The 2026 Houston Brain Bee will be held at Rice University in March (Date TBD) 2026, event location TBD. There will also be a Brain Bee Workshop hosted at Rice one week before the official competition, (Date TBD), in order to better prepare competitors for the event.
2026 Houston Brain Bee
Brain Bee 2026 Flyer
The Brain Bee is a live Q&A neuroscience competition for high schoolers. The Brain Bee motivates students to learn about the brain, captures their imaginations, and inspires them to pursue neuroscience-related careers in order to help treat and find cures for neurological and psychological disorders. The Brain Bee competition hosted by Rice University will consist of two rounds: the written round and an oral round. All participants will first take a written test, composed of multiple choice, True/False, and short answer questions. The top 10 students from the written round will then advance to the oral round, wherein they will compete for cash prizes and a chance to advance to the national competition. In addition to our competition, we will have guest speakers and exciting, interesting neuroscience demonstrations.
The winner of the 2026 Houston Brain Bee will represent Houston at the 2026 U.S. National Championship to be held at TBD.
To indicate your interest in participating in the 2026 Houston Brain Bee, please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/E5dbEZoXpGkcu2jQ7
If you have any question, feel free to reach out to us at riceneurosciencesociety@gmail.com and the BrainBee EVP Nyansu Chen at nyansu.chen@rice.edu.
Where and when?
The 2026 Brain Bee Competition will be held on (DATE TBD), 6100 Main St, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005.
*You do not need to be a resident of Houston to participate in our competition.
How to STUDY:
All questions will be drawn from the official Brain Bee book (freely downloadable in text and in audio):
BrainFacts: A Primer on the Brain and Nervous System
Additionally, the following may also be helpful (consider as supplementary):
- Preparation Guide from Michigan State University: The documents and links provided here are supplemental material meant to aid in understanding the content found on BrainFacts.org and in Brain Facts. *Only the material from BrainFacts.org will be covered in the competition.
- Vermont Brain Bee resources: Study Guide and Boot Camp Slides
- Brain Fact Sheets: A collection of downloadable (PDF) fact sheets for adults and children on various topics in neuroscience
- Brown Brain Bee resources
- Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain (2006; by Mark F Bear Barry W Connors and Michael A Paradiso) and The Brain (by Watson et al).
- BRAIN ANATOMY QUICK REVIEW
- BRAIN BEE STUDY GUIDE
- Neuroscience.Science.of.the.Brain
To help you better prepare for the competition, we are planning to host a free WORKSHOP on (DATE TBD). We will be playing some themed jeopardy, watching some demonstrations, and reviewing general neuroscience information. All high school students interested in participating in the competition are welcome, but this opportunity is completely optional and not a prerequisite to the competition!
Workshop Schedule 2026:
9 am-9:15am: Welcome, Check-in, Orientation
9:15 – 10am: Start Content Review
10 am – 10:45 am: Wrap-up content review, start jeopardy
10:45 am: Start the mock exam
11:30 am: Finish Mock Exam, Student Panel
12:00 pm: Grading Finished, Mock Oral Exam (10 questions)
12:30 pm: Wrap-up workshop!
8am – 8:15am Doors Open and Check-In
8:15 – 9:00 AM – Test Administered
9:00 AM – 9:20 AM – Speakers
9:20 AM – 9:40 AM – BREAK
9:45 – 11:00 AM – Oral Exam
11:00 AM – 11:15 AM Award ceremony and closing remarks
The International Brain Bee was founded by Dr. Norbert Myslinski and is a program of MIND, Inc (Mankind for International Neuroscience Development, Inc).
A special thank you to our past sponsors: Rice NeuroX, Rice BioSciences, Society for Neuroscience, Fannin Innovation Studio, Rice Student Volunteer Program, Lucille’s, SusieCakes, Katz Coffee, and the Burger Joint!
