Virginia BioGENEius Challenge

Overview

The Virginia BioGENEius Challenge co-sponsored by the Virginia Biotechnology Association, ATCC and the Virginia Bioscience Foundation is a competition for high school students doing research in biotechnology.

If you live in Virginia and compete in the Virginia State Science and Engineering Fair with a project involving biotechnology or bioscience-related categories, you may qualify for the Virginia BioGENEius Challenge. 

Participation Criteria

Requirements for eligibility:

• Applicant must be a student enrolled in biology or science-related courses (Grade 9 to 12) in any public or private school within the Commonwealth of Virginia.
• Individual students may submit only ONE project for this competition. Research presented in 2012 must be NEW research. Projects may be continued research from previous years.   Click here for detailed Participation Criteria and Project Guidelines.
• Exceptions: Any otherwise qualified student who, for compelling reasons, is not competing in the 2011 Virginia State Science and Engineering Fair (VSSEF) may apply to be considered by the Virginia BioGENEius Judges as long as their biotechnology-related project has won a local, regional, national or international ISEF affiliated award in the past twelve months.

 To apply for the Virginia BioGENEius Challenge, please follow this path:

1.  You must apply on-line to the Virginia BioGENEius Challenge by April 15, 2012. To access the on-line application, please complete this brief on-line registration, after which you will be directed to a short and simple application.

2.   Complete an online application.  Submissions must be completed at this site by April 15, 2012. 

3.  For those selected to participate in the Virginia Challenge, please follow these instructions for creating your posters: http://live.biotechinstitute.org/node/1567

3. You must submit a .pdf copy of your poster to moore.susan@vabio.org no later than April 15, 2012.

Please print and complete the pdf document: “Declaration, Discharge And Release Of Information” (attached below) and submit to Susan Moore (moore.susan@vabio.org).

4.  If you are selected as one of the two (2) Virginia finalists, the Virginia Biotechnology Association will cover approved travel and lodging expenses for each winner to Boston, MA, in order to participate in the U.S. National BioGENEius Challenge , which takes place in June 2012.

Finalists in the U.S. National BioGENEius will move on to compete in the International BioGENEius Challenge, held in Boston, MA, in June 2012, in conjunction with the Biotechnology Industry Organization’s (BIO) Annual International Convention.

Finalists will showcase their talent and research to a prestigious panel of expert biotech judges and will display their projects to approximately 20,000 convention participants! Winners in the International BioGENEius Challenge will receive $7,500 (first place) cash award. Other awards include $5,000 for second place, $2,500 for third place, and $1,000 for fourth place. Each remaining finalist will receive a $500 Honorable Mention Award.

For more information regarding the Judging Criteria click here.  For more information regarding Rules and Guidelines click here.  For a list all of Local Partners please click here. 

Opportunities

• Participate in educational sessions, network with life science executives and scientists and compete at Virginia Biotechnology Association ’s Annual Conference and the BIO International Convention
• Add the prestigious career-building competition to your resume and college application
• Meet students from across the U.S., Canada and Western Australia.

Virginia Biotechnology Association
Mark Herzog
mherzog@vabio.org
Executive Director
800 East Leigh Street
Suite 14
Richmond, VA 23219