Competition/Registration

We're glad you're joining us as a team for iGEM 2020! There are several items necessary to complete your team application for iGEM 2020 which you can find described below. It is important to read through this page before beginning your team application to understand the requirements to completing the application.

Remember, every member of the team must have an iGEM.org user account. The team’s Principal Investigator (PI) will need one in order to complete the team application. Visit the Registration Handbook to learn more about user accounts. Once the team PI has a user account, he/she/they will be able to log in and access the 2020 team application.

Changes to Payment and Invoice Instructions
May 26

We are changing the online system we use for credit card payments and we have also changed our system for creating invoices for wire transfers and checks.
 Please visit the Team Fee page for information on the new system.

If you generated an invoice prior to May 26 for a wire transfer or check payment, you will need to request a new invoice as we will no longer use the previous invoices to collect payments, effective immediately.


Information Required to Apply for a Team

1. Team PI Information

The first component of the team application is the PI information. This includes a personal email address and phone number so we can contact the PI directly if there are any problems throughout the iGEM season. The team PI will need to verify contact information. If your contact information is incorrect, you will have the opportunity to update it before proceeding with the application.

2. Team Name

The next component of a team application is the team name. If your team has participated before, we recommend you use the same team name. If you are a new team, your team name should be brief and descriptive. It is limited to a maximum of 20 characters. Your team name should indicate your school, city, state, country (or region). A team name must also follow these rules:

  • be 20 or fewer characters (including letters, and underscore/hyphen)
  • should indicate your school name(s) and city, state, country and/or region
  • only contain letters A-Z, and a-z
  • may contain numbers 0-9
  • can contain underscore (_) or hyphen (-)
  • cannot contain the year (i.e. "20", or "2020")
  • cannot contain spaces
  • cannot include the words iGEM, team, or synthetic biology
  • cannot include the team's project name
  • cannot include the name of your school mascot
  • cannot include sponsor names

Note that your team name will need to be approved by iGEM HQ. Failure to follow these rules will delay your team approval.

We have formalized this requirement and show it in the team requirements section on your Team Information Page. Your team name will be easily approved if your team has participated in the past and you use the same team name. If you are a new team or if you are using a new team name, then iGEM HQ will manually approve your team name.

Why is your team name important? Your team name is the official name that you will use throughout the entire iGEM season. After the competition ends this name will be used as an historical record of your team. Your team name is your team identity.

For examples of team names, you can see the 2019 team list.

3. Team Kind

In iGEM 2020, teams will register as one of three team "kinds", and each kind will have different registration requirements. The three team kinds are:

  • Collegiate:
    Teams consist primarily of collegiate students. You may also have postgraduate students and/or high school students on the team.

  • High School:
    Teams consist of only high school students and students who will graduate high school in 2020. High School teams compete with other High School teams in the High School Track and Section. Please visit the High School Consent Form page for information about and access to the consent forms.

  • Community Lab:
    Teams consist of members of a community lab. This can include anyone. Community Lab teams compete with Collegiate teams in the Traditional and Special Tracks and in the Undergraduate and Overgraduate Sections based on the team members' ages.
    Each community lab team must complete the following additional requirements and send the applicable documentation to documents AT igem DOT org:
    1. demonstrate access to a BL 1 lab
    2. demonstrate an adequate safety training program
    3. must be an incorporated entity (for profit or not-for-profit)
    4. must have a legal entity which has the ability to sign contracts

4. Team Information: Affiliation & Location

The team application asks for team’s school affiliation and geographic location. This helps iGEM HQ track team development, and other individuals, including potential team members, find teams near them. Please include the following:

  • School name
  • School mailing address
  • City, state, country (area or economy)
  • School website URL

If more than one school is represented on the team, please list every school.

Below the school field, please select the country (area or economy) that your school belongs to, as well as the region.

5. Shipping Information

Your team’s shipping information will be needed in order to send you materials during the iGEM 2020 competition season, such as the DNA distribution kit and part requests.
The shipping information is found on your Team Information page, accessible after the team application is submitted.

7. Team Fee Payment

Each team pays a team fee, which provides the team with a team wiki, associated materials and support, one presentation slot at the Giant Jamboree, and one poster slot at the Giant Jamboree.

Team fees for iGEM 2020 are:

  • Regular registration: $5500 USD (ends May 15)
  • Late registration: $6000 USD (begins May 16)
  • Multiple team discount: a discount of $1000 USD

Instructions for submitting your team fee are available on the Team Fee page.