<p>Is the semifinalist status in this competition the same as a participant?</p>
<p>~1000 people "participated" in S-W, but only ~300 were semi-finalists</p>
<p>if you work independently without a mentor, will the judges look favorably on you?</p>
<p>no, you're solely evaluated on your research, no special considerations are given to people who didn't have a mentor</p>
<p>Jason--Read my response to your PM. The judges won't look at whether or not you had a mentor, but generally it is very difficult to get far in such a competition without one. As I explained to you, research is about much more than just reading through books and gathering info. It's about going out there and discovering something truly new, and moreover, significant to science. That is extremely difficult to do, and nearly impossible without a professional to guide you.</p>
<p>I'm curious -- what are the points of difference between Intel and Westinghouse. Is one a better competition or more prestigious? On cc more posters seem to participate in Intel than Westinghouse. Also what level do you have to reach in these competitions to make it worth tellling colleges about it. Since they take so much work is just participating enough? sem-finalist? finalist? overall winner? Thanks.</p>
<p>Siemens is focused completely on research. The winners are determined solely on the basis of their projects, nothing else. That includes paper and, in the finalist rounds, presentation and the knowledge shown during the post-presentation Q&A session. Intel is called the Science Talent Search and that says a lot--while the research is certainly the most important part (though at the finalist level it takes much less precedence), it aims not to look for the best high school research project but for the best (or most promising) high school science student, based on both research and other signs of promise.</p>
<p>Intel is the more prestigious of the two, but there's a lot to be said for a competition that judges you solely on the merit of your research. Simply put, each is a very different project. Siemens national finalists--the top six in the country--sometimes don't even make Intel semi-finalist--the top 300 in the country. Intel is more prestigious for two reasons. First of all, it is older and better-known. This year was the 8th or 9th Siemens (I believe) and the 65th Intel. Moreover, more people can (and do) enter Intel. Even besides the fact that Intel is the better-known and thus draws more applicants, Siemens's heavy restrictions on projects involving humans make a good number of bio, psych, social science, etc. projects unable to enter Siemens, thus significantly lightening the competition.</p>
<p>Most research programs (such as mine) work towards Intel, not Siemens, so many Siemens papers--such as mine--are rough drafts of those that go to Intel a month and a half later.</p>
<p>what does texas mean by S-W? southwest?</p>