Regarded as one of the most prestigious and oldest competitions for American high school seniors, the STS allows students to submit a paper of their scientific research with the prospect of several levels of prizes and recognition. The research submitted is of a high caliber, often conducted at leading laboratories and with original results. The competition, however, is not restricted only to the research, as participants must fill out a lengthy application detailing their background and personal attributes. In this sense, the STS is looking for the most promising young scientists in America more so than the young scientist with the best research paper (although the paper does play a significant role).

Only seniors (or students of senior status) can submit papers for the STS and no team projects are allowed. Though a bit late for early action / early decision college applications, the STS results, as a result of their significance, may be helpful in regular action. Certainly a few colleges will send their congratulations for your success and it is even rumored that Stanford will send "likely letters" (essentially early notification of their decision to accept you) to a large portion of finalists. Furthermore, selection as a STS finalist usually merits a good deal of publicity in terms of newspaper coverage and sometimes even television coverage (many finalists get to conduct satellite interviews from Washington, DC). Achieving any level of distinction in the STS is something to be proud of due to the rigor of the submitted projects and the prestige of the competition.