Behind the scenes with the top 30 Broadcom MASTERS finalists - Society for Science Skip to content

Behind the scenes with the top 30 Broadcom MASTERS finalists

By Rachel Myers

This year, the Broadcom MASTERS middle school competition is being held virtually. Despite continued obstacles brought on by the pandemic, the top 30 finalists are meeting challenges head-on and are excited to participate in finals week. Each of the Broadcom MASTERS 2021 finalists received laptops, webcams, backdrops and lighting kits to ensure they all have the technology they need throughout the competition. The finalists also received swag boxes, complete with competition t-shirts, sunglasses, facemasks and more. With guidance from Society staff, the nation’s top 30 middle school scientists and engineers are gearing up for finals week. Here’s a look behind the scenes!

2021 Broadcom MASTERS unpack their supply boxes. Pictured Clockwise: Judy Bai, Angela Zhan, Hailey Van and Nipun Rajan.
Finalists received several boxes containing tech equipment and challenge materials for finals week.
Pictured clockwise: Judy Bai, Angela Zhan, Hailey Van and Nipun Rajan.
2021 Broadcom MASTERS finalists unpacked their swag boxes ahead of finals week. Pictured clockwise: Eamon Gordon, Prisha Shroff, Vihaan Paliwal and Raunak Singh.
Finalists received a swag box full of Broadcom MASTERS gear, to show off their accomplishments.
Pictured clockwise: Eamon Gordon, Prisha Shroff, Vihaan Paliwal and Raunak Singh.
Courtesy: Society for Science & the Public
After unboxing, the finalists set up their workspaces for finals week. Pictured clockwise: Maya Tang, Ansh Sehgal and Avi Patel, Samhita Pokkunuri and Josephine Schultz.
Once everything was unboxed, Broadcom MASTERS finalists brought the competition home by setting up their workspaces for finals week.
Pictured clockwise: Maya Tang, Ansh Sehgal and Avi Patel, Samhita Pokkunuri and Josephine Schultz.
Finalists prepared for one of their challenges by setting up an outdoor trail camera ahead of Broadcom MASTERS finals week. Pictured clockwise: Charles Gorman, Camellia Sharma, Anneliese Hsiao and Arjun Agarwal.
Ahead of finals week, each student set up an outdoor trail camera to record biodiversity in their communities. Data collected by the trail cameras will later be used during a challenge. Pictured clockwise: Charles Gorman, Camellia Sharma, Anneliese Hsiao and Arjun Agarwal.

The Broadcom MASTERS Science and Engineering Project Showcase will open on October 26. Finalists will be at their virtual booths from 5-6 p.m. ET to respond to questions from the public through a live chat. You can add an event reminder to your calendar here, no registration is required to attend. Stay tuned to hear who the winners of this year’s competition will be on October 28 at 8 p.m. ET and see who brings home the $25,000 Samueli Foundation Prize.

Rachel Myers