Rubric teardown
“What exactly are the judges rewarding this year?”
What they hand inA one-page plan mapped to the marking criteria.
Before the entry startsPrograms / Leadership & Global Affairs
Competition · Leadership & Global Affairs
HUSO Middle East
Harvard Undergraduate Science Olympiad for Grades 7-10 in the Middle East: an online Round 1 exam, then a 3-day in-person STEM bootcamp and final exam in the UAE for the top 100. The Harvard Undergraduate Science Olympiad (HUSO) returns to the Middle East with Learn with Leaders for its second year. Round 1 is a 3-hour online exam on 14 November 2026 (Category 1, Grades 7-8) and 15 November 2026 (Category 2, Grades 9-10), covering Biology, Earth Science, Chemistry, Physics and Maths. The top 100 students advance to a 3-day in-person STEM bootcamp and final exam in Dubai / Abu Dhabi in January 2027, run by HUSO mentors. Open to all schools in the Middle East. Every student receives a Certificate of Participation from the Harvard Undergraduate Science Olympiad.
Next cohort starts Sat, 14 Nov 2026 · USD 25
Decide by 4 NovCohorts of Small live cohort
Length3 months
Cohort sizeSmall live cohort
EligibilityGrades 7–10 (12–15)
Live sessionsLive session times confirmed on registration · live on Zoom
What your child will actually do
Live, mentor-led sessions - worked problems and real output, not lectures.
1
Understand what judges reward
A live briefing on the HUSO Middle East rubric, so your child knows what a winning entry looks like before starting.
2
Research and build the entry
Structured work across 3 months, with checkpoints rather than a last-minute scramble.
3
Submit and get judged
Entries are assessed by the organising panel, with feedback and rankings returned to every participant.
Skills your child will gain
Named, practised skills - grouped the way universities read them, tied to how each is used in this competition.
Communication
Writing and speaking so an adult expert takes them seriously.
- Stakeholder writing
Rehearsed in front of a mentor and peers, then corrected on the spot.
- Argument under scrutiny
Written up each week and marked the way a specialist reader would mark it.
Building & doing
The hands-on craft that turns an idea into a finished artefact.
- Editing ruthlessly
Used directly on the work your child hands in across 3 months.
Working with people
Deadlines, teams, feedback - the habits universities and employers notice.
- Project management
Built through real deadlines and written mentor feedback.
- Team facilitation
Practised in small-team work with students your child has never met.
- Working to a hard deadline
Held to a professional standard - the brief, the deadline, the follow-up.
- Handling results, win or lose
Built through real deadlines and written mentor feedback.
Projects they finish with
Sample briefs from recent cohorts - the actual work that comes out of the programme, not a syllabus.
The competition entry itself
“Can your child produce leadership & global affairs work that stands up to outside judging?”
What they hand inA submitted entry - essay, case or presentation - kept for the portfolio.
3 monthsPost-result reflection
“What did the judges' feedback reveal to fix next time?”
What they hand inJudge feedback plus a written reflection worth quoting in interviews.
After resultsA judged entry with a result attached
Impact on other people, documented - the difference between a title and leadership. By the end of HUSO Middle East, the aim is simple: a led initiative with numbers attached and letters from those involved.
What you end up holding
- A rank, award or honourable mention
- A submitted essay or case entry
- A line that needs no explaining on a form
What they'll take away
Certificate of ParticipationJudging feedback and rankingAwards for top entriesA submission to show universities
How this strengthens their university profile
The point isn't the certificate. It's the line a family can honestly write afterwards - and the artefact sitting behind it.
Before
"My child is interested in leadership & global affairs."
Nothing an admissions officer can check.
After HUSO Middle East
"My child completed HUSO Middle East and finished a judged entry with a result attached."
A line with an artefact behind it.
Why this competition counts
External validation. A competition is judged by someone other than us, which is exactly why admissions officers weigh it - a rank or an award is a third party saying the work was good.
Impact on other people, documented - the difference between a title and leadership.
What a university can verify
- A rank, award or honourable mention
- A submitted essay or case entry
- A line that needs no explaining on a form
- A rank, award or honourable mention
- A submitted essay or case entry
Upcoming cohorts
Starting soon
Sat, 14 Nov 20263 months · Grades 7–10November 2026
Live session times confirmed on registration
Session times shown in Dubai time (GMT+4) with US Eastern alongside. Fees are correct at time of publishing - confirm on the programme page.
Live mentors, every single session
HUSO Middle East is taught live by mentors from leading universities and partner organisations - never pre-recorded. Small cohorts mean your child is spoken to by name, not counted in an audience.
Parents usually ask
Is my child the right age for this?
It is designed for Grades 7–10. No prior background is assumed - mentors calibrate to the cohort in the first session.
How much time does it take?
3 months in total, with live sessions live session times confirmed on registration plus light preparation in between. It is built to sit alongside school.
What if we miss a session?
Tell the team in advance and they will share the materials and arrange a catch-up so your child rejoins without falling behind.
How do we pay and confirm a place?
Places are confirmed on the HUSO Middle East application page. Fees shown here are correct at time of publishing - always confirm on the programme page before paying.
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