High school students have demonstrated their knowledge of the brain and passion for science at the 2026 WA Brain Bee Challenge finals.

The annual competition, held at The University of Western Australia on 19 June, aims to educate high school students about brain structure and functions, research and potential careers.

Coordinated by Professor Jennifer Rodger, Dr Belinda Kaskow and Dr Aleksandra Miljevic from the Perron Institute and UWA and Emeritus Professor Charles Watson AM from Curtin University and UWA, together with a dedicated team of volunteers, this year’s event gave more than 50 Year 10 students from 14 schools the opportunity to explore neuroscience beyond the classroom.

Students took part in hands-on activities including visits to the anatomy laboratory, demonstrations of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), and a nerve experiment in the electrophysiology lab.

Melville Senior High School won the school team competition, while Abby Sun from Perth Modern School was named WA Brain Bee champion. Fellow Perth Modern students Maheen Mahmood and Freeman Wei were runners-up.  

Abby will now represent Western Australia as a finalist at the National Brain Bee later this year.

Congratulations to all students who participated, well done to the winners, and thank you to the organisers and volunteers who made the event possible.

Perron Institute was a proud sponsor of the WA Brain Bee. The National Brain Bee Challenge is funded by the Australasian Neuroscience Society.

Image above: (L-R) Dr Aleksandra Miljevic, Professor Charles Watson AM, Freeman Wei, Abby Sun, Maheen Mahmood, Professor Jenny Rodger, Dr Belinda Kaskow.