The Impact of FIRST
FIRST has impacted hundreds of thousands of students across the world. Recently, Brandeis University conducted a study of FIRST Robotics Competition participants and compared the results to non-FIRST students with similar backgrounds. The study found some interesting things:
- FIRST students are three times more likely to major in engineering
- FIRST students are 10 times more likely to have an internship, apprenticeship, or co-op in their freshman year
- FIRST students significantly more likely to pursue a post-graduate degree
- FIRST students are almost four times as likely to pursue a career in engineering
- FIRST students are twice as likely to volunteer in their communities
2010 FIRST Robotics Competition Impact
- 1,809 teams
- 45,225 high school students
- Teams in 12 countries: United States (all 50 states), Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Chile, Germany, Australia, Israel, Netherlands, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, and Turkey
The projected overall reach for all FIRST programs for the 2009-2010 season is:
- 214,000 students
- 19,334 teams
- 17,834 robots
- 57,576 mentors and other adult supporters
- 34,000 event volunteers
- Over 50 countries