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Can I use my project for the IDEAS and the $100K competitions? Can I use a project from a class? Am I supposed to come up with a business plan, a design or a product? How many people can be on a team? How much money can I get for a materials grant? What are the benefits of entering the competition? How do I know if my project is eligible? What if I'm not an MIT student?
1. Can I use my project for the IDEAS and the $50K competitions? Absolutely! Just make sure that your project meets the requirements for each competition. For example, the IDEAS competition requires that you develop something that meets community needs, and the $100K requires that you develop a business plan--so if you develop a business plan for a community non-profit organization or for a new volunteer placement web tool, you'll satisfy both. (As a matter of fact, the team that developed Volunteer Solutions, a terrific volunteer placement tool, did win the $100K a few years ago, and it's now being used in several states across the US.) Also, check the rules to make sure that the right material gets submitted to each competition. The same project can be used, but the type and amount of material that each competition requires will vary. 2. Can I use a project from a class? Of course! Class projects are a great way to get inspired and started--and the IDEAS competition is a great way to transform a class project into an actual prototype or service. IDEAS can offer you the inspiration, funding support, and team support to move from a good start to a great product. 3. Am I supposed to come up with a business plan, a design or a product? Yes--any or all. Your job is to convince us that you have a feasible, innovative, and effective solution to a real community problem or need. If it takes a business plan to do that, then we'd like to see that plan; if building a prototype and presenting user survey results will be most convincing for your type of project, show us those--and add the design plans as well if they'd make your entry more compelling. Working to fill a community need for an innovative math curriculum? Show us curriculum plans and the explanations that help us to see how well they suit the target students. Developing a web-based instructional system? Show us your beta site. Designing a bicycle that works in Amazonian villages during the rainy season? Show us your plans and perhaps a prototype of a critical component. (Remember, we have development grants available to enable you to experiment and build prototypes.) 4. How many people can be on a team? Your team can have as my people as it takes to get the work done well, as long as one-third (1/3) or more of them are full-time registered MIT students (grad or undergrad). Keep in mind that you'll need partners as well as teammates: every team has to work with a person or organization from the target community. For example, if you're designing an unpuncturable wheelchair tire, you may work with a local hospital; if you're designing a cooking tool to be used by someone with a combination of physical challenges, you'd want to work with a person with those challenges; if you're designing a software system for a community in Belize, you'll want to establish communication with people in that community, and you may also want to work with a similar community nearby.You may also want to work with faculty or professional mentors who will guide your work, answer questions, assist your planning, and help you to work safely and productively. 5. How much money can I get for a development grant? Development grants will vary according to project needs. You should ask for what you really need--and be ready to come up with an alternate approach (or an alternative funding resource) if we are unable to provide you with the full amount requested. 6. What are the benefits of entering the competition? IDEAS combines competitive excitement with altruistic incentives. Where else will you get the chance to receive up to $7500 to transform a great idea into a community asset? Add to that the experience of teamwork, the opportunity to explore and resolve community issues firsthand, the chance to work with a mentor on an inventive and challenging project, the creative learning, the excitement of innovation, the practical experience.... (You can let us know other assets once you've experienced IDEAS!) 7. How do I know if my project is eligible? Ask. We'll be happy to discuss your ideas and to make suggestions. 8. What if I'm not an MIT student? You can still participate as long as at least a third of your team is full-time registered MIT students. You can come to an IDEAS event to ask questions, recruit teammates or to find out about our staff. Check out the Get Connected section of our website. It is up to you to define team member status, but we recommend that you include people who are contributing and will continue to contribute substantial amounts of time to your team. We encourage you to include community members as part of your team, when appropriate, and have made the 1/3 rule to make that possible -- in a three-member team, one person must be an MIT student, and 2 people can be community members. In general, teams are NOT made up of community partners and advisors, but collaborate with them instead. Only team members should be listed in the team member list and you should explain their role in the biography section. Advisors and partners who are not team members can be mentioned in the text of your application but should not be on the team member list. Feel free to contact ideas-admin@mit.edu if you need help making the call or want to discuss our reasons for the 1/3 rule.
If there is a question not addressed on this page that you would like to have answered, please either email us at ideas-admin@mit.edu |
