<p>How do all these high school kids (mostly seniors) do research by themselves with just like a computer and books and then enter it into Siemens, etc. and win? How do you guys do it without like a professor at an accredited university?</p>
<p>Last year, every single one of the national finalists (both team and individual) for Siemens in some way worked with a mentor.</p>
<p>A mentor is there to give you some guidance from time to time, like suggesting to try some software, or perhaps pushing a certain paper towards you. </p>
<p>I don't know about all of the regional competitions (just one) but in general, the projects without a mentor were weaker. </p>
<p>My best advice if you are pursuing research: if you can find a mentor, work with them on some level. Don't romanticize the idea of working all by yourself; the kids who do work in narrow fields and generally have years and years of experience in those fields before they ever decide to do research.</p>
<p>it's tough to do research by yourself, depends what type of research mostly. I've been working in a certain field since freshman year, so I know the "happenings" in the field: the problems, what methods people are using, etc. Thus, I'm able to identify problems and tackle them.</p>