Contestant Eligibility
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| A. |
All Toastmasters who are members in good standing, in a Club in good standing, are eligible to compete. New, dual, or reinstated members must have dues current with Toastmasters International.
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A member must maintain eligibility at all levels of any contest. If at any level it is discovered that a contestant was ineligible to compete at any previous level, the contestant must be disqualified even if the ineligibility is not discovered until a later level and has been corrected.
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| B. |
The following are ineligible to compete in this contest: incumbent International Officers and Directors; District Officers (Governor, any Lieutenant Governor, Division Governor, Area Governor, Secretary, Treasurer, or Public Relations Officer) whose terms expire June 30; International Officer and Director candidates; Immediate Past District Governors; District Officers or announced candidates for the term beginning the upcoming July l.
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| C. |
Toastmasters who are members in more than one Club and who meet all other eligibility requirements may compete in each Club contest in which membership in good standing is held. However, should they win more than one Club Evaluation Contest, they can represent only one of the Clubs at the Area level. No contestant can compete in more than one Area Evaluation Contest, even if the two Areas are in different Divisions.
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| D. |
A contestant must be a member in good standing of the Club, Area, or Division being represented when competing in a speech contest at the next level.
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| E. |
Each contestant must complete the
Speaker’s Certificate of Eligibility and Originality (form 1183) and submit it to the chief judge prior to the contest.
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Additional International Contestant Requirement |
| F. | Have completed at least six manual speeches in the Communication and Leadership Program manual prior to the Club contest. However, a charter member of a Club chartered since the previous July 1 may compete without having completed six manual speeches in the Communication and Leadership Program manual. The Club must be officially chartered before the Area contest.
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See the official rules
for complete eligibility
requirements.
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Having a strong group of judges is an extremely important
aspect of any successful Toastmasters contests. Here
are a few tips to keep in mind when judging a contest: |
| | Get experience. Qualifications for becoming
a judge are the same as those for contestants. If
you are interested in judging, attend two or three
area-level contests (or higher) to learn what to expect
and to give yourself a basis for comparison.
Excise with accuracy. When you serve as a
judge, become familiar with the scoring guidelines.
These guidelines have been developed over several
years and are time-tested criteria for determining
a winning speech.
Be fair. Being completely impartial is perhaps
the most important quality of a good judge. Try to
be as objective as you can. Avoid being subjective
or emotional.
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Following these steps will not only help you become
a great judge, but it will also give you a strong sense
of satisfaction and achievement when you
have helped pick the contest winner.
Judge’s Code of Ethics
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Judges will consciously avoid bias of any kind in selecting first, second and third place contestants. They will not consider any contestant’s Club, Area, Division or District affiliation. Nor will they consider any contestant’s age, sex, race, national origin, profession, or political beliefs. They will demonstrate the utmost objectivity.
Judges will not time the speeches and will not consider the possibility of under-time or overtime when judging a contestant’s speech.
Judges will support by word and deed the contest rules and judging standards, refrain from public criticism of the contest and revealing scores and rankings only in accordance with official policy.
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