Call for Judges

The Global Debate and Public Policy Challenge (http://www.gdppc.org/) is seeking postgraduate Public Policy or Political Science students to act as judges for the Challenge. The Global Debate and Public Policy Challenge (the Challenge) is a written and oral policy debating competition conducted over nine months (October 2011 – June 2012) for undergraduate students focusing on a key global policy issue of our day. This opening year, the focus in on the trade-offs made in the wake of 9/11 in security versus human rights or we have titled it:Securing Liberty: Balancing Security and Freedom. The partners in the Challenge are the International Debate Education Association, the European Council on Foreign Relations and the School of Public Policy and International Affairs, Central European University. The Challenge is sponsored by the Open Society Foundations.

Role of judges & commitment required:

The position of judge is remunerated for engagement for three periods of two weeks between November 2011 and April 2012, as well as judging at the closing Global Debate and Public Policy Forum (Public Policy Forum) in June 2012 which will be a six-day event held in the Central European University, Budapest.

The specific time periods for which judges must be available and workload for each stage of the Challenge are detailed in the following table:

Stage of the Challenge	Commitment	Time period	Workload
1	- Orientation workshop - Grading of policy position papers	- October 22, 2011 - November 21-Dec 2, 2011	- One day - Not more than four hours per day
2	- Orientation workshop - Grading of alternate position paper	- January 21, 2012 - February 13-24, 2012	- One day - Not more than four hours per day
3	- Orientation workshop - Grading of policy briefs	- March 17, 2012 - April 17-28, 2012	- One day - Not more than four hours per day
4	- Orientation meeting - Evaluation of finalists & participation in Policy Forum	- June 9 or 11, 2012 - June 12-17, 2012	- Half day - Six days

The primary work consists of grading papers quickly, accurately and to a pre-determined grading scale. An orientation workshop will be conducted for the team of judges before each grading period begins. The judging in the Public Policy Forum will consist of evaluating finalists oral policy presentation and debating skills in a number of events. Compensation for work completed will be calculated once the student registration process is completed.

The role of judge provides the opportunity to:

• Work in a team of judges marking papers and presentations using methods and standards widely applied in academic and policy settings;

• Engage with a global audience on key policy issues of our day;

• Take part and network in an international Forum with public policy experts.

Profile of judges:

Applicants should:

• Be a Masters or Doctoral student in Public Policy, Political Science or a closely related field;

• Have an interest/experience in the advocacy aspects of public policy;

• Have an interest/experience in issues relating to the balance between security and liberty at a policy level;

• Be available to grade papers in the time periods detailed in the table above. You should also be free to attend the Public Policy Forum in Budapest between June 12-17, 2012 (any travel or accommodation expenses incurred as a result will be met by the organisers);

• Have experience of grading undergraduate papers would be an advantage;

• Be comfortable writing about, reading and discussing the detail of policy issues in English.

A background in debating would also be an advantage.

Application process:

If you fit the above profile and are interested in applying for this role, please send a resume and covering letter answering the following questions: Why are you interested in becoming a judge for the Challenge?; What relevant experience do you have to be selected as a judge?

Please send your application to Nick Bibby at nbibby@idebate.org.uk and Lisa Quinn atlmbquinn@gmail.com. The closing date for applications is Friday, October 21, 2011.