BTYSTE was set up in 1965 to encourage all second level students (12-19 years) across Ireland to take part and enter an enquiry based project to the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition and thus foster their interest in STEM (Science Technology, Engineering and Maths). That is still the ethos of the exhibition over 5 decades later. BTYSTE remains the longest running STEM initiative in Europe and the third longest in the world. The event which normally takes each January attracts some 60,000 visitors each year making it the biggest educational event in the Irish schools calendar.