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seated assembly of industry judges and moderators listening to presentation before the start of the 2022 Student Paper Contest in the Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering

A huge shout of thanks goes out to all those who volunteer and sponsor our local competition. You have had a tremendous impact on our students, and we are deeply grateful!

Contest Dates

The 2025 dates for the next Joe B. Foster '56 student paper contest have not been assigned. While the contest is normally held the last Saturday in January and the first Saturday in February, please check back in October 2024 for the specific dates.

Contest Objective

The local contest is a peer-level competition for our junior, senior, and graduate level students, one geared toward assisting them to develop proficiency in presenting technical papers or research projects in an oral and visual form before both their peers and a panel of experts.

Contest Results

Find out how our students placed in recent local, regional, or international student paper contests by using this link: February 2024 - Local winners

Want to be a Judge?

Please review the judging criteria for the Joe B. Foster ’56 Student Paper Contest before using the application link below.

  • Approximate number of judges needed:
    • 30 at the junior level
    • 30 at the senior level
    • 10 at the master's level
    • 10 at the doctorate level
  • Judge requirements:
    • must hold at least an academic degree equal to the level they will be judging
    • may be from other engineering disciplines or a closely related field
    • do not have to be a former student from Texas A&M University
  • The January contest:
    • begins at 8 a.m. with a 40-minute orientation for judges and moderators
    • starts student presentations at 9 a.m. 
    • supplies breakfast items, a morning break, lunch, an afternoon break, and an awards dinner after the contest ends (approximately 5 p.m.)

If you are interested in judging the 2025 contest, please check back in October 2024 for the
application link.

Feel free to share this information with others in your company!

Wish to Donate?

You can find sponsor information and our most recent sponsors on our contest sponsors page.

2024 Joe B. Foster '56 student paper contest sponsors