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​​​​​​​​​​​Best Student Research Paper Competition (BSRPC)

Congrats to our 2024 Winners!

View the Winners
​​

Overview​

The competition aims to enhance students' communication skills by requiring them to present their research both live and through a 5-8 minute video. All semi-finalist videos will be showcased on the Cereals & Grains website. Finalists will deliver a 10-minute live presentation at the conference, followed by a Q&A session. Judges will assess the oral presentation and the Q&A segment to determine final scores and award placements. This challenge offers students an early opportunity to connect with the Cereals & Grains community.

The abstract and paper's focus area should align with the theme of the 2024 Cereal and Grain conference: "Chemistry, Quality, and Cereal and Grains Technology."

​Please note these details are for the 2024 Competition. Information on the next opportunity is coming soon.


2024 Schedule & Key D​ates

  • Call for Judges (Email and inGRAINed): The student association will compose a letter to solicit judges, which will also be used in the inGRAINed publication—deadline: April 30th.
  • June 6: Abstract Deadline: Students submit abstracts (maximum of 400 words).
  • July/August: First-round judges will review and rank the abstracts.
  • Mid-August: Participants will be notified if they will advance to the Video Competition Semi-Finals.
  • September 4: Deadline for Semi-Finalists to submit their video research paper presentations.
  • September 25: Judges will review and rank video submissions.
  • September 26: Finalists will be notified via email with ample time to prepare for their in-person presentations at the conference.
  • Winners will be determined after the in-person oral presentations and recognized during the conference in Schaumburg, Illinois, October 16-17, 2024.


Criteria

For the BSRPC jury to fairly evaluate each paper, these criteria will be used by all judges to allow for a fair and uniform evaluation of all submissions. The "Abstract Initial Criteria" will be used to evaluate​ the research paper abstract and select the finalists. Then, the "Best Paper Presentation Final Criteria" will be used to evaluate the video research presentations.  The chair of the Cereals & Grains Association Best Student Research Paper Competition jury will tally the results of the competition and winners will be contacted via email and announced at the Cereals & Grains annual meeting.


  • ​
    Abstract Initial Criteria

    Research Relevance or Impact (20 Points)

    • Relevance: Has a scientific issue or question been identified within cereal science that is relevant to the current needs of industry, academia, or society? (10 Points)
    • Background/Significance: Has the scientific question's background been appropriately discussed and has the scientific question been clearly stated? (10 Points)

    Research Technical Quality (40 Points)

    • Hypothesis/Specific Objectives: Has a clear hypothesis that was used to study the identified issue or question been provided, and have specific objectives that were used to test the hypothesis been defined? (10 Points)
    • Project Description: Is the work clearly and precisely explained and described? (10 Points)
    • Experimental Methods/Techniques: Are the materials and methods appropriate and complete? (10 Points)
    • Experimental Design/Modeling: Is an appropriate experimental design or modeling approach used and properly applied? (10 Points)

    Research Novelty or Currency (10 Points)

    • Novelty or Currency: Is a new technique or method, new application of an existing technique, or a unique integration of techniques, which is appropriate for the identified issue or question, used in this project? (10 Points)

    Discussion​ of Results & Conclusions (20 Points)

    • Clarity and Completeness: Are the results discussed and presented clearly and concisely in a manner that is easy to follow, and are the implications or significance of the results to the identified research issue or problem clearly identified? (10 Points)
    • Validity of Conclusions: Are the stated conclusions supported by the results or a logical outcome, and do they prove or disprove the validity of the stated hypothesis? (10 Points)

    Abstract (10 Points)

    • Writing Style and Organization: Is the abstract well organized and written in an appropriate style with good grammar & spelling? (5 Points)
    • Clarity and Contribution to Understanding Project: Is the abstract easy to understand and did it summarize the project in a way that contributed to a complete understanding of the project? (5 Points)

  • Video Criteria

    Content (60 Points)

    • Clarity and Completeness: Are the objectives, methods, results, and conclusions discussed and presented clearly and concisely in a manner that is easy to follow? (30 Points)
    • Creativity: (30 Points)

    Presentation (40 Points)

    • Delivery and Organization: Was the presentation well organized and smoothly delivered with good hand gestures, voice inflection, pacing, and use of graphics? (40 Points)

  • Final Oral Presentation Criteria

    Research Relevance or Impact (20 Points)

    • Relevance: Has a scientific issue or question been identified within cereal science that is relevant to the current needs of industry, academia, or society? (10 Points)
    • Background/Significance: Has the scientific question's background been appropriately discussed and has the scientific question been clearly stated? (10 Points)

    Research Technical Quality (40 Points)

    • Hypothesis/Specific Objectives: Has a clear hypothesis that was used to study the identified issue or question been provided, and have specific objectives that were used to test the hypothesis been defined? (10 Points)
    • Project Description: Is the work clearly and precisely explained and described? (10 Points)
    • Experimental Methods/Techniques: Are the materials and methods appropriate and complete? (10 Points)
    • Experimental Design/Modeling: Is an appropriate experimental design or modeling approach used and properly applied? (10 Points)

    Research Novelty or Currency (10 Points)

    • Novelty or Currency: Is a new technique or method, new application of an existing technique, or a unique integration of techniques, which is appropriate for the identified issue or question, used in this project? (10 Points)

    Discussion​ of Results & Conclusions (20 Points)

    • Clarity and Completeness: Are the results discussed and presented clearly and concisely in a manner that is easy to follow, and are the implications or significance of the results to the identified research issue or problem clearly identified? (10 Points)
    • Validity of Conclusions: Are the stated conclusions supported by the results or a logical outcome, and do they prove or disprove the validity of the stated hypothesis? (10 Points)


    Abstract Submission is Due June 6th! Submit Yours Now!​

    		 Submit Today!​


    Eligibility

    • Must be a full-time student at the time of submission date.
    • The student presenting the paper must be an author of the video presentation, must have made a major contribution to the research, must present it, and must take primary responsibility for its content.
    • Finalists will need to be Cereals & Grains Association Student members. All applicants are encouraged to join Cereals & Grains for free!

    Awards*

    • First Place: $1,500 cash award, the video will be posted on the Cereals & Grains website for viewing.
    • Second Place: $1,000 cash award, the video will be posted on the Cereals & Grains website for viewing.
    • Third Place: $500 cash award, the video will be posted on the Cereals & Grains website for viewing

    *All awards are mailed to winners after the conference