How do I sign up to be a judge?

All volunteer judges must register for the conference here. When you register, there will be a question that asks if you will be a judge, select yes. Another prompt will appear and it will ask you to choose the times that you are available to serve as a judge. You may choose as many options as you would like.

What will I be judging?

Undergraduate student presenters are given the option to present their research as a poster or podium presentation. Undergraduate students are from community colleges and 4-year institutions.

• Podium Presentations:

During the podium presentation sessions, students are given 15 minutes to present their research and take questions from the audience. Students will be asked to present for 7-10 minutes and then answer questions from the audience and judges for the remainder of their time. Podium presentation sessions are 1-hour long, and you will judge the four presenters in the session.

• Poster Presentations:

During the poster sessions, students will present their research with a poster visual aid. Judges will be assigned to poster presentations with content that pertains to or is closely related to their major and expertise. Judges will be assigned 4-5 posters to judge per session.

When will I be judging?

The conference is on October 23, 2026.

Based on what works best with your schedule, you can choose to judge a single session, multiple sessions, or all sessions. There are four sessions for you to choose from below, and you will be asked to select your choices when you register.

The two podium presentation sessions are in the morning:

                Podium Presentation Session 1:  9:30-10:30 AM

                Podium Presentation Session 2:  10:45-11:45 AM

The two poster sessions are in the afternoon:

                Poster Session 1:  1:30-2:30 PM

                Poster Session 2:  2:30-3:45 PM

When do I need to be there?

Podium Presentation Judges

Judges for Podium Presentation sessions need to arrive at least 30 minutes before their judging session to check in at the registration table (located outside the West Ballroom, Corbett Center Student Union). After checking in at the registration table, judges for these sessions must make their way to the Doña Ana Room (Room 312) on the 3^rd floor of the Corbett Center Student Union to receive instructions from the head judge, Cyrena Ridgeway (cyrena@nmsu.edu).

Poster Presentation Judges

Judges for Poster Presentation sessions will need to arrive at 11:45 AM to check in at the registration table (located outside the West Ballroom, Corbett Center Student Union) and be the first in line for lunch at 12:00 PM. You will go through the buffet line and exit the West Ballroom. You will take your lunch and report to the Doña Ana Room (Room 312) to receive instructions from the head judge, Cyrena Ridgeway (cyrena@nmsu.edu). You will not have lunch in the West Ballroom.

How will I judge?

We will be updating this website with the judging rubrics for the podium and poster sessions soon for you to familiarize yourself with them. The judging score submission will take place online. At the conference, you will visit our registration table (outside the West Ballroom) where you will sign in and pick up your name tag and goodie bag. On the back of your name tag, there will be a QR code that you will scan with your phone or tablet. The QR code will take you to the online judging form for either the podium presentations or the poster presentations, depending on which sessions you select when you register.