SEC2004

SEC2004 Guidelines for Best Student Paper Award

Students submitting papers for consideration for the conference are encouraged to apply for the Best Student Paper Award. The judging panel will evaluate the papers submitted, based upon the criteria presented below, and present the award to the recipient at the conference. Presentation of the paper at the conference will not form part of the evaluation for this award.

Eligibility
Papers eligible for the award must have a majority of the content written by the student. Students as the sole author is preferred, however, where a student co-authors a paper (with their supervisor, other academics, etc.) all the co-authors must provide confirmation that the majority of the paper was written by the student applying for the award. Papers with more than three authors are not eligible for consideration.

Papers authored by more than one student may apply. If the submission is successful then the award will be shared by the student authors.

Students may be enrolled either full-time or part-time in Masters or Doctoral studies in any computing related discipline (e.g. computer science, computer engineering, information systems, information sciences, security sciences, etc.).

The Application for Best Student Paper Award Form must be completed and signed by all authors and submitted to the Conference Programme Chair by the paper submission date.

Judging Criteria

* Structure - the paper should be well-structured with appropriate headings and subheadings. The Abstract should be a clear and concise overview of the paper. There should be an Introduction section introducing the aims and content of the paper, a body of discussion and a conclusion.
* Theme - there must be a clear theme throughout the paper. The theme should be evident in the Abstract, Introduction, body of discussion and Conclusion.
* Integration - the discussion should be coherent with correct use of language. The paper should be integrated, with discussion that flows and an obvious fulfillment of the previously stated aims.
* Contribution - the paper contents should contribute to the field and be technical correct. There should be evidence of creativity and innovation. There should also be evidence of student learning.
* Research methodology (where applicable) - the research goals and research design are clear, an appropriate research methodology has been used.
* Conclusion - the Conclusion section should draw together the discussion around the theme delivering conclusions, implications, and/or future trends.
* References - the reference material used is appropriate to the discipline, is academically sound, has breadth and quality (i.e. not just URL's). A recognized referencing method should have been used correctly.

All criteria will generally hold equal weighting. However, depending upon the type of paper submitted, the Research Methodology section may not apply in some cases.

Judging Panel
The panel of judges will consist of three individuals - the Conference Chair, the Programme Chair and the WG11.8 Chair (or their nominees).

Judging Process
Students submitting papers for this award must also complete and submit the attached Application for Best Student Paper Award form. This form must be completed and signed by ALL authors of the paper under consideration. The judges will review all papers submitted for the award, taking into account the referee reports. The judges will decide the successful award recipient prior to the commencement of the conference.

Where the judges do not reach a unanimous decision, a majority vote (i.e. 2 to1) will preside. Where a majority vote cannot be reached (i.e. the judges cannot agree on a recipient and each judge has a preferred candidate), the TC11 Chair will act as the fourth judge, evaluating the three final candidates' papers and provide the casting vote.

Application to Best Student Paper Award
Please download and fulfill the application form (below). Then e-mail a copy to Yves.Deswarte@laas.fr and send a signed paper copy to:

Mr Yves Deswarte
LAAS-CNRS
7 avenue du Colonel Roche
31077 Toulouse cedex 4
FRANCE

or fax it to +33 561 336 411.