Master's final projects are presented in several tracks. Each track will be judged by an invited panel of professionals who will select one outstanding project for a Chen Award, as well as up to 2 honorable mentions, according to the following criteria:

• Originality: Is the work original and creative?
• Meeting a need: Did the presentation show adequate motivation for this work? Did it tell us who this project is for and why it will matter?
• Process: Was the process or method used in the project appropriate to the problem or topic? How well did the group adapt its process and methods, if necessary, to the developing situation? Was the process followed in rote fashion, or applied with appropriate insight?
• Completeness: Did the project result in some meaningful body of work or artifact?
• Evaluation: Was there some form of evaluation appropriate to the project's methods and outputs?
• Potential impact: Does the project have the potential to be used or to serve as a platform for future work? Does it make an intellectual contribution?
• Presentation: Was the presentation clear, professional, informative, and appropriate to the topic and the audience?
• Overall quality: Is the work of overall high quality?

Chen Awards

The Master's Final Project Presentation and Competition is sponsored by the Dr. James R. Chen Award Fund. This fund is intended to recognize and foster innovation, creative solutions, and pragmatic applications in the area of information retrieval and management. The best project in each track will receive a Chen Award in the amount of $500.00. Awards will be announced during Commencement.

Past recipients of the James R. Chen Award