Student Map and Poster Competition Grant

The Student Map and Poster Competition invites students to showcase their cartographic work at the NACIS 2025 meeting. Participants can submit maps or research posters for a chance to win one of two $500 prizes. The competition is open to all students enrolled in related programs during the 2024-2025 academic year, with no entry fee. Winners will be determined by attendee ballots, and all entries will be displayed in the Map Gallery.

Students who would like to display their work at the NACIS 2025 meeting should register for the Student Map and Poster Competition. We encourage all students to submit their maps and cartography-related technical or research posters for a chance at one of two $500 prizes!
There are two competition categories: cartographic design quality and cartographic research quality. There is no entry fee. All entrants will be displayed in the Map Gallery and the winners will be selected by a ballot of all meeting attendees.
The winners will receive a cash prize. Runners-up may receive honorable mentions. All first place and honorable mention maps will receive award certificates.
At least one high quality map must be received for each category to warrant awarding both prizes. If no high quality maps are received in one or both categories, judges can decide not to award a prize for the category.

Eligibility

Maps, cartographic research posters, and other displays of cartography-related work qualify.Entrants must have been enrolled in a certificate program, undergraduate, or graduate/post-graduate program during the 2024–2025 academic year.
Entries must have been created during the 2024–2025 academic year.The competition is open to students from any country.
Students may enter as many times as they wish, but may only win one prize.Students may re-enter a map from a previous year’s competition provided the map has been improved in a significant way.The cartographic work in these maps must be the original work of the entrant. The data, if not produced by the entrant, must be appropriately cited.Students are responsible for ensuring their print poster arrives at the conference and is hung in the map gallery, at the instruction of the gallery coordinator.Students must also provide a digital image for inclusion in the online gallery.

Ineligibility

Entrants must not have previously won first prize in either of the categories of the Student Map and Poster Competition.