Guidelines

Eligibility

student works taking notes with a plethora of sticky notes all around themUndergraduate or graduate students currently enrolled at any CSU campus and alumni/alumnae who received their degrees in winter, spring, summer or fall 2025, or winter 2026 are eligible. The research, scholarship, or creative activity presented should be appropriate to the student’s discipline and career goals. Proprietary research is excluded.

Each CSU campus appoints a campus coordinator and develops its own procedures for selecting student delegates to the systemwide competition. Only those students endorsed by the campus coordinator can enter the systemwide competition; see Process below.

Student projects completed with a faculty or staff member are welcome, as well as projects with multiple student authors.

Categories

Presentations from all disciplines are welcome. Depending on number of entrants, categories may be subdivided into undergraduate and graduate divisions. The San José State University steering committee reserves the right to combine or subdivide these categories, or to move an entrant from one category to another, as necessitated by submission numbers.

The 10 disciplinary categories are:

  • Behavioral, Social Sciences and Public Administration
  • Biological and Agricultural Sciences
  • Business, Economics and Hospitality Management
  • Creative Arts and Design (creative projects are welcome—see “Competition Guidelines”)
  • Education
  • Engineering and Computer Science
  • Health, Nutrition and Clinical Sciences
  • Humanities and Letters
  • Interdisciplinary
  • Physical and Mathematical Sciences

Process

Each California State University campus appoints a campus coordinator and develops its own procedures for selecting student delegates to the systemwide competition. Each CSU hosts its own internal competition in Fall 2025 or Spring 2026 and selects up to 10 entries to represent their campus at the system wide competition.  Interested students should contact their campus coordinator for more information. Only those students endorsed by the campus coordinator can enter the systemwide competition.

➤ San José State University students, learn more about the SJSU competition here.

The campus coordinator will submit a list of students who have been selected for the system wide competition, along with their written summaries. The rules governing the written summary are as follows:

  • The summary must include the name(s) of the student(s) and the title of the presentation.
  • The written narrative should utilize a font size of 10 or above and have margins of at least 0.75”
  • Should be a minimum of one page and not exceed two pages in total (1-2 pages)
  • Appendices (bibliography, graphs, photographs or other supplementary materials) are optional, may not exceed three pages total, and should be delivered separately from the written narrative.
  • All research must comply with applicable policies and regulations. Research that involves human or animal subjects must have appropriate institutional review.

Presentation and Scoring

student presents with computer in foreground and presentation screen in backStudents will present their work orally before a jury and an audience at the CSU-wide competition at San José State, April 23-25, 2026. Most presentations will take place on Friday, April 24. Presenters will have 10 minutes for an oral presentation of their work and five minutes to listen and respond to juror and audience questions (juror questions are asked first).

It is expected that a student will not make a presentation by simply reading directly from a written summary. For projects with 2+ students, it is recommend that oral presentations be made by no more than two students, with any additional group members, as relevant, responding to juror and audience questions. 

All entrants may use audiovisual materials as appropriate, and presenters are encouraged to use delivery techniques that promote interaction with the audience. The vast majority of student presentations will be accompanied by a slideshow/slide deck, but this is not a required element. Presenters wishing to use a slideshow for their presentation will be asked to use Google Slides.

Entrants in the Creative Arts and Design category may present an audio and/or visual recording of a performance they have given or a work they have created; their oral presentation should focus on the rationale and historical context underlying their interpretation of the material. Live performances are also acceptable, within the 10 minute time limit.  Please be sure to note any extra room or technology requirements during registration.
 
Each entry will be judged on the following. These criteria areas are not weighted:

  • Clarity of purpose, question, or premise
  • Appropriateness of methodology or creative process
  • Quality of analysis and/or interpretation
  • Ability of the presenter to articulate the research, scholarship, or creative activity and respond to questions
  • Organization of the material presented
  • Value of the research, scholarship, or creative activity, as presented

➤ Official Scoring Rubric

This year, entries will also be judged for the CSU's first-ever AI-Enabled Research Award. If jurors find the project applicable, they will score it for clear, original, and ethically grounded use of AI, well integrated with the project’s purpose. See below for more about this new award.

 

Awards

students aim cell phones, taking pictures at celebrationBased on the recommendations of the jurors, monetary awards will be provided to the outstanding presenter and the runner-up in each category, and undergraduate/graduate subdivisions as approprate. If the undergraduate and graduate divisions of a category have been combined, awards will be provided to the outstanding presenter and the runner-up without regard to class standing. The awards ceremony will be held on Saturday April 26, 2026 at the conclusion of the event; friends and family are welcome to attend.

In addition to a plaque and bragging rights, first, second, and AI-Enabled Research awardees will receive monetary prizes.

Everyone attending the events, including guests and supporters, must register in advance.

AI-Enabled Research Award 

In partnership with Information Technology Services at the CSU Chancellor’s Office and the CSU AI Workforce Acceleration Board, the CSU is pleased to announce the inaugural AI-Enabled Research Award.

Debuting at the 40th Annual CSU Student Research Competition (SRC) at San Jose State University in April 2026, this award celebrates student researchers who harness artificial intelligence ethically and effectively in their research. Students will showcase AI innovation along with their commitment to responsible AI practices, while demonstrating the essential skills that today’s employers seek across all fields. In alignment with CSU Forward priorities, this award transforms AI literacy into tangible workforce readiness, offering industry partners a chance to cultivate ethical AI talent across the CSU system. 

This special award will recognize one student recipient in each of the 10 disciplinary categories (above) for their achievement in the innovative, ethical and responsible use of AI in their research, and will receive a cash prize. All students participating in this year’s SRC are eligible for this additional award. 

 

Questions

Student questions should be directed to their local campus coordinator. Campus coordinators may contact csustudentresearchcomp2026@sjsu.edu with any questions.