Judge Qualifications
Criteria for Senior Division Judges: master’s degree or higher or at least five years experience in a science and/or engineering field.
Criteria for Junior Division Judges: bachelor’s degree or higher. In lieu of a degree, judges may have at least three years experience in a science and/or engineering field or four years work experience in a physical or life science field. (Honor Society Undergraduates with at least three years experience in a science and/or engineering field may also volunteer to judge.)
Judges are responsible for reviewing projects as well as providing encouragement and constructive criticism; your opinions are highly valued by these students. We expect over 1200 students participating in 20+ categories.
Judging takes place in two age groups:
- Junior level (middle school students)
- Senior level (high school students)
There also are two project types:
- Individual (completed by a single student)
- Team (completed by a team of two or three students)
Types of Judges
There are three types of judges for the Texas Science and Engineering Fair: Fair Award judges, Blue Team Award judges, and Special Award judges.
Fair Award Judges
Fair Award judges are assigned to a specific number of projects based on experience and qualifications in their field of expertise and will select first choice, second choice, etc. from one of the fair’s categories.
Blue Team Award Judges
Blue Team Award judges will select Grand Prize and Best of Show awards from among the winners of the individual fair categories. Blue Team judging will begin once all Fair Award judging is complete and results have been tabulated. It is possible to serve as a Fair Award Judge and a Blue Team Award Judge.
Special Award Judges
Each year, professional and educational organizations, representing a wide variety of disciplines, may choose to recognize participants with special awards. Judges review specific projects in relation to their organization’s scholarship or award. These organizations recruit their own judges and establish their own criteria.
