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2025 Collegiate Wind Competition

Helping college students prepare for jobs in the wind and renewable energy workforce through real-world experiences.

This challenge is closed

stage:
Submission Deadline
prize:
$280,000

This challenge is closed

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Summary
Timeline
Updates7
Forum48
Teams775
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Summary

Guidelines

A team must comprise undergraduate students subject to the following guidelines:

  • Students may come from a mixture of 4-year colleges or universities in the United States and 2-year institutions, such as community colleges.
  • Students from international institutions are welcome to participate on a team but must partner and apply with a team of students from a domestic U.S. institution as the lead. International participants will not be eligible to receive cash prizes directly from DOE.
  • Phase 1 teams are not required to have a faculty advisor by the Phase 1 submission deadline; however, teams will need to engage a faculty advisor from a college or university in the United States to be eligible to compete in Phase 2.

Teams should strive to include a diverse range of academic disciplines, including but not limited to:

  • Engineering
  • Business
  • Marketing
  • Communications
  • Environmental and Public Policy
  • Social Sciences

Teams should also strive to include students from groups historically underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

 

Explore the CWC 2025 Phase 1 Rules and Requirements to learn more.

Contact us directly at Collegiate.Wind@nrel.gov with any additional questions. 

View legal agreement


Overview

The 2025 Collegiate Wind Competition

NOTE: The CWC 2025 competition cycle runs from March 2024 to May 2025. The CWC 2025 application period closed June 13, 2024. Keep an eye out for the CWC 2025 qualifying teams announcement!

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Wind Energy Technologies Office launched the Collegiate Wind Competition (CWC) in 2014. The CWC helps multidisciplinary teams of undergraduate students prepare for jobs in wind and renewable energy through the following activities: 

  • The Turbine Prototype Contest & Turbine Testing Contest, in which teams design, build, and present a unique, wind-driven power system based on market research and test the wind turbine in an on-site wind tunnel. 
  • The Project Development Contest, in which teams research wind resource data, transmission infrastructure, and environmental factors to create a site plan and financial analysis for a hypothetical wind farm. 
  • The Connection Creation Contest, in which teams conduct outreach with the wind energy industry, their local communities, and local media outlets to raise wind energy awareness and promote their accomplishments. 

Join the CWC mailing list to receive updates on this competition. Visit the CWC news page for updates, alumni success stories, and other CWC news. 

Timeline
Updates7

Challenge Updates

Images in Deliverables

Dec. 16, 2024, 8:24 a.m. PST by Jason Roadman

There has been considerable confusion about what counts towards the page count and what doesn’t for the Phase 2 and Phase 3 submissions.  Confusion arises, in part, because the Phase 2 deliverables for Project Development and Design are referred to in parts of the rules as “reports” and other places as “submissions” while there exists content for both definitions in the rules.

 

Relevant portions of the rules that apply include the first two sub-bullets on page 54 of the rules document, one referring to “Phase 2 submissions” and the other referring to “turbine design and project development reports.”  Due to the wording of the rules, both of these statements could be thought to apply for Project Development and Design.  As such, the judges will honor both statements FOR THOSE RELEVANT CONTESTS AND MILESTONES.  Keep in mind, there is also relevant text in the appropriate portions of Section 3 for each contest.  This situation will be clarified and simplified for CWC 26.

 

For the Project Development Phase 2 deliverable, images can go in the text OR at the end.  If they go in the text, they will count against the page count.  If they go at the end, they won't.  The rules don’t  specify an image limit, so judges will accept all the images students provide.   Given the confusion, and so as not to disadvantage teams that had planned for only included against the page count, the judges will be made aware both approaches are acceptable.  For the Phase 3 deliverable, only the second sub-bullet applies and images must be included in the text and count against the page limit.

 

For the Turbine Design Phase 2 deliverable, images can go in the text OR at the end.  If they go in the text, they will count against the page count.  If they go at the end, they won't.  The rules don’t  specify an image limit, so judges will accept all the images students provide. Given the confusion, and so as not to disadvantage teams that had planned for only included against the page count, the judges will be made aware both approaches are acceptable.  For the Phase 3 deliverable, only the second sub-bullet applies and images must be included in the text and count against the page limit.

 

For CCC, the Outreach Strategy Report, only the first sub-bullet of on page 54 applies, which is consistent with the text in 3.4.1.2 stating photos are not included in the page count.  So, as a reminder, "images should be placed at the end and don't count against page count.”  Section 3.4.2.1 applies for the Final Metrics Report for Phase 3.

 

 


Rules Revision

Sept. 30, 2024, 8:52 a.m. PDT by Jason Roadman

The CWC2025 Phase 2 and 3 Rules and Requirements document has been updated.  Please see the table in the front of the document for details on the changes.  At this time, the document dated September 27, 2024 is now current.  It can be found at the same link in the Resources tab that you've been using to access the document to date.  Please don't hesitate to ask questions, should they come up.  Thank you!


CWC Midyear Milestones now due 12/19

Sept. 24, 2024, 1:55 p.m. PDT by Elise DeGeorge

We have pushed the midyear milestone date currently scheduled for 12/12 to 12/19 due to the delay in the Phase 2/3 rules release.  These apply to the following midyear submissions:
•Design progress and prototyping fabrication
•Prototype fabrication and testing video
•Preliminary Project Development report
•Team Story
•Outreach strategy report
 


The CWC 2025 Phase 2 & 3 Rules and Requirements Have Been Released

Sept. 19, 2024, 1:55 p.m. PDT by Jason Roadman

The CWC 25 phase 2 and 3 rules are now live on the resources page at the following link.  Our sincere apologies for the delay in their release.  We look forward to seeing what your teams come up with this year.  Please post any questions in the HeroX forum.

https://www.herox.com/collegiate-wind-competition-2025/resource/2044

 


Engagement Toolkits Now Available

Sept. 16, 2024, 3:26 p.m. PDT by Elise DeGeorge

CWC Phase 1 winners,  

The CWC25 engagement toolkits for use during the 2024/2025 academic year have been published.  You can find them under the Resources tab on HeroX:  https://www.herox.com/collegiate-wind-competition-2025/resources

We have created two different toolkits: one for student teams and one for industry partners.  Student teams, please use your toolkit to complete the outreach plan and execution portion of the Connection Creation Contest and share your team’s story through digital and traditional media. 

Please share the partner engagement toolkit with your industry partners so they can also amplify your success.  

Finally, please encourage your teammates to follow CWC25 on HeroX so they can receive all CWC updates: https://www.herox.com/collegiate-wind-competition-2025

Sincerely,

Your CWC Organizers


Forum48
Teams775
Team 1 Team 1
1 team member
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Jack Walters's team Jack Walters's team
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UMass Lowell Wind Energy Team UMass Lowell Wind Energy Team
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BYU Wind Energy Team BYU Wind Energy Team
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Everett Wind Energy Team (EWET) 2024-2025 Everett Wind Energy Team (EWET) 2024-2025
15 team members
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Wind Turbine Team at Virginia Tech Wind Turbine Team at Virginia Tech
34 team members
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UTD Comet Wind UTD Comet Wind
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Syracuse University: Small Turbine Solutions Syracuse University: Small Turbine Solutions
1 team member
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University of Oklahoma- WINDY University of Oklahoma- WINDY
5 team members
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Wolverine Offshore Wind at University of Michigan Wolverine Offshore Wind at University of Michigan
3 team members
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UNWSP - Windward Eagles UNWSP - Windward Eagles
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Jason Sha's team Jason Sha's team
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Iowa State University Wind Energy Student Org Iowa State University Wind Energy Student Org
14 team members
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Aeropower UPRM Aeropower UPRM
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Rice Wind Energy Rice Wind Energy
10 team members
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Wind Chasers Wind Chasers
2 team members
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UNO CWC Team UNO CWC Team
2 team members
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YSU CWC team YSU CWC team
4 team members
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Abbasali Nooshirvani's team Abbasali Nooshirvani's team
2 team members
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WSU ASME's team WSU ASME's team
10 team members
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Juracan Energy Juracan Energy
6 team members
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Suhas Pol's team Suhas Pol's team
5 team members
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David Corrente's team David Corrente's team
1 team member
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CSUSM Wind Energy team CSUSM Wind Energy team
4 team members
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UNC Charlotte CWC 2025 team UNC Charlotte CWC 2025 team
8 team members
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MIT Wind 24-25 MIT Wind 24-25
3 team members
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Hopkins Student Wind Energy Team Hopkins Student Wind Energy Team
5 team members
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ReNU (Northeastern University) ReNU (Northeastern University)
17 team members
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NAU Windjax NAU Windjax
14 team members
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Varunkumar Thippanna's team Varunkumar Thippanna's team
2 team members
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Columbia University Team Columbia University Team
13 team members
Looking for members
California State University Maritime Academy California State University Maritime Academy
12 team members
Looking for members
RU WIND - Rutgers University CWC Team RU WIND - Rutgers University CWC Team
1 team member
Looking for members
Zain Randhawa's team Zain Randhawa's team
1 team member
Looking for members
UCLA Wind Project UCLA Wind Project
5 team members
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Hokie Wind Tech Hokie Wind Tech
4 team members
Looking for members
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