At Large Entries

The application form is here. The form will become active on February 1, 2019.

Deadlines

All students not qualifying for the TOC via meeting at least one of the posted annual points thresholds are encouraged to apply at-large. At-large applications will open 2/1/2019. Teams made up of one fully qualified partner and one non-qualified partner will participate in the same application pool as other at-large applicants. The deadline for at-large applications will be the same as the second points deadline, which is 3/1/19. At-larges will be informed of their status (accepted or position on waitlist) two weeks after the second points deadline, which is 3/15/19. (**Director note: this year, we are hoping to notify around 3/12/19.) The notification date is subject to adjustment by the director based on number of applications and tournament needs. Accepted teams will have three days to confirm their registration before their spot will be offered to the next team on the waitlist. If a team qualifies via tournament points but has already submitted an application, they will be considered fully qualified and their application will not be part of the review process.

NPDL Board Manual SECTION 2: At-Large Qualification

A. The TOC Director will set the deadline for at-large applications.

B. An at-large application will not be considered if it is from a team consisting of two members who are qualified under Section 1 (“Point Cut-offs”). Any other team may not compete in the TOC unless it receives an at-large bid.

C. Application Materials and Formatting

1. Application packets should consist of the following:

   a. Application form

   b. Sample case file

   c. Round recording file

   d. Waiver forms for any minors whose voices are heard in the round recording

2. A team may submit an application that does not contain the materials listed above, and those materials that are submitted will be scored, and any omitted materials scored as zero points.

3. Anonymity

   a. In an effort to keep student identities anonymous to reviewers, round recording files should be sound only and not contain any identifying information. Sample cases should also contain no identifying information. Submitted files should be named as follows:

   b. Round recording files should be named [Student1 First and Last Initial-Student 2 First and Last Initial Recording]. If the recording is from a tournament, the name should also include “Tournament.” Descriptive information for the recording will be submitted in the application form.

   c. Sample case files should be named [Student1 First and Last Initial-Student 2 First and Last Initial Case].

   d. Failure to follow anonymity instructions will result in ZERO points being awarded in these categories.

D. Review of materials. The Board will designate a committee of coaches and community members to assess round recordings and sample cases. The names of the members of the committee will be made public before at-large applications close. Cases and recordings will be assigned for review by two committee members who do not know the applicants. All objective categories will be scored by the TOC director. The TOC may withhold from scoring any submission that violates the anonymity requirements, and may invalidate an entire application if an applicant has made a material misrepresentation.

E. The applications will be scored according to the following formula:

1. TOURNAMENT POINTS (40%)

Tournament points = 22.5 x ((Partner 1 Points/Max Applicant Points) + (Partner 2 Points/Max Applicant Points))

2. UNDERREPRESENTED REGION (17.5%)

• 17.5 points: East Coast, South, Midwest, Washington State

• 15 points: California region 2, 3, or 4

• 10 points: Oregon

• 0 points: California region 1

3. SMALL SCHOOL (20%)

• 5 points: Applicants would be first from their school to attend the TOC

• 10 points: School has less than 50 points in Club Rankings

• 5 points: Applicants would be the only team from their school competing at the TOC this year

4. UNDERREPRESENTED MINORITY IN DEBATE (5%)

Each member of a team is scored separately, with a maximum of three points for an individual, and five points for the team.

• 3 points: Underrepresented racial minority (Black, Latinx, Native American, Pacific Islander)

• 2 points: Female or nonbinary

5. ROUND RECORDING (10%)

Recordings from tournaments or practice rounds are acceptable. Speeches other than those given by the applicants do not need to be included. Applicants should not be identified by name in the recording.

6. SAMPLE CASE (7.5%)

Entrants should submit a sample affirmative and negative, written jointly, on a topic to be issued when at-large entries open.

F. Notification

The process for at-large notifications and acceptances shall be decided by the director, and announced in advance of the opening date for applications.

 Additional Notes:

Cases need not adhere to any particular format or style, so long as they clearly show what would be argued in the round. Last year, most cases were in outline format, but some were in full narrative format (essentially, a transcript). Some explicitly labeled Inherency, Solvency, Links, Impacts, etc.; others did not use jargon. Your cases should reflect your debating style.

Sample Case 1

Sample Case 2

Sample Case 3