New Jersey Chapter Student Award Submission Process

Contest Rules

  • The work must be by a student or students currently enrolled in an academic institution.  Faculty advisors and industry employees may be coauthors, but not the lead author.
  • The lead author must either be a resident of New Jersey or enrolled in a New Jersey college or university.
  • The work must relate to Operations Research, either theory or application.
  • The work must represent new results (theoretical or applied in nature) that have not been previously published.  If the work has been submitted for publication, but will not appear in print prior to the contest, that is acceptable.
  • The abstract must contain the lead author’s name, address, phone and e-mail address, and the name of the institution where the student is enrolled.  It must also contain the names of all coauthors.
  • If selected as a finalist, the presentation at the New Jersey Chapter meeting must be given by a student.  If a student author is not available to give the presentation at the New Jersey Chapter of INFORMS meeting, then that paper is disqualified and the Selection Panel reserves the right to select an alternate finalist.
  • If the first place winner (either the lead author or a student coauthor) is unable to attend the National INFORMS meeting, then the New Jersey Chapter of INFORMS retains the right to select one of the Honorable Mention winners to receive the cash award.  The cash award can only be used to cover expenses associated with attending the National INFORMS meeting (registration, transportation, hotel, meals).

Contest Instructions

  • Submit an extended abstract, 3 page maximum, of your work by August 8, 2014.
  • A panel of judges will review the abstracts and select up to 5 finalists.
  • The finalists will be notified by August 29, 2014.
  • The finalists will be expected to present their work at a New Jersey Chapter meeting to be held in September (exact date to be determined.)  The presentations will be at a special meeting of the Chapter and will be held at Rutgers University in Piscataway.
  • A panel of judges will watch the presentations and announce a winner that night.  The winner will be chosen based on:
    • Quality and originality of the work;
    • Relevance to OR and the use of OR methods;
    • Applicability of the research to real-world problems;
    • Clear description in the abstract of the contribution of the work;
    • Clear description of the work during the presentation; and,
    • Quality of the presentation, including appropriate length.

NOTE:  The contest will be determined by the abstract and by the presentation.  It is not necessary to submit a full paper.

How to enter

Send an extended abstract (maximum of 3 pages), including the name and contact information for the lead author and the names of all coauthors to the Contest Submission Contact. Electronic submissions are preferred.

The New Jersey Chapter reserves the right to suspend the contest if no suitable abstracts are received.