Hello Judges,
As 2024 comes to a close, it’s time to reflect on the past year and prepare for the annual maintenance of judge levels within the International Judge Program (IJP).
During January 2025, all IJP members (unless they leveled up during 2024, using the autmatic path (path1) to Level 4 or 5, does not count as leveling up. Details here) are required to complete their judge level maintenance. Below, you’ll find all the details you need to meet the requirements and maintain your level.
Maintenance Requirements
The specific requirements to maintain each level are listed in the level definition web page.
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
Level 5
Rules Enforcement Regular Event Certification
Quiz Requirements
- General Requirement: Pass three out of four set update quizzes during the year. Although more than four quizzes are available (both basic and advanced), you still only need to pass just three.
- Level-Specific Quizzes:
- Levels 1, 2, and 3: Must pass basic quizzes but may take and use advanced quizzes for maintenance. Quizzes must cover three different sets.
- Levels 4 and 5: Must pass three advanced quizzes.
- If you passed your three Quizzes, you do not need to take any Annual exam, because they also include policy questions. Notably this is a change from what is written in the Level 2 and Level 3 maintenance (you can still take the annual exams as a practice, if you want).
Missed Quizzes?
If you haven’t passed three quizzes by January, you can take the Annual Refresh Exams (available only during January):
- Level 1: Pass the “Annual L1/L2/L3 Rules Refresh” exam.
- Levels 2 and 3: Pass both the “Annual L1/L2/L3 Rules Refresh” and the “Annual L2/L3 Policy Refresh” exams.
- Levels 4 and 5: Pass the “Annual Refresh L4/L5” exam, which covers both rules and policy.
Completing Your Maintenance
To finalize your maintenance, you must fill out the maintenance checklist (due to a bug checklist for Level 1 maintenance was not showing until Jan 3rd, it is now fixed) by January 31st, 2025. If you encounter an error, log in at apps.magicjudges.org and try the link again.
Failing to complete Your Maintenance
Judges who did not fill in their maintenance checklist (unless they leveled up during 2024, as explained here, will lose one judge level at the beginning of February. If that takes them down to Level 0 they will also lose their IJP membership.
Membership Fees
As a reminder, there are no membership fees for the year 2024, nor will there be for the year 2025. Hopefully, soon after the next generation of leadership gets elected we will be able to provide a long term plan for the future regarding membership fees.
Reflecting on Maintenance
One of the IJP’s core values is that levels should reflect a judge’s current skills and performance. Taking a break from judging can cause skills to decline, but it’s important to note that returning to active judging allows for a quick recovery of those skills.
From my own experience:
- During 2005–2006, when I focused on my studies, my judging skills became rusty.
- Similarly, the pandemic brought a two-year pause to events, weakening my skills once again.
In both cases, returning to active judging quickly brought my abilities back up to speed. The IJP level system reflects this reality. If you level down during maintenance, you can level up again as soon as you meet the requirements.
Questions?
If you have questions or need assistance, please reach out to the appropriate Level Testing Manager:
- Level 1: Jacopo Strati – L1TestingManager@internationaljudgeprogram.org
- Level 2: Reuben Ferrer – L2TestingManager@internationaljudgeprogram.org
- Level 3: Bruna Chiochetta – L3TestingManager@internationaljudgeprogram.org
- Level 4: Àre Maturana – L4TestingManager@internationaljudgeprogram.org
- Level 5: Alfonso Bueno – L5TestingManager@internationaljudgeprogram.org
- Rules Enforcement Regular Event Certification: Philip Ockelmann – RegECTestingManager@internationaljudgeprogram.org
Thank you for your continued dedication to the IJP. Let’s ensure that 2025 starts strong by completing our maintenance and staying engaged with the Program.
Warm regards,
Alfonso Bueno, Lead of the IJP core Project of levels
