How to Submit (Undergraduate)

SUBMIT 2025 COMPETITION

Submission Requirements:

  • Each submission must include a faculty sponsor/mentor and students are responsible for submitting their own work.
  • A title of less than 250 characters.
  • Two to three keywords to describe your image.
  • A 100-200 word narrative that articulates the connection between the image and your research. Please proofread your narrative before submitting it.
  • Images should be the best quality image that you can provide. Please make sure your image file meets the following requirements:
    • Please name your file “last name_firstname”
    • Minimum resolution of 300 ppi.
    • Image must be at least 10 inches on the longest end.
    • Image must be in TIFF, JPEG, or JPEG2 format.
    • If your file fails to meet these requirements, we will ask that the necessary changes be made before accepting and processing your submission.
    • The entrant must be the principal creator of the image. Third-party content can be used (for example, mixed with other content), but submitting a third-party image unaltered is not permitted. Entrants are responsible for ensuring that any use of images or materials that are under copyright by a third party either falls under fair use or that relevant permissions have been sought, that no copyright has been infringed, and that any necessary release forms have been signed.
  • You must agree to the following license agreement that allows the University to display and provide access to your image:
    • I grant the University of Illinois non-exclusive and royalty-free permission to use my image and accompanying text in their original forms and/or modified forms for the purpose of promoting the competition and the research taking place at Illinois, and I have the necessary rights, permissions, and/or licenses to grant Illinois these rights. I understand that this means that such materials, in their original forms and/or modified forms, may be incorporated in any and all media. If I wish to revoke permissions to use my image, I must do so in writing to the University Library. In addition, I agree to the license agreement for IDEALS so that my image can be displayed within IDEALS or other online medium. If you are the copyright owner, by accepting this license, you still retain copyright to your work and do not give up the right to submit the work to publishers or other repositories. The University will clearly identify your name(s) as the author(s) or copyright owner(s) of the submission as well as the name(s) of the copyright owner(s) if different from your name(s), include a statement of your copyright, and will not make any alteration, other than as allowed by this license, to your submission. By accepting this license, you acknowledge that you have read and agreed to the terms of this agreement and all related IDEALS and University policies.