8 Computer Science Competitions for Middle School Students
Computer science competitions are an excellent way for middle school students to dive into the world of coding, problem-solving, and innovation. These contests provide a platform for you to showcase your skills, collaborate with peers, and tackle real-world challenges through technology. Whether you're a budding programmer or a tech enthusiast, participating in these competitions can significantly enhance your understanding of computer science concepts.
In this blog post, we will explore 8 computer science competitions for middle school students. These competitions cover a wide range of topics, from robotics and game development to cybersecurity and artificial intelligence.
Location: Virtual for the initial stages, and the top teams are invited to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston
Participation Cost: Free
Dates: October 2, 2024 – January 15, 2025
Registration Deadline: September 25, 2024
Eligibility:
Middle and high school students (grades 5-12)
A school or team coordinator is required to register for the students
Teams can only consist of either all middle school or all high school students and should have a minimum of 5 participants
If required to travel, students must be U.S. citizens and at least 13 years old
The NASA App Development Challenge is a coding competition that invites middle and high school students to tackle technical challenges related to deep space exploration. Participants work with real NASA data sets and contribute valuable insights to ongoing missions.
In this year’s challenge, teams have 10 weeks to develop a video that showcases their application visualizing Artemis II's flight path, highlighting SCaN's antennas available for real-time communication with Earth. Middle school teams are tasked with using color to indicate mission phases and display a prioritized list of antennas with line-of-sight access.
Top teams have the opportunity to be interviewed by NASA subject matter experts, and the best projects are showcased at a live event at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. This competition offers a unique chance to be a part of the Artemis Generation's efforts to land American astronauts on the Moon. For more details, check out our blog.
Location: Virtual
Participation Cost: $150 for the first team in a Division, $100 for the Elementary Division
Dates: Contest 1: November 4, 2024 – January 12, 2025
Contest 2: January 6 – March 2, 2025
Contest 3: February 3 – April 13, 2025
Contest 4: March 3 – May 18, 2025
Final: May 24, 2025
Registration/Submission Deadline: December 31, 2024
Eligibility: All elementary, middle, or high school students (grades 3-12) around the world. The school must register for the competition on the student’s behalf.
The American Computer Science League (ACSL) organizes computer programming and computer science contests for K-12 students, dividing schools and organizations into different classes. ACSL offers various divisions to challenge students of different ages and skill levels. The season includes four online contests. Students must be registered by an advisor, who can be a parent, teacher, or adult with computer science experience.
Middle school students can participate in the junior division, learning computer science fundamentals like number systems, Boolean algebra, and digital electronics. ACSL provides resources for students preparing for the contests, such as video explanations and sample problems.
Contests consist of a 30-minute short-answer test and a programming problem to be solved within 72 hours on the HackerRank platform. Participants compete in teams with a maximum of 12 students per team, but individual scores are recorded. For more detailed information, check out our blog on ACSL.
Location: Virtual
Participation Cost: Free
Registration Dates: Registration will open in January 2025 (tentative, based on the 2024 program)
Submission Deadline: Submission deadlines are usually in May
Eligibility: Students between the ages of 5-18
Imagine Cup Junior is a global challenge that provides an immersive experience for young innovators eager to address the world's biggest problems through technological advancements. This competition serves as an excellent introduction to key technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and cybersecurity, making it particularly suitable for beginners.
The 2024 program introduced a special category for students aged 5-12 focused on "Technology for Good," encouraging young participants to apply technology to benefit society. For students aged 13-18, the emphasis was on Generative AI. Participants received introductory lessons on various topics, including AI, machine learning, real-life AI applications, deep learning and neural networks, AI for social good, and cybersecurity.
For more information about Imagine Cup Junior, check out our detailed blog here.
Location: Virtual
Participation Cost: Free
Registration Dates: Registration is currently open
Submission Deadline: October 24, 2024
Eligibility: Open to middle and high school students who are residents of a participating congressional district. You may participate as an individual or team of up to four students.
The Congressional App Challenge is a competition aimed at helping students explore STEM, coding, and computer science through hands-on projects. It encourages participation from students in traditionally underrepresented communities, offering a unique opportunity to use programming skills to create projects that benefit local communities.
Participants are required to develop and submit an original app along with a demo video. Some districts set specific app themes. Apps may use any programming language and be hosted on any platform. To join the Congressional App Challenge, students need to be proficient in common programming languages and have experience with app development platforms.
For a detailed overview of the Congressional App Challenge, check out our blog here.
Location: Virtual with final national round in Bethesda, MD
Participation Cost: $175 for Middle School Division teams. Teams registering before July 1 receive a 20% discount.
Registration Deadline: October 2, 2024
Dates: Middle School Division: November 14 – 17, 2024
Semifinals: January 23 – 25, 2024
National Finals: March 14 – 18, 2025
Eligibility: Middle school and high school students. Schools and organizations must register teams of students, and each team needs an adult coach, mentor, and assistant
The CyberPatriot National Youth Cyber Education Program aims to spark interest in cybersecurity among students. Students compete in teams of 2–6 members to identify and solve cybersecurity issues in virtual operating systems. The competition mimics real-world IT scenarios that participants might encounter in their future careers as IT professionals.
Each team must have an adult coach while IT-experienced individuals can serve as mentors. The program has a dedicated Middle School Division, ensuring that participants compete only against their peers. The challenge consists of four rounds, with each competition round lasting four hours. Students who qualify for the National Finals Competition travel, all expenses paid, to Bethesda, MD, in the spring.
For more detailed information, check out our blog on ‘Everything You Need to Know About the CyberPatriot National Youth Cyber Defense Competition’!
Location: Virtual
Participation Cost: Free
Registration Deadline: Registration opens on October 11, 2024 and closes on March 17, 2025
Submission Deadline: May 5, 2025
Eligibility: The eligibility criteria are as follows:
Must identify as female, trans, nonbinary, or gender nonconforming.
Between 8-18 years old as of August 1, 2025
You can only join one team, which can have 1-5 members.
The Technovation Coding Competition offers an opportunity for individuals identifying as female, non-binary, or transgender to make a significant impact in their communities through technology. Since its inception, the competition has seen participation from over 39,000 girls across more than 100 countries, who have developed apps addressing various community challenges.
Participants are guided by volunteer mentors and club ambassadors who assist in the development and deployment of their apps. Technovation emphasizes not only the creation but also the implementation of projects, ensuring that the apps have a meaningful impact. This competition merges technology with social change, helping you develop valuable skills in coding, problem-solving, and teamwork by tackling real-world issues. Judges will select 15 finalist teams and 3 grand prize winners, with each winning student receiving an educational stipend.
Location: Virtual and in-person options available (in-person competitions are co-hosted with local organizers in different countries)
Participation Cost: Free
Registration Deadline: November 25, 2024 (tentatively, based on previous year’s dates).
Competition Dates: December 2024 (tentatively, based on previous year’s dates).
Eligibility: Students aged 6 – 18
Students worldwide can participate in this AI competition, which aims to introduce students to AI and its application in solving real-world problems. The contest is divided into categories by education levels: elementary, middle, and high school. Participants can join individually or in teams and choose from three tracks: AI Showcase, AI-Generated Art, or AI Large Language Model. Projects are assessed on AI understanding, community impact, and user experience.
Finalists present their projects and engage in a Q&A session before the winner is revealed. Previous winners have developed projects like an AI app for the visually impaired and a face mask detection system, making this competition ideal for those interested in AI ethics and using AI for community betterment.
Location: Multiple Locations throughout the US and Canada. Team details can be found here.
Participation Cost: Approximately $900 for each team, including $250 for registration, a robot kit, and other equipment. Funding assistance available
Registration Deadline: Registration is open and will close in October – April according to the team location
Competition Dates: November – June according to the location of the team.
Eligibility: For the U.S. and Canada, students aged 9-14 (4-8th Grade); for other countries, students aged 9-16 (4-8th Grade); each team can have 2-10 members and must have 2 adult coaches.
The FIRST LEGO League Robotics Competition offers an exciting, hands-on experience in problem-solving, coding, and computer science. Participants work in teams to build and program a LEGO robot to tackle missions in a thrilling robot game. Beyond robotics, the competition involves researching and addressing a current real-world problem, making the challenge both fun and impactful.
This competition fosters creativity and teamwork, encouraging participants to blend technology with artistic expression. It's a great opportunity to showcase your inventive thinking in technology and the arts.
One more option—The Lumiere Junior Explorer Program
The Lumiere Junior Explorer Program is a program for middle school students to work one-on-one with a mentor to explore their academic interests and build a project they are passionate about. Our mentors are scholars from top research universities such as Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Yale, Duke, and LSE.
The program was founded by a Harvard & Oxford PhD who met as undergraduates at Harvard. The program is rigorous and fully virtual. We offer need-based financial aid for students who qualify. You can find the application in the brochure!
To learn more, you can reach out to our Head of Partnerships, Maya, at maya.novak-herzog@lumiere.education or go to our website.
There are multiple rolling deadlines for JEP cohorts across the year, and you can apply using this application link! If you'd like to take a look at the cohorts + deadlines for 2024, you can refer to this page!
Stephen is one of the founders of Lumiere and a Harvard College graduate. He founded Lumiere as a Ph.D. student at Harvard Business School. Lumiere is a selective research program where students work 1-1 with a research mentor to develop an independent research paper.