12 Best Computer Science Competitions for High School Students
If you are interested in computer science, engineering, artificial intelligence, robotics, or a related field, participating in computer science competitions can be a highly rewarding endeavor. These competitions allow you to challenge yourself, apply theoretical concepts to real-world scenarios, and demonstrate initiative—qualities that colleges and universities deeply value. Success in such competitions not only signals your academic caliber but also sets you apart from your peers.
Additionally, your experiences in these contests can serve as compelling content for your Statements of Purpose. In this blog, we highlight 12 of the best and impactful computer science competitions for high school students.
1. Stanford ACM - ProCo
Location: Stanford University, Stanford, CA.
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: March 1.
Application Deadline: February 26.
Prizes: Offered.
Eligibility: High school students in the Bay area are eligible to apply.
The Stanford ACM ProCo, hosted by Stanford’s Association for Computing Machinery, is a programming contest designed for high school students in the Bay Area. You will compete in teams of up to three members over a three-hour period, solving between nine and fifteen algorithmic problems. You can continue submitting solutions until they are marked correct. The contest offers two divisions—Novice and Advanced. To compete in the Novice division, all team members must have less than two years of programming experience. If you have prior experience in ProCo or competitions like the USA Computing Olympiad (USACO), you are expected to enter the Advanced division. Participation is limited to the first 300 individuals on a first-come, first-served basis, so early registration is essential.
2. USA Computing Olympiad
Location: Virtual and in-person.
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: First Contest: December 13-16 | Second Contest: January 24-27 | Third Contest: February 21-24 | US Open: March 21-24 | Training Camp: May 22-31 | European Girls Olympiad in Informatics (Germany): July 14-20 | International Olympiad in Informatics (Bolivia): July 27 - August 3.
Application Deadline: Rolling deadlines.
Prizes: Offered.
Eligibility: High school students are eligible to apply.
The USA Computing Olympiad is a series of contests that culminates in the U.S. Open. Outstanding students may go on to represent the country in the International Olympiad in Informatics and the European Girls Olympiad in Informatics. The USACO features four rounds of competition, each lasting up to four hours. You will begin in the Bronze division and progress through Silver, Gold, and Platinum as you successfully solve problems.
3. Technovation Girls Challenge
Location: Virtual.
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: May 5 - October.
Application Deadline: October 11 - March 17.
Prizes: Grand Prize Winners win a $750 per person educational stipend. The other finalists receive a $500 educational stipend.
Eligibility: High school students are eligible to apply. Applicants must identify as female, trans, nonbinary or gender nonconforming.
Technovation Girls is both a program and a competition where you will identify a problem in your community and create a mobile or web application to address it. You can participate individually or in a team of 5. The competition also includes educational units on technological problem-solving and app development. Senior division participants must submit a project name with a 100-word description, a pitch video, a technical demonstration video, a business plan, responses detailing their learning journey, and the app’s source code.
4. Bebras Computing Challenge
Location: Virtual.
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: Registration opens in September.
Application Deadline: Rolling deadlines.
Prizes: Certificates with score and achievement level.
Eligibility: High school students are eligible to apply.
The Bebras Computing Challenge is a 45-minute online contest consisting of fifteen multiple-choice questions designed to assess your computational and logical thinking. The tasks are grouped into three sets of five questions each, increasing in difficulty. Participation must be arranged through a teacher. Although primarily held online, regional finals may be hosted in some countries, providing top performers the opportunity to work on more advanced challenges at a university setting.
5. Technology Student Association Competitions
Location: Virtual.
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: Varies depending on the competition.
Application Deadline: Varies depending on the competition.
Prizes: Varies depending on the competition.
Eligibility: High school students are eligible to apply. Specific requirements vary depending on the competition.
The Technology Student Association (TSA) hosts a broad range of STEM-focused competitions. If you are interested in computer science, you can explore competitions such as coding, data science and analytics, software development, and system control technology. For instance, the coding competition begins with a preliminary test covering fundamental concepts. Semifinalists are then tasked with developing a program that solves a real-world problem within a set timeframe.
6. Samsung Solve for Tomorrow
Location: Hybrid. Submission is virtual. Pitch Event and Final Event announcing National Winners will be in-person.
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: August - April.
Application Deadline: October 24.
Prizes: Three national winners receive a $100K prize package including Samsung products and classroom resources. Check out the various prize tiers.
Eligibility: High school students from publicly financed schools are eligible to participate. Charter schools that derive at least 50% of their operating funds from public sources are also eligible. All applications must be submitted by someone 21 years or older, who is employed by the school.
Samsung Solve for Tomorrow is a national competition in which students propose innovative STEM-based solutions to problems in their local communities. You will be evaluated on the originality of your ideas and the effectiveness of your proposed solutions. Samsung provides extensive support, including access to mentors from within the company and a library of resources and templates. A notable example includes students from Bentonville West High School in Arkansas who developed an app capable of identifying oral cancer through image scanning.
7. FIRST Robotics Competition
Location: Multiple locations across the country.
Cost: $6,300 for your first regional event, followed by $3,000 for every additional event. The FIRST Championship costs $5,750.
Competition Dates: Kickoff events start from September 25, while the Championship is in April or May.
Application Deadline: Varies based on the competition.
Prizes: Offered.
Eligibility: High school students are eligible to apply. Applicants must form teams to participate, ideally of minimum 10 students.
The FIRST Robotics Competition is a team-based competition that combines engineering and computer science. You will design and build an industrial-sized robot to complete tasks on a themed field. Each January, a new game is announced, and teams must design robots to compete accordingly. For instance, a recent theme called DECODE challenged participants to uncover historical mysteries through technological innovation.
8. HPE CodeWars
Location: Virtual or in-person.
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: March 7.
Application Deadline: Applications close two weeks before the competition.
Prizes: Information is currently unavailable.
Eligibility: High school students aged 13-18 years are eligible to apply.
HPE Code Wars, organized by Hewlett Packard Enterprise, is a full-day programming contest involving multiple coding challenges. These may range from algorithms and data structures to software debugging. You must submit source code, and only C, C++, Java, or Python 3+ are permitted as programming languages.
9. Congressional App Challenge
Location: Varies. You can find a list of participating districts here!
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: June - December.
Application Deadline: October 30.
Prizes: Winning apps are featured in the U.S Capitol Building for a year and the House of Representatives and Congressional App Challenge website. You will also receive a copyright fee waiver.
Eligibility: High school students who are US residents are eligible to apply. Applicants must be in a team of up to four students and participate in a district that you either live in or attend school in.
The Congressional App Challenge, sponsored by the U.S. House of Representatives, invites students to develop apps that address a topic of their choosing. Submissions must include a video explaining the app’s functionality, purpose, and intended audience, along with answers to a set of related questions. Entries are evaluated based on creativity, functionality, and technical skill. As a government-backed initiative, this competition holds significant prestige and can be a valuable addition to any college application.
10. CyberPatriot - National Youth Cyber Defense Competition
Location: Hybrid with the Finals taking place in Bethesda, MD.
Cost: $225.
Competition Dates: October - January. View the full schedule here.
Application Deadline: April 1 - October 1.
Prizes: All expenses trip to Bethesda for the Finals and scholarship money.
Eligibility: High school students are eligible to apply. Applicants must be in a team of 2-6 people.
The CyberPatriot National Youth Cyber Defense Competition, run by the Air & Space Forces Association, simulates the experience of managing a small company’s IT systems. During the four-hour competition, you will be presented with operating systems that contain vulnerabilities. You must identify and fix these issues while maintaining system functionality. The competition includes a Network Security Challenge involving Windows and Linux operating systems, and a Cisco Networking Challenge that tests knowledge through an online quiz. High school students may compete in either the Open Division or the All Service Division, the latter being reserved for members of JROTC, the Civil Air Patrol, or the Naval Sea Cadet Corps.
11. American Computer Science League
Location: Virtual.
Cost: $30 for the Finals.
Competition Dates: Qualifying Rounds: November - March | Finals: May 24.
Application Deadline: Varies based on the competition. View the full schedule here.
Prizes: Certificates and prizes.
Eligibility: High school students are eligible to apply. Schools must register to participate in the competition.
The American Computer Science League (ACSL) organizes computer science and programming contests for K–12 schools and organizations. You will compete in online challenges that cover a wide range of topics, including number systems, Boolean algebra, and digital electronics. Each season comprises four contests, and those who qualify for the finals receive certificates and prizes. Advanced divisions also feature a programming problem, with submissions accepted in Python, C++, or Java.
12. Cornell University / Cornell Tech - High School Programming Contest
Location: Cornell, Ithaca and Cornell Tech, New York, NY.
Cost: Free!
Competition Dates: March 29.
Application Deadline: Not available.
Prizes: Offered.
Eligibility: High school students who live or attend school in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, or Pennsylvania are eligible to apply. Applicants must compete in teams of two or three.
The Cornell High School Programming Contest offers high school students the opportunity to solve six to seven increasingly difficult problems within a three-hour timeframe. The competition evaluates your coding proficiency, problem-solving strategy, and teamwork. Submissions must be made in Python, Java, C, or C++. Students seeking a more beginner-friendly environment can also explore the Women in Computing at Cornell (WICC) High School Programming Contest, which includes an introductory session on competition strategy and logistics.
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