The University Interscholastic League offers a wide variety of academic contests for high school students, encompassing many elements of required high school coursework. These contests build upon the academic skills developed in the classroom and offer students an opportunity to stretch their talents above and beyond those requirements.
Events below have both team and individual components unless specifically noted otherwise. Sanctioned high school academic events are:
- Accounting Animation (can be done individually or with a team)
- Digital Animation
- Traditional Animation
- Calculator Applications
- Computer Applications (individual competition only)
- Computer Science
- Current Issues and Events
- Film (can be done individually or with a team)
- Documentary Narrative
- Literary Criticism
- Mathematics
- Number Sense
- Ready Writing (individual competition only)
- Science
- Social Studies
- Spelling and Vocabulary
- Speech (an award is given to the top overall school in speech events; the award does not qualify students for advancement)
- Cross-Examination Team Debate (team competition only)
- Lincoln-Douglas Debate (individual competition only)
- Congressional Debate (individual competition only)
- Extemporaneous Informative Speaking (individual competition only)
- Extemporaneous Persuasive Speaking (individual competition only)
- Poetry Interpretation (individual competition only)
- Prose Interpretation (individual competition only)
- Journalism (an award is given to the top overall school in journalism events; the award does not qualify students for advancement)
- Editorial Writing (individual competition only)
- Feature Writing (individual competition only)
- Headline Writing (individual competition only)
- News Writing (individual competition only)
- One-Act Play (team competition plus individual awards that do not lead to advancement)