Judging Criteria

Learn what our panel of judges will be looking for as they review your application.

Criteria

Through multiple rounds of review, MIT Solve, Samsung volunteer employees, community reviewers, and expert judges will evaluate projects based on the following criteria.

Alignment: The project uses science, technology, engineering, and/or math (STEM) to address a social or environmental issue affecting the team’s school or local community.
Potential for Impact: The planned project has the potential to create meaningful positive impact within the team’s school or local community.
Feasibility: The team has a realistic, practical plan for implementing the project within their school or local community.
Human-Centered Design: The project is designed with and for the people or communities it aims to serve, and the team demonstrates that they have or will develop the necessary experience and knowledge of those communities to develop a successful solution.
Innovative Approach: The project includes a new technology, a new application of technology, or a new process for tackling the identified issue or challenge.

Criteria Scoring Details

How might your application be scored higher or lower? Learn more below.

: A project would score lower on Alignment if STEM plays a limited or unclear role in the project, or if it is not clearly applied to address a social or environmental issue affecting the team’s school or local community.
A project would score higher on Alignment if STEM is central to the project and the team clearly demonstrates how it is applied to address a social or environmental issue affecting their school or local community.
: A project would score lower on Potential for Impact if it is unclear how the project could create meaningful positive change within the team’s school or local community, or if there is existing evidence that it will not work.
A project would score higher on Potential for Impact if the team clearly demonstrates how the project could create meaningful positive change within their school or local community.
: A project would score lower on Feasibility if the team does not present a clear or realistic plan for implementing the project within their school or local community, or if significant barriers to implementation have not been considered.
A project would score higher on Feasibility if the team presents a clear, realistic plan for implementation and demonstrates that they have considered the resources, timeline, skills, partnerships, and other factors needed to carry it out successfully.
: A project would score lower on Human-Centered Design if the team demonstrates limited understanding of the people or communities they aim to serve, or does not clearly explain how they have or will involve those communities in developing the project.
A project would score higher on Human-Centered Design if the team demonstrates a strong understanding of the people or communities they aim to serve and clearly explains how their needs, experiences, perspectives, and feedback have or will inform the project.
: A project would score lower on Innovative Approach if the proposed technology or approach is not meaningfully different from existing approaches, or if the team does not clearly explain what is new or distinctive about their project.
A project should score higher on Innovative Approach if the team clearly demonstrates a new technology, a thoughtful new application of existing technology, or a new process for addressing the identified issue.