The Regeneron Science Talent Search (RSTS) is one of the oldest and most renowned science competitions in the USA. The RSTS allows high school seniors to submit their own original research projects to compete for awards on the national level. The Science Talent Search has been a program of the Society for Science since 1942, and Regeneron has been funding the awards since 2017. According to the Society for Science, the competition is focused on “identifying, inspiring and engaging the nation’s most promising young scientists who are generating innovative solutions to solve significant global challenges through rigorous research and discoveries”. RSTS alumni have received millions of dollars in scholarships and gone on to be awarded Nobel Prizes, Fields Medals, MacArthur Fellowships, and numerous awards in their respective fields.
This year, 2,600 students applied from 826 high schools across 46 states, Washington D.C., the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and 16 other countries, including BCHS’s own Victor Han from the class of 2026.
On January 7th, 2026, Victor was named one of the Top 300 Scholars. This award earned him $2,000, a chance to be selected as a finalist, and a $2,000 grant for the BCHS science department. Of the 300 Top Scholars, 30 are selected as finalists in addition to the top 10, all receiving additional prizes related to their level of achievement.
Although his outstanding research project was an integral part of his success in the RSTS, that is only part of what made Victor a Top Scholar. Awards are based on a combination of research, leadership skills, community involvement, academics, creativity, and promise as STEM leaders. All of this is determined from their research projects, essays, and recommendations.
Early in his time at BC, Victor noticed his interest in machine learning and AI. He began experimenting on his own with the help of Mr. Osterberg, who teaches AP CS at BCHS. He realized that his growing skillset could be applied to an issue that needed a better solution. When Victor was in elementary school, his grandmother was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He decided to create a project focused on using AI tools to address the challenge of diagnosing Parkinson’s.
“I wanted to fill a gap in the market so people could have a way to self-diagnose,” explained Victor in an interview. Often, patients have to get on a long waitlist to see a neurology specialist and take a series of tests that measure speech, tremors, and balance. To solve this problem, Victor created a website called parkinaid.com, which uses AI and machine learning to assess patients’ risk of Parkinson’s Disease based on videos of them doing specific tasks. This process can take less than 10 minutes to complete, compared to scheduling an initial test, which can take up to two months. This can also help patients monitor their symptoms day to day, giving their doctors more data to work with.
This is not the first time Victor has won awards in a science competition. In the spring of 2024, he won 1st place in Engineering & Physics and was an ISEF Finalist at the Badger State Science and Engineering Fair (read more here). In addition to his submission to the Regeneron Science Talent Search, Victor submitted his project to the International Science and Engineering Fair, another program hosted by the Society for Science.
Victor explained that his biggest challenge with this project was gathering enough data. “In machine learning, there is a lot of data that is needed to train a model. When working with a disease, there isn’t a lot of data available, especially because of medical privacy laws”. By scanning the internet for data, working with several patients who had already been diagnosed, and allowing the model to synthesize new data from the information it already had, Victor was able to overcome these challenges and launch his project to the public.
When he is not making breakthrough research, Victor plays pool, runs, and plays the violin. He is also on the First Tech Challenge team 16460 Gearheads, which won the Inspire award at state and was one of 3 teams representing Wisconsin at Worlds in the 2024-25 season. Victor has been accepted into the University of Pennsylvania, where he plans to continue his interest in technology by participating in the Management & Technology program.
Congratulations, Victor!
