Supervisor Information

overview

Details on Registration and Fair Logistics

The Waterloo-Wellington Science and Engineering Fair is a non-profit registered charity that operates the regional science fair. We are affiliated with Youth Science Canada and send some of our best projects to the Canada-Wide Science Fair. After participating in a CWSF, exhibitors who are in High School can apply to participate in the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). Over the past years, several of our students have been part of Team Canada at the ISEF.

You may choose to download a PDF copy of the Supervisor Manual below, or browse this webpage for the same information.

Click to Download Supervisor Manual

logistics

Registration Details & Information

The Registrar can be contacted at registrar@wwsef.ca

If you have already successfully registered your entry as an exhibitor to this year’s Waterloo-Wellington Science & Engineering Fair, you’ll have to start working on your project.

We have an entire page dedicated to registered exhibitors, where you will find detailed guidelines for project creation, writing research reports, and more. Ethics will also be discussed on this page.

General Information

The school contact, usually the teacher involved, begins the registration procedure. (see below)
Exhibitor(s) should read and/or print the registration procedures (see below) before beginning to register.
Check the Exhibitor’s eligibility (see the Exhibitor Manual) before beginning registration.
Each Exhibitor and any supervising adult must verify that the exhibit meets all the rules and regulations of the Fair. (see the Exhibitor Manual)
Exhibits arriving at the Fair that do not meet rules and regulations may be disqualified.
Exhibitor(s) must fully complete the online registration form to participate in the Fair.

The completed application must be received by the registrar (see above) by the date shown on the online registration page.

Incomplete or late application forms may not be accepted.

School Sponsored Entries

Generally, young researchers develop science fair projects as part of a school activity (class or science club) with teacher support and apply for the regional WWSEF through their school.

Individual Entries

Researchers working on science fair projects independently (i.e. home-schooled or attending schools with no science fair activity) may apply directly to the Registrar (see above) to participate in the fair.

Before beginning work on a research project Exhibitor(s) should contact the Registrar prior to January 5.

Participation Formula

Schools of different sizes are allowed to apply for at least five (5), but no more than twenty (20), science fair entries depending upon their eligible population (number of grade 7 to 12 students) and the number of different grade Divisions covered by the school. See chart below.

Maximum Number of Projects by Number of Divisions:

Eligible Population	One Division	Two Divisions	Three Divisions
1-200	5	9	11
201-400	10	11	13
401-999	11	13	15
1000+	14	16	18

Maximum Number of Projects:

Add two to the above quotas if the school holds some form of local fair or judging to select some of the projects for the WWSEF from all those created in the school

Note: "Eligible Population" refers to students in the three WWSEF Divisions: Junior (Grades seven and eight), Intermediate (Grades nine and ten), Senior (Above grade ten)

For example - a three Division school would have students in all grades from seven to twelve, while a one Division school might only have students in grades seven, eight or both.

Registration Fee - Registration Fee for 2026 is $40.00

Note: If necessary, support is available for the registration fee. Please contact the Director at director@wwsef.ca.

Any questions regarding registration procedures should be directed to registrar@wwsef.ca.

For Online Registration Procedures, please refer to the information on the Fair Entry Registration page.

projects

Matching the Projects by Division, Category and Type

1st - Projects Separated by Division

The science fair projects are divided by Division into:

Junior Division: Grades 7 and 8
Intermediate Division: Grades 9 and 10
Senior Division: Grades 11 and 12

This is so that people of similar experience compete with each other.

2nd - Division Projects Separated by Category

The projects in each Division are put into one of three Categories:

Engineering: Any topic in applied science, using electricity and magnetism, robots, pulleys, gears, rocketry, solar energy, lasers, aeronautics, structures, chemical processes to achieve a purpose, development of computer hardware, software or applications, etc. are Engineering.

Life Science: Projects dealing with living organisms, factors affecting growth, etc., whether biology or social science, are Life Science.

Physical & Mathematical Science: Studies of chemical or physical phenomena, optics, colour and sound, radiation, comparison of similar products, corrosion, and studies in mathematics are examples of projects in this category.

Note: Many projects contain elements of two or more divisions. The stated purpose or hypothesis of the project may be the best indicator of the exhibitor's thinking, and indicate into which division a project should be registered.

Examples of Distinctions Between Categories:

Physical Science or Life Science?

A project examining the formation of acid rain would be Physical Science, but one that investigates the consequential effect on micro-organisms and plants would be Life Science.

Physical Science or Life Science?

A project investigating the factors affecting bubble gum bubble size (time, brand, etc.) would be a Physical Science project, even though some factors to be considered (chewing and enzymes in saliva) are biotic. If the focus was on the effect of chewing and saliva as a digestive process, using gum as an indicator, it would be a Life Science project.

Physical Science or Engineering?

A project examining the variables involved in Bernoulli's Principle would be entered as Physical Science. Designing wings, sails or other devices, which use the principle, would be Engineering.
Measuring solar energy would be Physical Science whereas using it would be Engineering. Similarly, comparing the effectiveness of sunscreens would be a Physical Science project while formulating a new one would be Engineering.
Comparing the properties of papers, even home-made, would be Physical Science while attempting to design a particular paper, or a new method for making the paper, would be Engineering.

Physical Science, Engineering or Life Science?

A project which examines and/or compares the physical properties of materials which absorb oil would be placed in Physical Science.
A project which developed a new material or a method to clean up oil spills would be Engineering.
A project dealing with the effect of an oil spill on flora or fauna would be a Life Science project.

3rd - Different Types of Projects

For each Division, there are three different types of projects.

An Experiment: This is the most common type of project. A gold award project of this type should involve an original scientific experiment that recognizes and controls all significant variables and demonstrates excellent collection, analysis, and presentation of data. Significant positive findings are not essential to achieve a successful experiment. Design is more important than results.

An Innovation: This type of project would involve the development and evaluation of new devices, models, techniques or approaches in fields such as technology, engineering, and computers. A computer innovation may involve software or hardware. A gold award project should integrate several technologies, innovations, or designs; or construct an original system that will have commercial application or benefit society. It must demonstrate development and design based on sound understanding of scientific, engineering, or technological principles.

A Study: This type of project involves the collection and analysis of data from other sources. Its intent is to reveal evidence of a fact or a situation of scientific interest. This could include cause and effect relationships, in-depth studies, or theoretical investigations of scientific data. A gold award exhibit in this area must demonstrate sound scientific techniques for data collection and show evidences of analysis with insight.

Note: If the exhibitor classifies the project as the wrong Type, no penalty will be assessed. The judges will assess the proper project Type so that the project will receive the fairest possible judging.

schedule

Sample Timeline for School Science Fairs

For students preparing for the WWSEF, here is a sample timeline for a typical school science fair.

This way, you can schedule your WWSEF registration and project progress.

5-6 Months Prior

School Fair Organization

Get administrative permission and support.
Get a few teachers to help support your efforts.
Get support of English, Art, P.E., Math Teachers and Librarian.
Set dates for school fair. Remember if you wish to enter the regional fair, your process must be completed according to the WWSEF deadlines on the website (wwsef.ca).
Prepare a student information booklet. It might include material such as: time lines, how to choose a topic, rules and regulations, evaluation criteria, project check points, project levels, plus additional material as needed.
Reserve space for school fair. (Gymnasium, Library, etc.)
Order extra tables and/or chairs.
Investigate sources for judges (professionals, parents, secondary school science teachers and/or students.)