Top 10 Business Competitions for High School Students
by
Indigo Research Team
&
Published:
May 10, 2024
Last Updated:
September 11, 2024
In today's era, entrepreneurship is trending. It is positioned as a valuable skill that teens should develop. Participating in student business competitions is the best way to go about it.
Over the years, the colleges and business schools have shifted their focus towards entrepreneurship. Popularity shows such as Shark Tank have added to the hype.
If you are a business-minded high school student with a passion for problem-solving and is motivated by competition, this post is for you! We know how highly colleges value entrepreneurship, so we have compiled a list of top 10 business competitions for high school students.
Registrations for one of the most prestigious business competitions for students are now open. Founded and supported by high school students, The Blue Ocean Student Entrepreneur Competition is a virtual entrepreneurship competition.
Appealing to the young, 139 US News and World Report, Top 250 STEM high schools have taken advantage of this competition by participating in it. This global competition has had students from 5 continents and 146 countries.
The competition has grown exponentially since the beginning of the competition nine years ago. Expanding from state to international competition, this competition has exposed 15000 high school students to the real world.
Once you walk through the registration process, you get to network with fellow students and mentors from all around the globe. You can interact with them and seek mentorship and support. The brainstorming and Q&A sessions would help you get valuable feedback.
All the participants, once registered, are equipped with a starter pack of business plan templates. These templates help set the perfect pitch and provide you with resources to minimize risk and maximize opportunities.
Each participant should prepare a 5-minute pitch. The participants can pitch individually and as a team if they want.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: All participants in the competition must be of high school age (14-18 years old at time of registration)
Prize: Cash prize: $500-$1000, Certificates, Sponsored internship for the winner
Registration: February 2024, however, registration is now open for the year 2025
Competition Dates: February - April
Location: Virtual / Online
Initiated by the University of Delaware's Horn Entrepreneurship department, the Diamond Challenge welcomes high school students from all around the globe. Competing teams may include 2 to 4 high school students and a teacher.
Every year, the team with the most promising ideas gets the prize money to fund their dream. Supporting higher education aspirations, the awarded prize helps the team develop their venture.
Each participant is allowed to make the most of this competition. They network with like-minded people, get valuable expert feedback, and achieve their full potential with future collaborations.
This five-step competition includes a submission round, pitch round, semifinal round, top 18 round, and the final round. The teams are required to choose between two tracks: Business Innovation and Social Innovation.
Early submission should be done virtually. The initial submission would require a written concept, just like a business plan with an excellent pitch. Semi-finalists are invited to the University of Delaware for live competition.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: High school students (National and International)
Prize: Cash prize: $4,500-$12,000
Registration: Typically, it opens in August, with initial submissions due any time between late December and early January.
Competition Dates: Teams develop their concepts in September, culminating at the April Summit.
Location: Virtual early submission and semi-finalists present live
The Wharton Global High School Investment competition is an experiential investment challenge for high school students. This high school investment competition is free of cost. Anyone who meets the criteria can register.
Students gather in teams of 4-7, along with a teacher to guide them. These students get access to an online stock market simulator where they learn about teamwork, risk management, strategy, industry analysis, and more investment aspects.
One of the most prestigious business schools, The Wharton School of Business, exposes you to teams from around the globe. These teams help nurture the entrepreneurial mindset from a young age and polish your finance skills.
Like most investment competitions for high school students, this ten-week crash course spins around pitch development, business analysis, portfolio building, and investment.
You participate from your school and submit two deliverables that will be shortlisted for a semifinal round. Top 10 teams can pitch their ideas at Wharton Global Finale for funding.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: High school students (National and International)
Prize: The winning team gets a complimentary spot in the Wharton Online Summer Program
Registration: June - September
Competition Dates: September - April
Location: Virtual pitching rounds with a final presentation at the UPenn
Targeting high school students in grades 8 through 12, Genius Olympiad is an international social responsibility competition.
As part of international business competitions for high school students, the participants can submit projects belonging to diverse categories: Art, Writing, Business, Robotics, and more.
The main objective of the Genius Olympiad is to invite solutions that can be used to solve environmental issues. Students can participate in two categories: Social Responsibility and Entrepreneurship.
Striving to decrease the human impact, you will work on a new product or technology. You have the option of offering improvements to existing products or technologies. You can come up with greener and more sustainable choices.
Combining engineering, science, and business ideas, the product or solution should be backed by a business plan and a launch plan.
In the Business category, the participants devise a business plan that describes their pro-environmental venture. These participants can work individually or in pairs. Their business plan must be 15 pages or fewer with a 2-page executive summary.
The projects are presented to the judges as business pitches using PowerPoint or Prezi. The presentation should be restricted to 10 minutes.
However, the students are encouraged to bring models, mock-ups, or prototypes of the described technology. Finalists are then invited to attend the GENIUS Olympiad event.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: High school students from grades 8 through 12 (National and International)
Prize: Certificates, renewable scholarships of up to $25,000
Registration: November - March
Competition Dates: June
Location: Virtual and live
The Cooper Hewitt Design Competition instills design thinking to overcome real-world problems. Consider it a research-based entrepreneurial solution. This competition will benefit a stellar college application if data science excites you!
Once you register as a participant, you will be guided using data visualization. You will be amazed to know how effective data visualization is when communicating and solving real-world challenges.
You have the option of submitting both primary and secondary data. This data will be screened in two phases. All finalists are mentored by some of the biggest names in the data industry.
Since it's an online business competition for high school students, the finalists present their projects at the Virtual Judging Weekend at Cooper Hewitt. Before their presentation, the finalists are mentored by reputed individuals in data design.
For this challenge, your entry will be judged based on: innovation, impact, relevance, and communication.
If a career in data design, data analysis, or data science excites you, participating in this competition will add volumes to your experience - highly beneficial for a stellar college application!
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: Students aged 13-19 can register individually or in teams of up to 3 students
Prize: Certificates, a gift package worth $500 from SHOP Cooper Hewitt, and a Family membership to Cooper Hewitt.
Registration: November - March
Competition Dates: April-June
Location: Virtual / Online
SAGE hosts one of the best entrepreneurship competitions for high school students. This annual challenge guides students through solving global issues through innovative thinking by entrepreneurs.
The Sage Global competitions expose students to opportunities where they submit an annual report and then give a live presentation related to a sustainable business plan. They also get access to the curriculum and experienced mentors.
The competition is divided by location. The SAGE competitions begin with state, regional, and national competitions. These competitions are followed by the World Cup, held at different locations. he registrations are now open for August 2024.
High School students and undergraduate students are eligible to participate in the competition. All you have to do is team up and identify a global need. Once the need is identified, create a social enterprise that solves this need.
If you get shortlisted internationally, your team will present your final pitch to a panel of judges.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: All students between 13-19 years of age
Prize: Certificates and cash prizes
Registration: Submissions are open for acceptance
Competition Dates: August 2024
Location: Virtual / Online
The Conrad Challenge is a purpose-driven innovation challenge that targets aspiring minds from all around the globe. If you are interested in Energy & Environment and Health & Nutrition, Cyber-Technology & Security, Aerospace & Aviation, this competition is for you. As a high school student between ages 13-18, you can make friends with like-minded people. Together, you get to apply science, innovation, and technology and solve problems with a global impact. The competition aims to expand creativity, communication skills, critical thinking, and collaboration with the support of industry experts.
Given the success of this competition over the years, they have expanded their reach and partnered with Space Center Houston to maximize the impact. The Conrad Challenge has always pushed boundaries by equipping entrepreneurs with innovation.
You can participate in the challenge if you are from ages 13 through 18. You are required to join a team of 2-5 students. Your team members can compete from any part of the world.
You can form a team with your siblings, camp friends, schoolmates, or anyone in the required age bracket. You can compete yearly if you meet the age criteria and other requirements.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: All students between 13-18 years of age, in teams of 2-5 students
Prize: Certificates, the "Pete Conrad Scholar" award, scholarships to universities, as well as discounted access to professional services for the winning team
Registration: Applications open from August to November
Competition Dates: January - April
Location: Virtual / Online
If you are searching for summer business competitions for high school students, look at the FIDM Entrepreneur of Tomorrow Challenge. This is a distinctive DECA competition. You can pick the niche of your choice for the competition. DECA events aim to contribute positively to research and career readiness, along with a sharp business mindset for the participants.
High school students are prompted to present an entrepreneurial proposal for an innovative product for a specific market segment. These segments may include food, home, entertainment, clothing, beauty, and health.
Learn more about DECA Competitions, this is a full guide for high school students. This guide elaborates on the benefits of joining DECA and is a detailed step-by-step guide on how you can join the DECA competition.
You can participate as an individual or a team of up to 3 members of the DECA chapter. Each team has to create the prototype, marketing, and distribution strategy.
As a participant, you would be required to submit a short video presentation (4 minutes or less) where you describe your product type, target market, market potential, pricing, distribution, and launch plan.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: All high school students (national and international)
Prize: Certificates, awards, and cash prizes of up to $500
Registration: Applications open early in the year
Competition Dates: Variable, you can find the DECA Calendar of Events here
Location: Virtual / Online
The FCCLA Virtual Business competition is a prestigious competition that measures finance and fashion management skills. It enables the participants to understand and control the aspects of stimulation.
You must utilize your personal finance and fashion management skills for this competition. Once you finish the registration, you can check your team's real-time score on the FCCLA's website.
This course allows FCCLA members to develop "skills for life." They do so through character development, creativity, critical thinking, career preparation, and interpersonal communication.
The Virtual Business Challenge focuses on distinctive concepts found within simulation. The FCCLA Virtual Business Challenge is composed of two competition rounds. Teams have the option of participating in either one or both rounds. The National Championship round will only be open for qualifying teams and will be online only.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: All high school students in the USA
Prize: Certificates, awards, website recognition and cash prizes of up to $1000
Registration: October
Competition Dates: October to February
Location: Virtual / Online
NFTE's World Series of Innovation is an entrepreneurial competition. This competition allows high school students to pitch innovative ideas as solutions to real-world challenges.
NFTE's WSI invites young minds to purposely get involved in some of the biggest challenges humanity faces today. Consider this as an initiative to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
You sign up by accepting the challenge of your choice on the website. Then, you get started with the challenge. Brainstorm and come up with different solutions to real-world challenges. Don't limit yourself, go wild!
Participants must choose from the listed challenges ranging from climate change to clean energy and everything in between. People aged 13 through 24 can participate as individuals or teams of up to 3 participants.
Judging of the proposed solutions takes place in multiple rounds.
Points To Note
Eligibility Criteria: Ages 13 to 24 can compete in teams of one, two, or three participants
Prize: Prizes ranging from $300 to $1500
Registration: September
Competition Dates: January to March
Location: Virtual / Online
Entrepreneurship competitions for high school students are an excellent way for students to get real-life experience. This educational opportunity lets students plan and present a business or develop a terrific pitch.
Regardless of your future field of activity, you will find entrepreneurship skills useful in your adult life. Participation in business competitions for high school students will enable you to develop various skills, including creativity, problem-solving, and everything in between.
Entrepreneurship is a lifelong process, the initiative of being an entrepreneur is not enough. You need to have a continuous willingness to learn along the way. In our upcoming IRIS Summer Program, you will have a chance to learn from an MIT Professor, who specializes in Global Entrepreneurship. In this course, you will learn MBA-style case studies that will surely elevate your entrepreneurial spirit!
