Imagine Cup 2009 > Skills Challenges

Welcome competitors of the Imagine Cup's IT Challenge!

This invitational challenges you to demonstrate proficiency in the science of networks, databases, and servers. It is an individual competition based on themed quizzes.

What do you have to do?

1. - Download the competitor's guide here!
2. Get all the learning resources you need
3. Take one of the round 1 quizzes
   • Application Quiz 12/9/2008
   • Application Quiz 12/20/2008
   • Management Quiz 1/14/2009
   • Management Quiz 1/31/2009

Prizes

• Round 1 Prizes. All Individuals who are invited to advance to Round 2, will receive a 6-month subscription to the E-Reference IT Professional Library (ARV, $75 USD). The 6-month subscription must be used February - July 2009.

• Round 2 Prizes. All Individuals who are invited to advance to Round 2, and who successfully complete and submit each of the three (3) Round 2 events (Multiple Choice Quiz, Case Study Quiz, Short Case Study) will receive a Microsoft lapel pin and Certificate of Completion, (ARV, $10 USD)

• Ten (10) Finalist Prizes. All Finalists will receive a trip to Cairo, Egypt to compete in the Worldwide Imagine Cup 2009 Finals. Trip includes round trip air travel, hotel accommodations and select meals.

• First Place. A prize package that consists of the following:

  • $8,000 USD
  • A Microsoft IT Academy and Microsoft Learning Prize Package (ARV, $1,000 USD) that consists of the following:
    • Microsoft Press books
    • A Microsoft Certification training voucher
    • A Microsoft Certification exam voucher

• Second Place. $4,000 USD

• Third Place. $3,000 USD

All prizes will be awarded provided a qualified number of entries are received.

Competition Timeline

General Guidelines

Round 1

You need to take and pass ONE of the Round 1 quizzes. There are only four themed first round quizzes left to choose from:

A score of 15 out of 30 advances you automatically to the 2nd round. Also, those who pass a quiz in each of the 4 months will receive a special certificate of accomplishment - add to your resume!

Troubleshooting Prior to Quiz* Date:

Once you have fully registered and signed up for the IT Challenge, a message letting you know about the date/time of the next quiz will be displayed in the "Entry Panel" in the top left corner of this IT Challenge page. You are all set and ready for the quiz!

1. If instead it says "Sign Up for the Competition", you will be re-directed to the Profile page to sign up for the IT Challenge competition.
2. If it says "Provide Personal Information", you must fill in all required fields on Profile page and click Update to compete.
3. If it says "Confirm Your Account", a registration confirmation e-mail will be sent to you. Once you receive it, click on that link to confirm your account.
4. If it says "Sign Up for LiveID", connect to Windows LiveID Web site, where you can create a new LiveID or log in with an existing one. After, you will be returned to the Imagine Cup site and asked to supply your Imagine Cup credentials to link these two accounts.

* Each quiz is 60 minutes long and is available ONLY for 60 minutes beginning at the start time.

Round 2

If you are invited to advance to compete in Round 2, you will compete against other Round 2 participants by completing each of the separate events described below:

• Multiple Choice Quiz, where you will answer questions related to all of the 2009 Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals technology themes (e.g., Software Design, Embedded Design, etc.).

• Case Study Quiz, where you will review short case studies and answer questions related to the case studies.

• Short Case Study, where will you write a short proposal (1000 words maximum) based on one (1) of four (4) technology themes that we specify.

To submit your entry for Round 2, navigate to http://www.imaginecup.com and submit the required entry materials as instructed before the close of the Round 2 deadline.

Round 3 - Worldwide Finals

Your participation in the Round 3 Challenge will be subject to the Round 3 Challenge Details that we will establish and provide to you on-site at the Worldwide Finals, but the general structure of the Round 3 Challenge will be as follows:

• Using the hardware and Microsoft software that we provide, you will have 24 contiguous hours to create an IT Infrastructure Solution meets the requirements of the case study that we provide to you upon your arrival to the Worldwide Finals event.

• In adding to creating an IT infrastructure Solution, we will ask you to complete a series of twenty (20) tasks designed to demonstrate that your IT Infrastructure Solution is functional and technically sound. The twenty (20) tasks are divided into two (2) categories as follows:

  • Five (5) Milestone Tasks - Throughout the 24 contiguous hour period, you will be required to complete five (5) separate Milestone Tasks. You will be required to complete each Milestone Task within one (1) hour of assignment. With the exception of Milestone Task 1, we will assign the Milestone Tasks to all Round 3 participants at the same time.
  • Fifteen (15) Challenge Demonstration Tasks - After the 24 contiguous hour period, you will be required to complete fifteen (15) separate Challenge Demonstration Tasks. We will assign two (2) Challenge Demonstration Tasks that will require that you to create and present to the judges an architectural diagram of your IT Infrastructure Solution. The remaining thirteen (13) Challenge Tasks that we assign to you will require you to demonstrate the functionality of your IT Infrastructure Solution.

We will provide instructions for how to submit your required entry materials for Round 3

Winner Determination

Round 1 - Qualifying

At the conclusion of the Round 1 Entry Period, every eligible entrant that achieves a valid score of 50% or better on any single Round 1 quiz, as determined by us, will advance to compete in Round 2 of the Competition.

Round 2 - Semi-Finals

At the conclusion of the Round 2 Entry Period, all eligible entries received will be reviewed by a panel (or panels) of qualified judges based on the judging criteria set forth below. The criteria will be used to determine the top individual from the top ten countries/regions (each, a "Finalist") that will advance to compete in the Worldwide Finals.

Round 3 - Worldwide Finals

At the conclusion of the Round 3 Entry Period, all eligible entries received will be reviewed by a panel (or panels) of qualified judges based on the judging criteria set forth below to determine the First, Second and Third Place Individuals. NOTE: To determine your final score for each Challenge Task, we will use an average of the scores submitted by each judge.

Judging Criteria

Round 1

A score of 15 out of 30 advances you automatically to the 2nd round.

Round 2

• 33% Multiple-Choice Quiz Score, based on number of correct answers
• 33% Case Study Quiz Scores, based on number of correct answers
• 34% Case Study Proposal, based on the following criteria:
  • 30% Satisfaction of Proposal Requirements: Does your proposal address all technical and customer issues as outlined in the case study? Have you demonstrated that you thoroughly understood and addressed the customer needs?
  • 30% Technical Feasibility and Accuracy: Does your proposal make correct use of appropriate technology? Have you applied the correct technology to address the customer needs? Is what you are proposing technically possible. Have you made the most cost effective decisions based on the customer needs?
  • 30% Justification for Recommendations: Are you able to demonstrate that your solution is the best response for the customer needs? Have you addressed each portion of the customer requirements?
  • 10% Quality: Is the case study well written and comprised of all of the correct elements?

Round 3

• 25% Completion of the five (5) Challenge Milestone Tasks (5 points each Milestone Task)
• 75% Completion of the fifteen (15) Challenge Demonstration Tasks (5 points each Challenge Demonstration Task)