The Student Paper Contest (SPC) is an IEEE Cyprus Section activity held for the first time as a pilot scheme. It will follow the example given by the IEEE Region 8, which managed to create a long-lasting and successful competition.
For its success, it relies heavily on the input from the Student Branch Officers, especially the Student Branch Counselor and the Student Branch Chair, and on academic members, especially those who are active volunteers of the IEEE Cyprus Section and its Child Organizational Units.
SPC is an excellent occasion for personal leadership and involvement of student members in a prospective IEEE scientific/technical activity and increasing the student branch’s visibility.
It also makes the possible further promotion of IEEE among students.
General
Once every year, each IEEE Cyprus Section Student Branch (SB) may hold and organize a local Student Paper Contest under its responsibility. The organization of a local SPC generally means that the contest should be announced publicly in advance and that all submitted papers are to be locally reviewed by qualified specialists. Additionally, all Cyprus IEEE Conferences, having student papers sessions included in their programs, could and should also be used to get additional proposals for SPC. As long as an SB formally supports and accepts any student papers contest activity, it aligns with the existing SPC rules. Student Branch Counselors should be fully involved in all local SPC activities and all other local IEEE officers (Section Chairs, Chapter Chairs, student activities officers, members of executive committees, …).
Each Student Branch Contest winner(s) may compete for the IEEE Cyprus Section Contest, held within the IEEE Cyprus Section limits. A Student Branch may submit up to three papers.
At the same time, IEEE section officers can encourage students to submit their work as a paper to the SPC directly in the absence of a local competition at their SB. The submission process is a good exercise for students, especially those who intend to follow a career in research.
Who could participate
IEEE Cyprus Section Paper Contest is for IEEE Cyprus Section student members or graduate student members. Only IEEE Cyprus Section members could be authors of the IEEE Cyprus Section SPC papers. The basic rule is that the submitted paper is the work of the student.
Each student author must be a member of an IEEE Student Branch at the time of the original submission of the paper and a member (student or not) of the IEEE. A doctoral thesis will not be considered valid. Published work is also excluded from the contest.
The character of the paper
Papers should cover technical and engineering aspects of a subject reasonably within or related to the areas the IEEE is concerned about. The work need not be original in engineering or scientific content but should be original in treatment and concise in covering the author’s contribution to the subject.
Deadline and additional information
The deadline to send full papers to IEEE Cyprus Section Student Paper Contest is usually September 1. Send papers by email to spc@ieee.org.cy. Papers submitted after the deadline will not be accepted.
Paper Review Process
The evaluation phase (paper review) will be carried out by two jury members and the SPC Coordinator. The jury members may also use as reviewers other experts in the pertinent subject area. They will grade the written papers received without knowledge of the authors’ identity and their school.
Awards
Due to the nature of the pilot program, there will not be a prize award but a certificate of achievement.
