The Judge Advisor (JA) runs the entire judging side of a tournament. It's a vetted role: the credential itself comes from VEX / Global Robotics — gainingSTEAM doesn't approve Judge Advisors, we validate your certificate to add the role to your account. Request the role and we'll verify it from there. It carries real responsibility: the integrity of the awards rests on the JA's process.
The Judge Advisor role and the judging process are defined by VEX and Global Robotics; gainingSTEAM helps Event Partners find and support the people who take it on.
What the JA does on event day
- Sorts the engineering notebooks into three working levels — Emerging, Proficient, and Expert — before interviews begin. (At remote-notebooks events, this happens ahead of time so online judges can score the Expert and Proficient notebooks before the tournament starts.)
- Pairs the judges and assigns each pair its teams, handling any conflicts — including judges who've self-reported a child on a team.
- Orchestrates the day: initial interviews → group discussion → second-interview selections → and, once interviews and qualification matches are complete, award deliberations.
- Guards the process: deliberations stay confidential, students are never consulted about results, and all judging materials are destroyed at the end of the day.
Working with the Event Partner
The JA is the Event Partner's counterpart for everything judging: staffing the judge shifts, the notebook deadline, interview space, and the awards timeline. If you're an EP reading this side of the fence, see the Event Partner guides.
Growing into it
Most Judge Advisors judged for a season or two first — start with Being a judge. When you're ready, earn the official certification and request the role — we'll validate your certificate and add it to your account.