0.2 The engibous prize

The Engibous Prize

One of the most valuable experiences you will have in your undergraduate education is working in teams. The first chapter of this book covered the importance of this experience and the lessons you should learn from it. We at TI believe that this is so important that we created a design contest to give you an opportunity to show off what you have learned to your classmates at your university and also those at other universities. We named the prize after our retired CEO, Tom Engibous.

To enter the contest, sign up on our analog design contest Web page at http://www.ti.com/corp/docs/landing/universityprogram/enter.htm. The site also includes the rules and a list of previous winners.

Judging happens in three phases. First, we identify one or two teams from a university with more than three entries (based on eligibility to the contest and quality of project). These teams advance to the next level. Second, we identify the top teams and invite them to the Engibous Summit. The Engibous Summit is held at TI’s headquarters in Dallas, Texas, and comprises several events where students and professors mingle with TI executives, including award ceremonies. A panel of judges selects the top three teams.

The first-place team receives a $10,000 prize. The second-place team receives $7,500 and the third-place team receives $5,000. One additional team from the final 12 teams is recognized as the "People’s Choice" based on voting from those visiting the poster session during the Engibous Summit.

So that's a quick summary of the contest. Now here are a few hints on how to prepare your entry for the Engibous Prize. Then I'll introduce Tom Engibous, for whom the prize is named, and get to the rules.

Hints to create a good entry

Here's how best to prepare your entry for the Engibous Prize with the information that the judges will want to see. These hints are not necessarily in order of importance:

• We prefer that you write your entry in prose. We are comfortable with either a Word document or a PDF. If your university requires that you complete the project with a slide presentation, we will accept it, although it is not our preference.
• Please keep your paper length to about 25 pages (20 to 30). If you want to include more detail such as program listings, parts lists, etc., put that into an appendix.
• Make sure that you list the TI components you used in your project such that it is easy for the judges to find. Although it is not required, the more TI devices you use, the happier the judges will be when they evaluate your project.
• We expect the project to actually work. But do not interpret this expectation too literally. If you feel you have accomplished the goal of your project, say so. Don’t let us guess.

Enough hints; now allow me to introduce Tom Engibous.