Judging Criteria

Judges will review the proposal in four categories. All four categories are weighted equally and scored to the tenth as a value out of 9. An entry's final score will be an average of the scores given by several judges.

1. Significance

The contestant's proposal either aims to solve a small inconvenience that affects a large population or a problem with a large impact that affects a small population. Literature which supports the significance of the problem is cited.

2. Feasibility

The contestant's interpretation of all pre-existing technology, methods, and concepts she describes in the proposal are correct. If the contestant can take all the steps, the study will succeed.

3. Innovation

How novel and creative is the proposal idea? Is it different from pre-existing concepts?

4. Approach

The funding, time, and resources the proposal asks for are justified by the breadth of the potential impact. In other words, the proposal uses the most avant-garde, efficient, and effective methods available to accomplish the goal. (Because this is a high school level competition, students are not required to include a budget in their proposal.)

To promote transparency, after judging, all participants will be able to see their rubrics and receive direct feedback from their judges.