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Frequently Asked Questions

http://www.gedcouncil.org/sites/default/files/
GEDC%20Airbus%20Diversity%20Award%20FAQ,%20March%2022,2013.pdf

March 13, 2013

Contents

ABOUT THE AWARD

1. Why launch an award for diversity in engineering education?
Educators and the engineering community need to work together to grow a bigger and more diverse pool of engineering graduates because:

The demand for engineers is growing worldwide
We need engineers to solve the global challenges we all face.
The engineering profession needs to reflect the communities in which we live and work, to find relevant solutions to these challenges.
Companies like Airbus, and industry in general, want to be able to recruit graduates with relevant skills and competences from the best talent available worldwide.
Increasing diversity for engineering studies can be a powerful motor for innovation and creativity. In addition, with increased diversity in the classroom, more students will be able to experience and value working in diverse teams during their studies; skills that companies like Airbus are very much looking for in their future workforce.

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2. What is the award for?
The award will be given to the person whose initiative, series of initiatives or approach has encouraged more diverse students to study and succeed in engineering; leading to a measurable increase in the diversity of the engineering student or graduate body; and which has the potential to become a mechanism for ongoing and scalable change and improvement in this area.

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3. How many awards will be made?
All three finalists will receive recognition for their achievements at the awards ceremony which will be held during the GEDC Conference in Chicago in October 2013, and a financial award will be made to all three finalists. However, just one finalist will be recognized as the award recipient, with the two other finalists as runners-up.

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4. What will the recipient of the award receive?
The recipient of the award will benefit from 10,000 USD from the funding provided by Airbus, to support their continued work in this field. The award recipient will also be invited to join Airbus at a significant event during the year following the award. The two runners-up will receive 1,500 USD each. All three finalists will be the invited guests of the GEDC and Airbus at the GEDC Conference in Chicago in October 2013.

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5. Is the award for one initiative only?
The award will be made for one or more initiatives that meet the evaluation criteria set out in the submission form.

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6. Can the institution / university of the winning individual / team publish any press releases, photos, and other information about this event?
Yes, all communication materials about the event and the award can be used by the finalists' institutions and support will be provided to respond to press enquiries if needed.

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ABOUT NOMINEES AND SUBMISSIONS

7. Is the award open to students?
No - the award is intended to recognize individuals who have been proactive in bringing more diversity into engineering classrooms around the world and is designed for people working in this field rather than for students.

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8. Do I need to work in the same institution as the dean who nominates me?
No. The award is open to anyone working with or within an engineering faculty, school or college. The nomination should be supported by a dean of engineering, but the nominee does not have to be an employee of the dean's institution.

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9. Can a dean nominate more than one person for the award?
Yes, as long as the dean has read the submission of each nominee and is happy to support their entry for the award. Each submission should be for an individual nominee however, not a group of people.

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10. Can a dean be nominated for the award?
Yes. The individual should be nominated by a dean of engineering (see Q19 for description) and the nominee can currently be a dean themselves, but self-nominated candidates are not accepted.

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11. Does the submission have to be in English?
Yes. For this first award, we are not able to handle submissions in languages other than English. We appreciate that some people will find this challenging, and we hope that nominees will be able to find help for translations if needed. Note that the three finalists invited to join the GEDC Conference in Chicago in October 2013 will be invited to attend a question and answer session with the Evaluation Committee which will be in English.

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12. Can a professor (or other member of faculty) who has conducted a diversity research project in multiple countries participate?
A nominee could be considered because of a research project in one country or in several, as long as they can demonstrate how the research project has made an impact and generated tangible results in generating more diversity in engineering education. The research will be evaluated using the criteria explained in the Brief for Nominees and the Submission Form.

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13. How many members can participate in a single team that will be nominated for the award?
For this first Diversity Award, nominations are open to individuals rather than teams of people, even if the individual has worked as part of a team. The submission form allows space for nominees to explain the resources and support received for their project, including recognition of contributions from other team participants.

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14. Is it possible to submit multiple nominations for individuals working on the same project or initiative?
It is recommended that only one nomination be submitted for a given project or initiative. Typically, but not always, that would be the lead person in the project team.

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15. What is the maximum length of a nominee's resume or biography that will be reviewed by the Award Committee?
The submission form contains space for a biography or resume of approximately 200 words. Nominees can add up to four A4 pages of appendices to support their submission with evidence. It is up to the nominee how much space within this, if any, is dedicated to their biography.

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16. What is the final date by which nominations must be received?
Nominations will be accepted until 12h00 midnight GMT May 31st, 2013.

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17. When will I find out if I have been selected?
Up to ten nominees will be informed in early July 2013 that their submission has been shortlisted. From the shortlist, three finalists will be selected by the Evaluation Committee. These three people will be notified in early August 2013 to allow time to arrange travel to the GEDC Annual Conference in Chicago, obtain visas (if necessary) and for other logistics. The award recipient (and the two runners-up) will be announced at the awards ceremony on October 21st, 2013.

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18. Should any initiative mentioned in the submission already be in existence or can the nominee submit a proposal of an idea for a future initiative?
All initiatives described in nominee submissions must be in existence already. They can be work-in-progress but must have delivered tangible results. Moreover, the nominee will be asked to explain how the initiative has been developed and demonstrate achievements/benefits to date. Proposals related to brand new initiatives, ideas for the future, or initiatives which have not generated any measureable results yet cannot be accepted. This is the first time such an award is being offered with a second award being offered in 2014. We trust that there will be more opportunities to submit additional proposals in the future.

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19. Is it possible to participate if a student & professor team has worked together on a relevant project?
All nominations should be for individuals, so while the projects can be team efforts (including student / professor teams), each nomination should be for one individual only. That individual should not be a student.

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20. Should a dean of engineering be a regular member of the GEDC in order to be able to nominate a candidate for GEDC Airbus Diversity Award?
No. The person supporting a nomination does not need to be a member of the GEDC; however they should be currently employed as an engineering dean. The description from the GEDC bylaws should be referred to for clarification of what is meant by the term 'an engineering dean', copied below for reference and also available on the GEDC website. The GEDC shall be made up of individuals meeting one or more of the following criteria:
a) A rector/president/provost/chief academic officer of a technical university, dean of a college/school of engineering, or a similarly titled person in charge of an engineering college, school or faculty at a university. In an institution without a dean or equivalent engineering leader or in an institution with multiple engineering leaders, the institution will be asked to designate a single representative for the institution.
b) A person in charge of an education institution of higher learning that is primarily focused on engineering education and research.
c) A person in charge of an engineering dean's organization in a respective country and/or region.
d) A person who serves as a GEDC Chapter Representative.

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21. Are the GEDC associate members, observers, former deans, corporate members, GEDC Officers and Executive Committee Members, qualified to nominate a candidate for the GEDC Airbus Diversity Award?
For this inaugural award, the only people able to nominate a candidate are engineering deans, as described in Q19.

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ABOUT THE AWARDS CEREMONY AND GEDC 2013 CHICAGO CONFERENCE

22. Will the three finalists be invited to attend the entire GEDC Conference in Chicago?
Yes. Thanks to the funding provided by Airbus, all three finalists will be invited for the entire GEDC conference. Their conference fee will be paid for, as will a return economy flight and transfers, visa costs (if any), and accommodation and subsistence for 3 or 4 nights depending on the overall cost and the finalists' availability (Saturday 19th to Tuesday 22nd or Wednesday 23rd October).

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23. What kind of preparation, presentation or materials are the three finalists expected to bring as part of their presentation to the Evaluation Committee?
More information will be shared on the required preparation for the finalists in July this year. The finalists will be asked to prepare a short video about their work, not for evaluation, but to help give more visibility to their initiative and to the award, and to showcase the finalists' work during the award ceremony.

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24. When and where will the award ceremony take place?
The award ceremony will take place at the Art Institute of Chicago on the evening of Monday October 21st 2013, starting with a reception at 6pm, followed by a dinner and finishing at approximately 10pm.

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25. Can the three invited finalists bring their families to participate in the awards ceremony?
The three finalists will have their own travel, accommodation and conference invitation paid for thanks to the generous support of Airbus in funding the award. Family members are welcome to join the event, as long as we are notified in time. However we are not able to cover the cost of travel, accommodation, conference activities, or any other costs of any family members who wish to attend the event.

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