Volunteer FAQ

The eight-day Festival and year-round activities embrace the communities of science, engineering and technology with a shared goal of inspiring the next generation of innovators and researchers. This is accomplished by providing opportunities for students from all backgrounds to participate in hands-on activities, meet real scientists and engineers, and learn how recent discoveries and research affect our daily lives. Most of the events are offered at no charge to participants.

The Festival is strategically designed to expand the general public’s understanding of just how relevant and important science and engineering are in our everyday lives, illuminate why the U.S. must maintain its leadership role in science and technology, and motivate today’s students to become tomorrow’s science, engineering and technology leaders.

The Festival is geared toward families and K-12 students.

However, a number of participants of all ages and backgrounds participate in Festival activities.

Scientists, engineers, educators and people who are just plain curious about the exciting world of science and engineering can be found at each of our events!

In 2012, more than 50,000 San Diegans participated in Festival events in the month leading up to the Festival.

More than 27,000 people attended our "grand finale" EXPO DAY at PETCO Park.

The San Diego Festival of Science and Engineering continues to prove year after year that children, families and adults want to be engaged in the wonders of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

Unfortunately, we are unable to provide wi-fi. This is because the demand far outstrips the availability, which has left several of you with activities that are wi-fi dependent that you can't actually do. The good news is that PETCO Park is undergoing some upgrades, and we do expect that wi-fi will be available in the future. For this year, we ask that you provide your own access or re-work your activity so that it is not wi-fi dependent.

Sorry, pets are not allowed at EXPO DAY. Some groups will have animals as part of their activity for the day, and this has already been approved through the application process. Service animals are allowed.

The schedule of Festival Week events is posted at the beginning of February each year.

A list of EXPO DAY exhibitors is also posted at about that time.

Ongoing and year-round resources can be found in the What's Next Resource Guide section of this site as well as in a printed guide distributed during Festival events.

We are so excited about this one! It is our goal to keep the Festival free. Currently, EXPO DAY is a 100% free event for kids and families, and we are working hard to keep it that way.

In addition, most of our Festival Week events are also free -- only a handful of museums and other facilities require a nominal admission fee.

Of course, some of our partner agencies and some of the events listed in the What's Next Resource Guide are required to charge admission to their facilities. However, we work with those groups to see if there is any possible way to provide free access for children and families during the Festival.

As you might imagine, keeping an event this large free to the public is a significant undertaking! To that end, we solicit the support of generous sponsors. Please let them know you appreciate their commitment to San Diego kids, students and families!

We're glad you're interested! A volunteer interest form is made available in December of each year. You will be able to specify your availability and your areas of interest.

It's our goal to place volunteers in the position that is the "best fit" -- however, we often need help in areas you may not have expressed an interest in.

If that's your situation, we first ask you to consider the possibility that you might enjoy an opportunity to try something new -- who knows? You may enjoy your new assignment more than what you were expecting!

If you still have a problem with your assignment, please try to remember that we coordinate more than 250 volunteer requests each year, and that there are a number of positions that are not the most "glamorous" -- but are absolutely mission critical to the Festival's success! Every volunteer position is absolutely essential to our operation, and even the most semeingly mundane tasks are VERY valuable to us!

Finally, if you absolutely cannot serve in the position you were assigned to, please contact our volunteer coordinator to discuss your concerns with them. We cannot promise a reassignment, but we would be happy to hear from you.