STEB: About the competition

Have you ever wondered why we are so different from chimpanzees, despite having 97% of DNA the same? And how about the kinship between humans and apes?  Or are you fascinated by viruses, or the causes of other diseases and their heredity? 

If yes, you are at the right place! Welcome to our correspondence seminar and competition called Selected Topics in Evolutionary Biology (STEB)! 

In this correspondence seminar, we will try to answer these and similar questions using the insights of evolutionary biology. We hope that you will not only find the evolutionary perspective interesting, but that it will also provide you with the knowledge you need in biology classes in a simple way, so that you can understand not only "how" but also "why" some things happen the way they do in nature. 

What is STEB?

STEB is a correspondence seminar - a competition for high school students who are interested in biology and want to learn more about current scientific research.

You can solve 5 competition series during one school year. Each series contains study material and questions (basic category). For those who opt for the more challenging level of competition, each series includes a short project assignment.

By submitting your solutions, you will be entered into a competition in which you can win interesting prizes (in the basic category) or be invited to a camp - a visit to a top scientific institute (in the advanced category). 

Participants in both categories will be able to participate in online sessions, lectures and trips during the school year. At these events, you will meet peers with similar interests and young, enthusiastic scientists who are eager to share the current research questions they are working on.

Why should I participate?

If you want to better understand the living world around us, you can learn a lot about it from the perspective of evolutionary biology. As you read the articles, you will find that the living creatures around (and including!) you have a much more interesting story to tell than you might have imagined. By taking part in the competition, you'll be able to practise your problem-solving skills, which will be extremely useful later on at university. You will also practice your ability to articulate your thoughts and opinions clearly. 

The most successful students will win prizes and be invited to a short summer camp.

How can I participate?

It's simple. Sign up HERE and we'll send you an invitation to the Google Classroom where the competition is taking place.

You'll be notified when each series assignment is posted in Google Classroom, and the assignments and due dates for submitting solutions will also be posted on the contest page.

You will have approximately one month to solve each series, and you will submit your answers to the questions and project solutions in Google Classroom or by email.

For details, see the rules listed HERE.

To help you with the technical side of submitting solutions, we have prepared a video.