Author: Sophie Wyszomierski
The Pittsburgh Regional Science and Engineering Fair, or “PRSEF," is the Kamin Science Center’s largest event of the year. Almost 500 middle school and high school students from throughout Western Pennsylvania gather for a two-day event to showcase scientific research projects that they have spent months completing. Students must present their projects to judges who are considered experts in their field of study. Some students in the high school division even choose to apply for the International Science and Engineering Fair, which requires the submission of a research paper as well. This competition takes almost an entire year to plan.
One aspect of planning this event is the recruitment of almost 300 volunteers to act as Category Judges for both days of the event. With a program that changes every year, it is essential that we begin to consider how we can improve the experience of our volunteer judges. The reason we do this is not just to keep up with new technology or setups, but also to ensure that we retain judges from previous years and encourage new experts to join us for 2026. With this in mind, a project I led during my time with KSC was to survey last year’s judges on their experiences at last year’s PRSEF, assess what could be changed for 2026, and gather opinions on potential changes that fair organizers are considering implementing.
The survey consisted of eleven questions split into two parts. The start of the survey asked judges about PRSEF 2025. This included questions on how easy the registration process was for the judges, whether they felt the schedule and rubrics provided to them were easy to understand and use, and open-ended prompts asking for input on how these aspects of PRSEF could be altered or improved for a more streamlined and enjoyable experience. The second component of the survey gathered individual opinions on the implementation of an online scoring system that would be accessible via a judge’s smartphone or tablet.
Once I gathered this information from past judges, I then presented my findings to the other organizers of PRSEF. It was important to highlight what we should continue from last year’s event while making sure that the suggested improvements I had brainstormed were communicated in a constructive way. I did this by sorting through individual responses to find three or four common complaints submitted by the judges, researching potential solutions that meet the needs of the judges without altering the schedule or main objectives of PRSEF, and presenting my findings.
One solution that I was particularly proud of was finding an online scoring system that worked for the grading style used at PRSEF and recommend that it be implemented. My supervisor aided me in my research by suggesting that we test the scoring system on the middle school divisions for the coming year. Because the high school division includes the competitors who have applied to ISEF, the stakes are a lot higher for them when it comes to the scores and feedback they receive on their work. So, by testing the scoring software with the middle school divisions, we have set up PRSEF 2027 to have a better idea of what may work as they continue to rework the program and align it with current trends in technology.
In a way, my time at KSC was spent doing proactive work, not just preparing for the coming year, but those after it as well. By documenting what has and hasn’t worked in the past and setting up a plan of action that we can then assess in the future, I have set up the next person to work on this aspect of PRSEF next fall.