WISA Design Competition: Designing the Flight School of the Future FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions:

What should I do if I encounter problems with the online submission?
Please contact us at env-wisa@uwaterloo.ca and we will be happy to help. Note that we are available during office hours, 9 am to 5 pm, Eastern Standard Time and will make every effort to respond promptly. We will assist with any legitimate difficulties that are flagged to us before the close of the submission deadline to ensure that your project can be submitted and considered for the awards. Please provide screenshots or other documentation so that we can more effectively troubleshoot any issues. As a first step, we encourage you to double-check your file sizes as detailed below, as files that exceed the total attachment size limit of 100 MB will not be received. 

What is the required image resolution?
Images should have a minimum resolution of 300 dpi.

Are there any page size requirements for the 15-page submission document?
There are no requirements but we anticipate entrants may want to use tabloid or A3 (11 x 17) as it nicely accommodates drawings.

What is the maximum file size for videos?
Videos should not be longer than 90 seconds each. However, if the file size is too large, you can submit an unlisted video link. Please do not place any password restrictions on videos.

Are there specific file formats for the submission files?
Please submit a ZIP file containing all of your submission files. 
Image format: JPG/JPEG
15-page submission document format: PDF
Video format: MP4. The video aspect ratio should be 16:9.
Animated Images format: GIF
The maximum file size (per file): 6 MB

Is there a specific site or location for the Main Building and Hangar?
We do not have a predetermined site. Note that all concepts should be appropriate to Canada and its four-season weather, including snow and wind.

Will submitted content be viewed digitally or will submissions be printed?
Our jury will be using an online platform to view and judge all the submissions and will only print the materials at their discretion. To exhibit the winning entries, we anticipate using primarily digital platforms but may do a physical exhibition (We will contact winning entrants for any further format or delivery required.)

Does supporting text for the images have a maximum word count?
Image descriptions should be a maximum of 150 words (900 characters).

Can the project files be submitted through multiple submissions, or must it be all submitted in a single submission?
The submission must be completed through a single zip file upload that includes all images and files that do not exceed the limit of 100 MB. Videos can be submitted as unlisted video links in the PDF if the file is too large. 

Will submissions be judged anonymously or will team names be known to judges?
Each entry will be assigned a unique entry ID (alphanumeric) upon submission. Jury members will only see the unique entrant ID along with the project name, not the names of the entrants, during the scoring process. Please do not include the team names within documents or watermark images.

May I contact the jury members for additional information?
Entrants are not allowed to directly contact jury members regarding the competition. For any further questions, please correspond with competition administrators at WISA via env-wisa@uwaterloo.ca and we will be happy to help.