Overview
This is one of the few national contests that invites high schoolers to apply the engineering design process to a problem in their own backyard. Run by the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, the National High School Design Competition asks students to identify a real need in their community, whether environmental, social, infrastructural, or accessibility-related, and propose something new to address it. The annual prompt shifts each year, but the core ask stays consistent: observe carefully, define the problem, and propose a solution that could plausibly work. Past regional winners have proposed a biodegradable tampon applicator made from seaweed bioplastic, a portable biofilter planter that captures urban runoff, and an adaptive stirrup for therapeutic horseback riders. The work sits squarely at the intersection of design, materials science, environmental engineering, and biomechanics.
How the Competition Works
A single sketch and a few short written responses. That's the entire entry. Students start by identifying an existing design that has made an impact in their community, such as a piece of infrastructure, a public space, a product, an information system, or a piece of technology, and document it through their own original photograph or drawing. Then they design something new and represent it on a single page. The sketch can be hand-drawn, computer-generated, or a photograph of a prototype or model. Three-dimensional ideas, apps, and other non-flat work are all welcome, as long as they can be represented in 2D form.
Written responses accompany the sketch and explain the thinking behind the design: what need it addresses, who it serves, why this approach. Each response has a strict word limit, which the entry form enforces.
Who It's For
Curious problem-finders will recognize themselves in this one. The kid who watches a city worker patch the same pothole twice and wonders why the underlying design isn't different. The kid who reads about microplastics and starts thinking about what could replace them. The contest rewards observation, careful reasoning, and a willingness to propose something, not technical drawing skill or polished prototypes. What it asks for is genuine attention to a real problem, and a real idea about how design could address it.
The Selection Process
A jury of staff from across Cooper Hewitt reviews every entry anonymously. Only the state of each entry is visible to the panel, ensuring recognition is distributed across the country. Entries are evaluated on four criteria: innovation, impact, relevance to community, and how clearly the idea comes through in the sketch and written responses.
What Makes This Different
Most STEM competitions reward a finished product, whether a working prototype, a tested algorithm, or a polished research paper. This one rewards the thinking that comes before. Students are asked to identify a real need, study how design has shaped their community in the past, and propose something new without needing to build it, code it, or prove it out at scale. That makes it a rare entry point for kids who think like engineers and problem-solvers but haven't yet had access to a lab, a workshop, or a coding mentor. Past winners have tackled biodegradable materials, urban water management, and adaptive equipment for riders with disabilities, ideas with real-world reasoning behind them.
Application & Eligibility
- Open to U.S. high school students in grades 9–12
- May enter as an individual or a team of up to three students
Cost & Information
- Entry: Free
- Submission window: Online entry typically opens in early January and closes in early February
- Recognition: Five regional winners, one each from the Midwest, Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, and Southwest, are profiled on Cooper Hewitt's website
- Regional winners participate in a Virtual Regional Winners Day, where they meet professional designers, learn about design and engineering careers, and connect with other selected teens from across the country