Skills championships are held on two levels, high school and college/post secondary. There is a group of contests that are state only and another that are state and national.

State only contests include several categories such as: Action Skills; Leadership; Skilled and Technical Sciences; and, Occupationally Related . The Action Skills contests are: Basic Woodworking Skills, Case Studies, Fast Food Services, Full Service Auto, Interview Competencies, Restaurant Services and Safety Presentation. The Leadership Contests include: Essay, Personal Narrative, Scrapbook, Suitcase and SkillsUSA Courtesy Corps. The Skilled and Technical Sciences contests include: Adobe Photoshop Design, Architectural Drafting Board, Aviation Skills, Center Piece Craft, Center Piece Floral, Commercial Sewing, Creative Photography Display Color, Creative Photography Black & White, Creative Photography Digital, Interior Room Design, Machine Drafting Board, Microsoft Office XP; and, Preschool Interactive Bulletin Board. The Occupationally Related Contests include Technical Spelling.

State and National Contests include the categories of: Action Skills, Leadership, Skilled and Technical Sciences, Health Occupations, and Occupationally Related plus Demonstration Contests. For a description of these State and National Contests go to the National Skills website or purchase the latest edition of the National SkillsUSA Championships Technical Standards.

The State only and National contests that are offered by Illinois are found on the 7.0 Form which is listed on the Illinois website.