Log InJoin Free →
SpaceDesign competitions · Eight states

Robotics Teacher Looking For The Next Challenge?

No Hardware. No Build Budget. Real Space Mission.

Our Space Design Competitions are the perfect complement to FIRST Robotics. Participants join a team of peers and design a futuristic Martian habitat, then defend the design against industry peers.

Reserve a spotLearn More
A competition mission room with students at tables in front of a wall of design notesCredit: © Stellr Education

A mission room mid-competition. Students work the trade-off wall while mentors circulate.

At a glance

Grades 9–12

Open to every student in these years

One or Two Day Events

We partner with leading colleges and aerospace facilities

Cost varies by event

Refer to event-specific pages for details. Scholarships available!

Where we run

Environmental 2Space 4Planned 4

Ten locations across eight states — six running now, four in planning. Reserve a spot and we will point you to the one nearest you.

Stellr competition locations. 6 running now and 4 in planning, across 8 states.
  • STEM School, Highlands Ranch, CO — Space Design, running now
  • UNLV, Las Vegas, NV — Space Design, running now
  • MSU Mankato, Mankato, MN — Environmental Design, running now
  • Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum, Ashland, NE — Space Design, running now
  • CSU Spur, Denver, CO — Environmental Design, running now
  • South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD — Space Design, running now
  • Iowa State University, Ames, IA — Space Design, in planning
  • St Mary's School, Raleigh, NC — Space Design, in planning
  • NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX — Space Design, in planning
  • Baylor University, Waco, TX — Space Design, in planning

CO

  • Highlands Ranch · STEM School
  • Denver · CSU Spur

IA

  • Ames · Iowa State University · in planning

MN

  • Mankato · MSU Mankato

NC

  • Raleigh · St Mary's School · in planning

NE

  • Ashland · Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum

NV

  • Las Vegas · UNLV

SD

  • Brookings · South Dakota State University

TX

  • Houston · NASA Johnson Space Center · in planning
  • Waco · Baylor University · in planning

Why design competitions

Built for the season you have not got room for

A design competition trains the skills a build season cannot, and ours are scheduled so they never compete with yours.

1

Complementary Skills

Design Competitions are theoretical design exercises, focused on building ‘soft skills’ in future engineers — communications, large group management, design trade-offs.

2

Off Season Training

Scheduled to offset robotics — keep your students engaged and learning.

3

Cost Effective STEM

No build budget, minimal travel. Teacher Grant Program available.

Teacher Grant Program is available to support your attendance. Ask for details when you reserve a position.

Real students, real competitions

Scenes from past Stellr design challenges.

  • Two students working through a design together on a tabletCredit: © Stellr Education

    Students collaborate endlessly as they design and engineer

  • A laptop showing a company's design documentation part-way through the weekendCredit: © Stellr Education

    Company hard at work

  • A mentor and a student reviewing work on a tablet togetherCredit: © Stellr Education

    Students of different ages collaborate together

  • A large group of student participants together at the end of a competitionCredit: © Stellr Education

    A successful conclusion!

© Stellr Education

What participants and judges say

“There’s no other forum available for school-aged students to learn about real-world work. These events should be mandatory for every student, globally.”
Senior aerospace executive and competition judge
“I didn’t know what I wanted to study when I left high-school. Now I am laser focused.”
Aiden, 2025 competition participant

Space design competition

Reserve a spot

Tell us who you are and roughly how many students you would bring. We will schedule a call so provide additional information and help you manage your registration.

  • Preferential registration for your student/s
  • A short call to answer your questions
  • Teacher Grant Program and scholarship information

Every enquiry ends with a short call. You will pick a time straight after the form — no waiting on an email.

No payment now. This takes you to a calendar to book a short call.

Questions

Before you ask us

Does my school need to enter a full team?

No. Students are placed into ‘companies’ on the day alongside peers from other programmes, so you can bring one student or a dozen.

How does this fit around our robotics season?

Design competitions are scheduled to offset the robotics calendar, so they keep students engaged without competing with build or competition season.

What do students need to bring?

Laptops or tablets if they have them available. For our overnight events living essentials. There is no hardware to build and no build budget to raise.

What is the Teacher Grant Program?

Support for teachers who bring a group of students to a competition. We will go through the current terms on your call.

What does it cost?

Registration is set per event and is all inclusive. Scholarships are available at every event.

Where are competitions held?

Ten locations across eight states, on university and museum campuses. Tell us where you are and we will point you to the nearest.

How many students should I bring?

Anywhere from one to a dozen works. Students are mixed into companies with peers from other programmes, so group size does not affect their experience.

Do I need to know the subject matter to bring a group?

No. Mentors and judges from industry run the technical side across the weekend. Your role is getting students there.