Collegiate Inventors Competition
Scholarship Sponsored by National Inventors Hall of Fame
Overview
The Collegiate Inventors Competition is a national program run by the National Inventors Hall of Fame that spotlights and rewards inventive work by college and university students and their faculty advisers. Launched in 1990, the competition aims to encourage students who actively pursue invention across any discipline.
What kinds of inventions are eligible
Submissions are welcome from any field — science, engineering, mathematics, technology and the arts alike. Each entry must be the original concept and work product of the student(s) and their faculty adviser(s). The entry may be an idea that has been reduced to practice or a working model/prototype, but it must have been developed by the student or student team (either as part of a course or as an independent project) and be capable of reproduction.
Patent and disclosure rules
Entries must not have been patented or publicly disclosed by another inventor or party. In addition, an entry may not have an issued patent that predates the competition submission by more than one year.
Final-round judging: when and where
The competition’s final judging and awards presentation will take place at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia, on October 15–16.
Awards and prizes
- Finalists are selected in Undergraduate and Graduate categories and will compete for first and second place within their category.
- Finalists receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C.
- Winners receive unrestricted cash awards and a patent acceleration certificate.
Is this a scholarship or tuition grant?
No. The Collegiate Inventors Competition is not a scholarship or tuition-assistance program. It recognizes inventive achievement by awarding cash prizes that are unrestricted in use.