IET Faraday® Challenge Days
The IET Faraday® Challenge Days are cross-curricular STEM activity days designed for Year 8 students in England and Wales, S1/S2 students in Scotland and Year 9 students in Northern Ireland.
IET Faraday® Challenge Days are held at Schools, Organisations and Universities around the UK and give teams of students the opportunity to research, design and make prototype solutions to real-world engineering challenges.
The IET Faraday® Challenge Days are an annual competition that introduces students to engineering, inspires them to consider engineering as a career and helps to develop their practical and employability skills, including team working, problem solving and creative thinking.
Through its charitable arm, as well as external supporters, the IET provides the IET Faraday® Challenge Days at no charge to UK schools. More information on the season’s supporters can be found here Find out more about this season’s programme supporters.
Students win prizes for themselves and their school
The winners of each IET Faraday® Challenge Day will win a trophy for their school and gain a place on the national league table. The top teams from across the UK will be invited to the National Final at the end of the season to compete for a cash prize of up to £1,000 for their school to spend on STEM activities.
2023-24 season
The 2023-24 IET Faraday® Challenge season will start in September 2023 and run right through to June 2024.
Teams should be made up of six students aged 12-13 years old (England and Wales Year 8, Scotland S1/S2, Northern Ireland Year 9). You can apply to take part in one of three ways:
Option A: host one of our Challenge Leader-led IET Faraday® Challenge Days at your school with the option to invite teams from up to five other local schools.
Option B: apply to be an invited school and take one team from your school along to another local event.
Option C: host one of our Challenge Leader-led IET Faraday® Challenge Days at your Organisation/University and invite teams from up to six local schools.
Please note: each school can only take part once per season and the IET Faraday® Challenge Days can only take place in UK schools, but different countries around the world are able to use our IET Faraday® DIY Challenge Days resources to run their own events. Find out how to take part if you're not based in the UK.
How to enter
Applications for the 2023-2024 season are now open. To apply please complete an application using our new online application form. Follow link to application form.
The deadline for applications is Friday 26th May 2023 but applications will be reviewed as they are received so it is advised to get your applications in early.
Applications will be assessed on a case-by-case basis and allocations will be determined by coverage of all UK regions.
If you have any enquires regarding how to apply, please email faraday@theiet.org to discuss how you can get involved.
IET Faraday® Challenge Final 2021-22
Watch the highlights from the 2021-22 season's National Final where St Aidan's School from North Lanardshire were crowned the National Champions.
CREST Discovery Award
By taking part in a IET Faraday® Challenge Day, your students will meet the criteria for achieving a CREST Discovery Award. Entering students is a brilliant way for them to get the most out of their project.
CREST Awards is the British Science Association’s flagship programme for young people. Around 40,000 students in the UK gain CREST Awards every year. It is the only nationally recognised accreditation scheme for project work in STEM subjects.
CREST is widely recognised as a mark of high quality in STEM project work, is non-competitive, and as long as the project meets all of the CREST criteria at the expected level, the students will achieve their award.
To get awards for your students, visit the CREST Award website.
Industrial Cadets Awards
All students who take part in an IET Faraday® Challenge Day in 2023-24 will receive an Industrial Cadets Challenger Award.
The top five teams in the UK will receive a Bronze Level Industrial Cadets Award at our National Final. This recognises that they’ve completed a minimum of 20 hours carrying out hands-on problem solving and critical thinking activities.
Industrial Cadets is run by the EDT (Engineering Development Trust) and works with UK employers to create a talent pipeline and a future skilled workforce, whilst helping young people to develop the skills they need to enter industry with confidence.
