schools are encouraged to support and mentor their students through the application.

IRIS handles personal information confidentially. See the official privacy policy for full details on data handling and sharing.

Email contact@irisnationalfair.org or call +91 93199 98713 / +91 92113 98453 (Mon–Fri, 9am–6pm IST).