Introduction to the Yau High School Science Award

Introduction to the Yau High School Science Award

The Yau High School Science Award (S.-T. Yau High School Science Award), initiated by the mathematical master Shing-Tung Yau in 2008, is a science innovation award for high school students. It is organized by Tsinghua University and hosted by the Yau Mathematical Sciences Center at Tsinghua University. It has been included in the Ministry of Education's competition whitelist for the academic years 2022-2025. The competition is open to global high school students and covers six major disciplines: mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, computer science, and economic and financial modeling. It advocates for innovative thinking and teamwork, discarding traditional exams and standard answers, allowing students to participate in the competition by submitting research reports. The Yau High School Science Award adheres to the Constitution and laws, implements the Party's educational policies, follows the laws of education and the growth laws of young people, and is guided by the State Council's "National Action Plan for Enhancing Scientific Literacy (2021-2035)". Its aim is to promote the development of science in high schools, stimulate and enhance students' interest and innovation capabilities in scientific research, and discover and nurture potential scientific talents.

Yau High School Science Award Competition Subjects

The Yau High School Science Award is divided into Mathematics Award, Physics Award, Chemistry Award, Biology Award, Computer Award, and Economic and Financial Modeling Award.

MATHEMATICS AWARD

PHYSICS AWARD

BIOLOGY AWARD

CHEMISTRY AWARD

COMPUTER AWARD

Yau Economic and Financial Modeling Award

Yau High School Science Award Prize Settings

Prize Settings (Finals)

For each category (mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, computer science, and economic and financial modeling), there is one Gold Award, one Silver Award, three Bronze Awards, and five Honorable Mention Awards. The prize money is as follows: Gold Award: 50,000 RMB per team; Silver Award: 30,000 RMB per team; Bronze Award: 10,000 RMB per team; Honorable Mention Award: 5,000 RMB per team. Winning teams will also receive trophies and certificates.

In addition, a cross-disciplinary award, the Scientific Gold Award, is set with a prize of 50,000 RMB.

The actual number of awards given each year will be determined by the international jury based on the quality of the entries and the students' performance during the defense.

Mathematics Award Evaluation Criteria

The evaluation covers all areas of basic and applied mathematics, including basic research, engineering applications, business applications, scientific applications, and innovative design.

Physics Award Evaluation Criteria

Relevance to the field of physics: The research scope covers all areas of physics.

Chemistry Award Evaluation Criteria

The research topic can be any content related to chemistry research, with the main consideration being what kind of chemical problem has been solved.

Biology Award Evaluation Criteria

The research topic can be any content related to biology, including research results obtained through experiments and pure theoretical analysis (such as conclusions obtained through bioinformatics analysis). The main consideration during evaluation is what kind of biological problem has been solved.

Computer Award Evaluation Criteria

The research topic can be any problem within the field of computer science and technology, including basic theoretical research and exploration of technical issues.

Economic and Financial Modeling Award Evaluation Criteria

The research scope covers all areas of economics (including finance). The research topic should directly contribute to answering economic questions or provide methodological contributions.

Yau High School Science Award (Mainland China Region) Overall Schedule

Yau High School Science Award Competition Process and Schedule

April 15 - July 31

Registration in team format (1-3 members per team); registration website: www.yau-awards.com; deadline: July 31, 24:00

August 1 - September 15

After successful registration, teams can submit their papers starting from August 1; deadline: September 15, 24:00; papers can be updated during this period

September 16 - November 6

Divided into Southern and Northern regions; Mathematics Award also has an Eastern region; each region selects the list of teams entering the national finals

November 7 - November 13

Research reports of teams entering the national finals will be posted online

December 10-11

The national finals will be held in the form of an English defense, presided over by the international jury; the location of the finals and award ceremony: Tsinghua University (schedule subject to final notice)

Yau High School Science Award Regional Division

China Mainland Region

Registration scope: Students from major high schools in mainland China

Registration website: www.yau-awards.com

Regional distribution:

1. Mathematics Award:

Northern Region: Beijing/Hebei/Tianjin/Shanxi/Inner Mongolia/Xinjiang/Heilongjiang/Jilin/Liaoning/Hubei/Henan/Shaanxi/Ningxia/Gansu/Qinghai

Southern Region: Guangdong/Guangxi/Hainan/Sichuan/Hunan/Guizhou/Yunnan/Tibet/Chongqing/Fujian/Jiangxi/Anhui/Macau

Eastern Region: Zhejiang/Jiangsu/Shandong/Shanghai

2. Physics Award, Chemistry Award, Biology Award, Computer Award, Economic and Financial Modeling Award:

Northern Region: Beijing/Hebei/Tianjin/Shanxi/Shandong/Inner Mongolia/Xinjiang/Heilongjiang/Jilin/Liaoning/Henan/Shaanxi/Ningxia/Gansu/Qinghai

Southern Region: Zhejiang/Jiangsu/Shanghai/Guangdong/Guangxi/Hainan/Sichuan/Hunan/Hubei/Guizhou/Yunnan/Tibet/Chongqing/Fujian/Jiangxi/Anhui

Overseas Region (Asia Region)
Registration scope: Students from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and other Asian countries except mainland China
Registration website: https://yauaward-asia.hk

Overseas Region (North America Region)
Registration scope: Students from countries other than Asian countries in North America

Registration website: http://www.yau-science-awards.org/

Yau High School Science Award Detailed Competition Arrangements
Yau High School Science Award Competition Format
(1) Participant Qualifications:

1. Each team consists of 1-3 high school students from the same school, led by 1-2 supervising teachers;

2. The participating teams (including those under the guidance of others) have achieved scientific research results.

Student status: The student's status as a current high school student at the time of registration is the criterion. Students cannot form teams across different schools.

Supervising teacher status: In addition to selecting high school teachers from their own school as supervisors, students can also choose experts from research institutions or other external teachers as mentors, but they cannot be teachers hired by commercial training institutions. This information must be filled in truthfully. If the organizing committee has reason to believe that the participating students have completed the research report under the guidance of a training institution, the organizing committee reserves the right to cancel the student's participation qualification and award ranking.

(2) Participation Method:

Registration from April 15 to June 30, submission of research reports, and other materials from July 1 to September 15. Participants log in to the registration website (www.yau-awards.com), register an account, and fill out and submit the competition materials online. Late submissions will not be accepted.

(3) Competition Materials:

1. Participant or team information

2. Research report

a. Format: PDF file.

b. It should include the following content:

Cover page: Name, province/state of the student's school, country, name of the supervising teacher, report title.

Starting from the second page: Title, authors, abstract, keywords, table of contents, main text.

On a separate page: References.

Acknowledgments page: Explanation of the research topic, research background; work and contributions of each team member in writing the paper; the role of the supervising teacher and students in the paper writing process, and whether the guidance was paid; explanation of research results assisted by others. If necessary, please attach resumes of team members and supervising teachers.

c. Research report requirements:

There should be no plagiarism of others' research results, violation of rules on ghostwriting, or other academic misconduct;

If using methods and conclusions from others' research, appropriate citations should be made, and they should be listed in the references;

The research content and process should not violate national laws and regulations or public order and good customs;

The research scope should not involve projects related to food, tobacco, drugs, medical devices, or other items that pose physiological or psychological harm to humans or animals.

(Download Research Report Template) (Hyperlink: http://www.yau-awards.com/uploads/file/20210719/20210719082040_23932.pdf)

3. Academic Integrity Declaration

Students and supervising teachers of participating teams must carefully read the declaration, sign and confirm in the designated places, and affix the school or academic affairs office seal. If the supervising teacher is not a teacher from the same school but an external teacher or expert from a research institution, they must sign and confirm in the designated place and affix the seal of their organization. After signing and sealing the academic integrity declaration, scan and upload it to the registration system.

(Download Academic Integrity Declaration) (Hyperlink: http://www.yau-awards.com/uploads/file/20210719/20210719082118_43604.pdf)

4. Supervising Teacher Information Form

Supervising teachers (1-2) should fill out the form, sign and confirm in the designated place, affix the organizational seal, and scan and upload it to the registration system.

(Download Supervising Teacher Information Form) (Hyperlink: http://www.yau-awards.com/uploads/file/20210719/20210719082207_21409.docx)

5. Plagiarism Report:

After uploading the final version of the paper, teams must upload a plagiarism report corresponding to the final version of the paper before the submission deadline. (Recommended plagiarism check websites: CNKI, PaperPass, etc.).

6. Others:

If there are experimental videos, algorithms, and related graphic and textual materials, they can be selectively submitted.

Yau High School Science Award Evaluation Process

September 16 - November 7: Regional evaluations. Divided into preliminary screening, letter evaluation, table evaluation, and regional finals. There are Southern and Northern regions domestically; the Mathematics Award also has an Eastern region. Each region selects the list of teams entering the national finals.

November 8 - November 15: Research reports of teams entering the national finals will be posted online.

December 11-12: National finals and award ceremony. The finals will be held in the form of an English defense, presided over by the international jury; the location of the finals and award ceremony: Tsinghua University.

Yau High School Science Award Participation Notes

1. Submitting participation materials in written form is considered invalid.

2. Students can participate in competitions in different subjects, but can only register once in the same subject competition. If students simultaneously register for multiple subjects, they need to register with a different account and use a different paper for each competition.

3. The information of supervising teachers and participating students cannot be changed after the submission deadline for research report.

4. Please ensure the submission of all participation information truthfully. If found to violate the principles of integrity, once verified, the organizing committee will cancel the team's participation/prize qualification and publicly disclose the violation on the website, and report it to the relevant school principal.

5. Citations from others' research methods and conclusions should be appropriately referenced and listed in the references. Teams should be familiar with the citation academic norms used in general academic journals or papers.

6. Regarding simultaneous submissions: If participants have participated, are currently registering for, or intend to participate in other relevant domestic or foreign subject competitions, and submit the research report; or if the research report has been published in other publications, or intends to submit it to other publications, please truthfully fill in the relevant information during registration.

7. If the plagiarism rate of the research report exceeds 10%, the team's participation qualification will be canceled. If a team is found to have engaged in full plagiarism or ghostwriting, all teams from that school will be disqualified from participation, and the school will be publicly criticized.

8. Research reports selected for the national finals will be posted on the official website for seven days and subject to public scrutiny.