GUIDELINES FOR THE MODERATORS, JUDGES AND RAPPORTEURS

The DOST-Science Education Institute, in collaboration with the ASTHRDP-National Science Consortium, will hold the 14th ASTHRDP Graduate Scholars’ Conference with the theme “Science and Technology that Works for the People” on 17-18 September 2026 at the Grand Xing Imperial Hotel, Iloilo City, Western Visayas. 

This annual conference is a venue for ASTHRDP scholars to present their research outputs, build networks and further their knowledge of the trends and developments in science and technology that will enable them to contribute more significantly to the scientific community and specifically to Filipino society. 

This guideline is intended for the Moderators, Judges and Rapporteurs of the Parallel Oral Session

1. Categories: Presentations are grouped into different rooms according to the categories: 

a. Category 1. Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (Agriculture, Forestry, Crop Science, Animal Science, Agricultural Science, Fisheries, Natural Resources Management, Environmental Science, Climate Science, Ecology and Marine Science)

b. Category 2. Biological and Health Sciences (Biology, Biotechnology, Health and Pharmaceutical Sciences)

c. Category 3. Physical Sciences (Chemical, Earth and Atmospheric, Space, Material Science, Nanotech, Pure and Applied Physics)

d. Category 4. Mathematical and Computational Sciences (Information Technology, Computer Science, Communications, Statistics, Pure and Applied Mathematics)

2. Composition: Each room shall be managed by the following people:

a. Moderator (1 faculty member)

b. Judges (3 faculty members) 

c. Rapporteur (2 project staff)

3. Responsibilities: The task of the Moderator, Judge and Rapporteurs are as follows: 

3.1 Moderator

a. Preside over the sessions;

b. Announce the sequence of presentations;

c. Moderate the five-minute open forum for each presenter and encourage questions from the audience; ditto during the elevator pitch, if necessary

d. Lead the deliberation of the scores and the elevator pitch, if any; and

e. Collect the scoresheets from the judges and submit it to the Secretariat Committee

3.2 Judge

a. Score the oral presentations according to the given rubric; and

b. Deliberate on the scores and the elevator pitch, if any. 

3.3 Rapporteur

a. Provide the Moderator and Judges with the guidelines and scoresheets

b. Ensure the PowerPoint /Canva presentation files are complete and the equipment (laptop, clickers, projector, microphone, extension cords) are complete and functional prior to the start of the session; 

c. Prepare the sharpened pencils, erasers and sharpeners for the Moderator and Judges; 

d. Check the attendance of the presenters;

e. Act as timers to guide the presenter during their allotted time; and

f. Ensure the breakout room is clear of other participants during the deliberation of the scores.

4. Schedule: The schedule of the oral presentation is shown below. The Moderator, Judges and Rapporteurs must be in the venue 15 minutes prior to the session. Final venue assignments will be announced before the conference. 

Date	Time (Philippine Time)
17 September 2026	1:00 PM to 5:00 PM (Parallel Sessions)
18 September  2026	8:00 AM to 11:00 AM (Parallel Sessions)

5. Criteria: The criteria for judging are as shown below: 

Criterion	Weight
Originality, new ideas in approach and design	35%
Quality and quantity of work (Note: If it is a group project, the presenter should identify their own contribution)	35%
Visual Impact of the presentation	10%
Delivery, clarity of presentation	10%
Question and answer portion	10%
Total	100%

6. Oral Presentation Proper

a. The moderator shall briefly introduce the oral presenter (name, course, university).

b. The Oral Presenter is given 10 minutes to present his/her work. 

c. The Rapporteur will time the presentation and show signals at 3,7- and 9-minute marks to guide the presenter. 

7. Open Forum

a. The Moderator shall conduct the open forum after every presentation. 

b. The Oral Presenter is given 5 minutes to answer questions from the Judges and the audience.

8.Ending the Session: After the presenter, request the  student partcipants to leave the room.  the Moderators and Judges shall convene to deliberate the scores. The Moderator must collect all scoresheets and submit them to the Secretariat Committee before 6:00 PM on the first day and 12:00 PM on the second day.

9. Selection of Winners: Once all the parallel sessions are finished (Day 2), the Secretariat Committee shall convene with the Moderators to finalize the two (2) oral presentation winners (1 PhD, 1 MS) per scientific category.

10.Elevator Pitch (Optional): In cases where the Judges need more information to finalize the winners and ranking of the oral presentations, they may conduct an elevator pitch wherein the chosen oral presenters will be given a two-minute rapid presentation. The Moderator shall facilitate the elevator pitch or may also waive it if deemed unnecessary. 

11. Orientation: There will be a virtual orientation for the Parallel Oral Session Moderators. Judges and Rapporteurs prior to the conference. Meeting details will be announced via email.

12. Inquiry: For more information and further inquiries please contact us at 09171559398 and 09778550882. You can also email us at asthrdp@upv.edu.ph.