In addition to competing in the technical categories of acceleration, handling and endurance, the teams also draw up and present their own design, business plans and cost calculations. These are then judged by experts from the automotive industry. The first Formula Student took place in 1981, when the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) founded the "Formula SAE" in the USA. This was soon followed by races in England, Italy, Japan, Brazil and Germany.

Hosted by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) of China, 2010 was the year when the Formula Student competition was held in China for the very first time.