2026 C-BYTES Research Showcase and Student Competition Official Rules
Official Rules* for 2026 C-BYTES Research Showcase and Student Competition is found here. *rules are subject to change if problems are identified
C-BYTES Research Showcase and Student Competition invites CIST students engaged in research and creative activities to communicate their projects in a competitive forum.
Students can register to compete in Quick-Share, a rapid-style single-slide verbal presentation, or Poster-BYTES, a more traditional-style poster session. Prizes for both categories of competition.
Collaboratorium BYTES (C-BYTES) Official Rules
While Quick-Share and Poster-BYTES challenges are completely different in their execution, both need visual elements to enhance understanding within the framework and limitations given. Visuals must be clear, relevant, and well-organized, contributing to the overall communication of the project.
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Code of Conduct: All participants are expected to uphold the University of Nebraska at Omaha Student Code of Conduct and maintain professionalism throughout the event. |
Quick-Share Official Rules:
Eligibility: Open to all CIST students working on projects supervised by CIST faculty. Approval of student’s project advisor is required. A maximum of 10 registrants will be invited to present in Quick-Share based on committee decision. Registrants who are not selected for Quick-Share will be automatically invited to participate in the Poster-BYTES competition.
Time Limit: Each presentation must be no longer than 3 minutes. Presenters who exceed this limit will lose points according to the scoring rubric.
Presentation Format: All presentations must be delivered in spoken word format. Forms of artistic expression such as poetry, raps, or songs are not permitted.
Props/Other Media: The use of any additional props (e.g., costumes, musical instruments, or lab equipment) or additional media (e.g., audio or video) is not allowed.
Transition Slide: Prior to the three-minute presentation, a transition slide will be shown for up to two (2) minutes. This slide, prepared by the event coordinator, will have the name of the project, the name of the presenter and their academic program, the name of the faculty project advisor and the identified Collaboratorium.
Competition Slide: A single PowerPoint slide, developed by the student competitor, is required. The slide will remain fixed and be displayed for three (3) minutes; no transitions, animations, or other motions are allowed on the slide.
Start of Presentation: The presentation will be considered to have officially begun once the event host advances the PowerPoint presentation to the competition slide.
Q&A: Once the speaker has finished, a total of two (2) minutes will be allowed for any questions from the judges and competitor responses.
Judging Quick-Share: A panel of invited judges will complete the rubric for all participants within 15 minutes of the final presentation. Scores will be calculated and reviewed by committee to determine winners. All decisions made by the judging panel and scoring committee are final. Judging criteria are provided in the Quick-Share Judging Rubric document. Scores will be kept confidential.
Poster-BYTES Official Rules:
Eligibility: Open to all CIST students working on projects supervised by CIST faculty. Approval of student’s project advisor is required. Students participating in Quick-Share are also allowed to participate in the Poster-BYTES session.
Poster presentation: Poster presenters must be available at their posters during the designated session to discuss their research with attendees.
Other Media: The use of additional media (e.g., audio, video, computer graphics) is not allowed.
Props: Poster presenters are not allowed to use any additional props (e.g., costumes, musical instruments, or lab equipment).
Poster Specifications
Dimensions: Posters must not exceed 36 inches by 48 inches.
Posters must include:
- Title, author(s), and department affiliation
- Collaboratorium
- Background and significance of the research
- Methodology or research design
- Results or findings
- Conclusions and potential impact
- Acknowledgments and references (where applicable)
- QR Code for Scoring Rubric
Judging Poster-BYTES: Faculty, staff, students, and IS&T industry professionals will be invited to attend Poster-BYTES and submit scored rubrics. Scores will be calculated based on all eligible submissions of rubrics, subject to deadline, confirmation of validity, and elimination of repeat submissions. Scores will be reviewed by scoring committee to determine winners. Decisions made by the scoring committee are final. Judging criteria are provided in the Poster-BYTES Judging Rubric document. Scores will be kept confidential.