Imagine Cup Student Competition

The world’s premier student technology competition, the Imagine Cup is one way Microsoft is encouraging young people to apply their imagination, their passion, and their creativity to technology innovations that can make a difference in the world – today. Now in its seventh year, the Imagine Cup has grown to be a global event. More than 200,000 students from 100 countries entered the competition in 2008. 370 competitors from 121 teams representing 61 countries/regions attended the July 2008 worldwide finals in Paris, France. To learn more about the Imagine Cup, visit the What Is the Imagine Cup page.

What is the theme of the Imagine Cup 2009 and what city will host the World Finals?

This year’s theme is "Imagine a world where technology helps solves the toughest problems facing us today." The United Nations has identified some of the hardest challenges in the world today in its Millennium Goals. This year the Imagine Cup uses these ambitious challenges as a guiding light to inspire change all over the world. Learn more about the eight Millennium Goals.

The Worldwide Finals will be held in Cairo, Egypt. Visit the Explore the Imagine Cup page to learn about the history, winners, and former themes of the Imagine Cup.

How soon can I register?

Registration for Imagine Cup 2009 is now open.

How do I enter the Imagine Cup?

Imagine Cup 2009 consists of eight separate Competitions (also known as "invitationals"). To enter a competition, you must register and submit an entry as instructed in the applicable Competition Details (which will be available in August 2008). Competition signup launches on August 15. 2008.

Who is eligible to enter?

You are eligible to enter any Competition that is a part of Imagine Cup 2009 if you meet the following requirements at the time of registration:

You are 16 years of age or older; and
You are actively enrolled as a student at an accredited educational institution that grants high-school or college/university (or equivalent) degrees any time between January 1, 2008 and May 31, 2009; and
You are not an employee or intern of Microsoft Corporation, or an employee of a Microsoft subsidiary; and
You are not involved in any part of the execution or administration of this Contest between; and
You are not an immediate family member of (parent, sibling, spouse, child) or household member of a Microsoft employee, an employee of a Microsoft subsidiary, or a person involved in any part of the administration and execution of this Contest; and
You are not a resident of any of the following countries: Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria.
If you are a Microsoft campus representative (such as Microsoft Student Partners http://student-partners.com/) and you meet the eligibility criteria set forth above, you may enter, but you are prohibited from using Microsoft property or resources, including without limitation, Microsoft networks, hardware tools and technology resources and/or the counsel of Microsoft employees, in connection with the creation or execution of your entry.

If you have previously placed first in the Worldwide Finals of an Imagine Cup invitational, you are not eligible to enter that same invitational again, but you may enter any of the other invitationals.

This Contest is void where prohibited by law.

Can I compete in the Imagine Cup if I recently graduated from school?

Yes, you are eligible to compete if you meet the applicable age requirements, and you enrolled as a student at any time between January 1, 2008, and May 31, 2000. Additionally, the school at which you enrolled must be an accredited educational institution that grants high-school or college/university (or equivalent) degrees.

I am studying abroad. Can I compete for my native country or am I obliged to compete for the country in which I am living currently?

For Individual Competitions, you must select one country / region that you will represent.

For Team Competitions, like the Software Design, your Team must select one country / region that the Team as a whole will represent. Therefore, you can choose to compete either as a member of a Team that represents your native country / region, or as a member of a Team that represents the country / region in which you are currently legally residing. .

Once you make a decision to register and participate as a representative of a specific country / region, your participation in the Competition is subject to that country / region's Official Rules, if any.

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Are graduate and PhD. students allowed to compete?

Yes as long as they do not use unpublished research.

If I don't attend a four-year university can I participate in the competition?

Absolutely. Any high school or college student who is going to school full or part-time can participate.

I am interested in mentoring a team. Do you have any guidelines or resources for mentors?

Great! A list of resources and commonly asked questions about the responsibilities of mentors is posted here. Please note that team formation and mentor signup functionality is not yet available for Imagine Cup 2009. We will enable this once we launch all of the invitationals later in the summer.

Where can I find press resources?

Please check our Press page for a list of available resources.

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The Worldwide Finals

Where and when will the 2009 World Finals be held?

The 2009 Finals will be held in Cairo, Egypt in the summer of 2009.

How does Microsoft choose the locations of the Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals host cities each year?

The location of the Imagine Cup has rotated from year to year. In 2003 the finals were held in Spain, in 2004 they were held in Brazil, in 2005 the location was Japan, in 2006 the finals were held in India, in 2007 the finals were held in Korea, and in 2008 they were held in France. A selection committee representing Microsoft and the competition captains evaluate applications from countries interested in hosting. Many factors are taken into consideration including the resources available at the hosting country. The selection process is not an exact science.

Why are more students in some invitationals sent to the Worldwide Finals than others?

Each of the invitationals is unique in terms of how many students actually compete. Some invitationals require more onsite competition at the finals than others. Microsoft makes these requirements clear in advance and set limits on the number of participants on a single team.

How are the judges chosen and where do they come from?

Judges are invited to participate from a mix of industry partners, sponsors, and academic institutions from around the world.

Competing

When will the detailed information on deliverables, the competition calendar, and judging criteria be available? And how do I submit my entry?

The competitions are not yet launched. Detailed guidelines including the ability to submit entries will be provided in August.

How do I get started forming a team?

Team formation functionality is not yet enabled on the Web site. We will make it available in August once we launch the competition signup.

Why do I need to supply all my entry information in English? Doesn’t this give students from English-speaking countries an advantage??

Any Imagine Cup invitational that necessitates some kind of integrated development environment (IDE) requires that you use the Visual Studio family (Express, Standard, Professional, or Team System) for development. Please see the individual competition pages for their exact requirements.

What development environments can I use?

How can I get help with my competition questions?

Please post your question in the appropriate forum or contact us directly.

Registering and Configuring Your Profile

How do I view and update my personal profile?

In order to edit your user profile you must be a registered user. Once you have logged in, you can use the "My Profile" link located in the middle of the screen to edit your profile.

After the competition launches in August, our profile contains important information that will enable us to offer you information and news that’s targeted to your role, invitational, and location. Your Profile page is also where you can tell other members of the Imagine Cup community about yourself. The information you add in the Community Preferences area will appear in the Search pages (such as when competitors search for team members and mentors to join their teams) and the forums. It’s therefore very important to configure your profile fully and keep it up-to-date. To update your profile:

Sign in to the Imagine Cup Web site.
Click the “My Profile” link on the middle of the Web page.
Update your information as you wish.
Be sure to click the Update button at the bottom of each section for your new settings to take effect.

I registered but I never received a confirmation e-mail. What should I do?

Check your spam filter, as the registration e-mail may have been filtered as spam. If you currently use an anti-spam program or service, we ask that you take just a minute or two to add our publication to your "safe" or permitted e-mail sender list. This usually involves simply adding our sending address (From:) to your whitelist, safelist, or list of privileged senders. This is commonly known as whitelisting a publication.

Please refer to the following whitelisting instructions you can use to whitelist ImagineCup, depending on the filtering solution you use:

AOL:

Go to keyword: Mail Controls.
Select the screen name we're sending your ImagineCup to.
Click Customize Mail Controls For This Screen Name.

AOL Version 9.0:

Open your latest ImagineCup e-mail.
Click the Add Address button (on the right) to add to your "People I Know" list.

Alternatively, you can just send an e-mail to:

, and that will add us to your "People I Know" list automatically. To do this:

Open your latest ImagineCup e-mail.
Click the Reply button (it's in the top right corner).
A new e-mail window opens with the wrong address in the "Send To" box.
Replace the address in the Send To box with:
Click Send Now (in the top right corner).
Even if the e-mail you send doesn't get through to us, the act of sending it does the job of putting us into your "People I Know" list.

CleanMyMailbox:

If ImagineCup is filtered, from the spambox,
Click on the white "W" icon on the left column of the mailing.
When the pop-up window comes up, simply click the Add to Whitelist button.

Alternative whitelisting methods:

Click on the White List button.
Add: to the bottom of your existing list.
Click the Submit List button.

Cloudmark SpamNet:

Select Cloudmark | Options... from the Cloudmark SpamNet toolbar in Outlook.
Click Advanced.
Go to the Whitelist tab.
Click the Add button.
Type:
Click OK.
Click OK.
Click Yes.
Click OK.

Hotmail:

Click the Options link, on the main menu tabs, then Safe List.
Type: in your Safe List.
If you see a message that should not be in your Junk Mail folder, click 'This is not Junk Mail' to avoid having e-mail from the same source sent to the Junk Mail folder in the future.

Mailblocks:

Click the Addresses tab.
Click New.
Type:
Make sure 'Accept Mail From This Address' is selected under Receiving Options.
Uncheck 'Display in People Picker' under Other options.
Click Submit.
Click OK.

MailShield:

Click Friends from the toolbar.
Click Add.
Type:
Click OK.

MailWasher:

Click Tools, then Blacklist & Friends.
Click Add... on the right, the Friends list side.
Make sure Plain e-mail address is selected.
Type:
Click OK.
Click OK.

McAfee Spamkiller:

Click Friends from the sidebar.
Click Add.
Type: .
Click OK.

oddpost:

Check your 'Probably Spam' folder.
If you see that ImagineCup was incorrectly filtered out,
select it, and click the 'Move to Inbox and Mark as Not Spam' button.

SpamAssassin:

Add the following entry to your user_prefs file, which is found in the .spamassassin subdirectory on your web/mail server: whitelist_from
Save the user_prefs file or move the updated copy to your .spamassassin subdirectory.
If you have no user_prefs file in this subdirectory, create one:

http://spamassassin.taint.org/doc/Mail_SpamAssassin_Conf.html
http://www.cleanmymailbox.com/sa

SpamButcher:

Click the Configure button.
Go to the Known Senders tab.
Click Add under 'Known Good Senders and Recipients'.
Type:
Click OK.
Click OK.

Spameater Pro:

Click Filters from the sidebar.
Click the Approved Senders tab.
Click Add Filter.
Type: under Address.
Choose 'Full E-mail Address' under Address Type.
Select E-mail Domain.
Click OK.

Spam Inspector:

Select Spam Inspector, then 'Manage Friends List' from either the Spam Inspector toolbar or from the Outlook menu.
Make sure E-mail is selected under 'Add a New Friend'.
Type:
Click the >> button.
Click Close.

Spam Interceptor:

Follow the Trusted link under > Authentication Lists. Enter the e-mail address:
Click Add.

SpamPal:

Click on the SpamPal system tray icon with the right mouse button and then click 'Add to Whitelist' from the menu.
Type:
Click Add.
Spam Sleuth:
Select File, then Configure.
Go to the Friends category.
Make sure Active is checked.
Type: on a line by itself in the entry field. Click OK.

Yahoo! Mail

Open your Yahoo! mailbox.
Click Mail Options.
Click Filters.
Click Add Filter.
In the top row, labeled 'From header:' make sure Contains is selected in the pull-down menu.
Click in the text box next to that pull-down menu, then enter the address:
At the bottom, where it says "Move the Message To:" select Inbox from the pull-down menu.
Click the Add Filter button again.
If ImagineCup has been filtered to your "bulk" folder, simply open the message and click on the "This is not Spam" link next to the "From" field.

Other providers:

If ImagineCup is being filtered, try adding to your Address Book or Contact list.
If this option is not available, try moving the message to your 'inbox' or forwarding the message to yourself.
If subsequent messages continue to be filtered, call or e-mail your ISP's technical support and ask how you can be sure to receive all e-mail from .

Domain: If they need to know the domain the Imagine Cup is mailing from, tell them: imaginecup.com
IP Address: If they ask for our sending IP address, tell them: 64.94.117.88

How do I sign up to receive Imagine Cup e-newsletters?

The Imagine Cup team sends out communications via e-mail throughout the competition. You can access your Communication preferences directly through your “My Profile” page. There are two types of newsletters: the Imagine Cup e-Blast newsletter (which offers general competition news) and individual competition-specific announcements.

The Imagine Cup E-Blast Newsletter
The Imagine Cup e-Blast newsletter is a monthly newsletter sent to students, mentors, and guests. The e-Blast offers information on the Imagine Cup as well as updates from Microsoft on news and special offers of interest to students and faculty.
To receive the monthly Imagine Cup e-Blast newsletter:

Sign in to the Imagine Cup Web site and click My Profile.
Scroll down to the Communication Preferences section.
Select the checkbox next to Would you like to receive e-mail updates?
If you’d like to receive Sponsor offers, select the checkbox next to Imagine Cup sponsors may contact me with information and offers exclusive to Imagine Cup participants.
Select your preferred e-mail format.
Click Update Profile.

Competition Newsletters
Each competition sends out e-mail announcements to students who have registered to compete. These updates could include tips from Microsoft experts, updates to the rules or competition dates, advice from former competitors and winners, information on new resources available, and more. The competition specific announcements are currently only available to registered student competitors.
To sign up for a competition newsletter, you must be registered as a student, not a Mentor or guest. Once you have registered:

Sign in to the site and click My Profile.
Scroll down to Communication Preferences.
Select the checkbox next to Would you like to receive e-mail updates?
If you’d like to receive Sponsor offers, select the checkbox next to Imagine Cup sponsors may contact me with information and offers exclusive to Imagine Cup participants.
Select your preferred e-mail format.
Click Update Profile.
Next, under Competition Sign Up, select the competitions you wish to compete in and select Update Profile.

You will now receive competition-related e-mail announcements and be able to submit entries in this competition.

Signing In and Out

How do I sign out of the Web site?

If you are using a public terminal such as at a school library, you will want to log off, or sign out, before you leave the computer. Here's how:

Click the link on middle of your page that says "Sign Out."
Close the browser to prevent your name or settings from appearing on the public terminal.
Once you have done this, your name will be removed from the home page, and your settings will be inaccessible to anyone using the same computer after you.

We recommend that you sign out only when you feel that you must. If we can't identify you, it will be difficult for us to identify information that might be of interest to you.

How do I sign into the Web site?

To sign back in to our Web site:

Click the "Sign In" link that appears in the middle of the page. If you don't see this link, but are greeted by someone else's name, click the link that says "Sign Out."
On the next page, sign in with your e-mail address and password. If you have a Windows Live ID you can also sign in with your Windows Live ID.

The next time you visit our home page, you will once again be greeted by your name.

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