Alex Berg, the 2021 Minnesota Science Bowl scoring administrator, has experienced almost every angle of Science Bowl - from student, to volunteer, to his current vital role in the competition. 

As a student at Chanhassen High School in the southwest metro, Alex was an enthusiastic Science Bowl participant. In high school, the event provided an outlet for Alex’s burgeoning interests, as he notes Science Bowl “helped make me that much more excited about science.” Alex was curious about many fields of science technology, engineering and math (STEM) in high school, and enjoyed how Science Bowl exposed him to a wide breadth of knowledge, commenting “a lot of questions hit on things not in class.”

Alex also enjoyed how Science Bowl allowed him to engage with STEM professionals, and “loved talking to volunteers about what they did professionally.” As a high school student considering a future STEM career, these interactions enabled him to learn about potential occupations directly from scientists.

As a college student studying computer science and math at the UMN-Twin Cities, Alex continued his participation in Science Bowl by serving as a volunteer timekeeper. In spring of 2020, Alex graduated from the UMN-Twin Cities with majors in computer science and math. He recently transitioned a summer internship with IDeaS, a Minneapolis-based software company into a position as an Associate Software Developer. 

Reprising his 2020 role, Alex will take on the scoring administrator position at the 2021 Science Bowl, a job tasked with compiling scores from each round to determine the top schools. This year’s virtual Science Bowl will differ in many ways from past years’ competitions. However, Alex believes Science Bowl will be an important venue for social-distancing students to engage with STEM and their peers, stating “even though everyone will be separated further physically, I think, somewhat ironically, that the game will actually be more collaborative this year because of how the team members can communicate with each other during both the toss-ups and bonus questions. It will still be an exciting time for everyone even though we can't see each other in person this year.”