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Makership Application

Makership Eligibility

  1. All eligibility requirements as described in the LVL1 Eligibility criteria apply:
  2. Applicants must not be an existing member of LVL1.
  3. Applicants must be a resident of the Louisville area for the duration of the makership.
  4. Previous Makership winners are not eligible to apply for repeat Makerships.
  5. Makerships need to pre-fill a membership application with the usual 3 LVL1 Member sponsors. Please attend a Tuesday night meeting to receive membership application and solicit signatures.

Review Criteria

To help guide applicants in their crafting of their application, review criteria and evaluation questions for judges are posted below. We expect to get applications that vary widely (and we encourage diversity in project topics and exploration!!), so please don't feel that your application has to be strong across all criteria to be judged favorably. Judges will score proposals according to these criteria to determine which makership fellows are awarded.

  1. Personal Impact
    1. How significant a financial impact does the LVL1 Makership have on this applicant? After all, this is a need-based Makership.
  2. Makership Merit
    1. How important is the proposed activity to advancing knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields?
    2. How well qualified is the applicant to conduct the project? (If appropriate, the reviewer will comment on the quality of prior work.)
    3. To what extent does the proposed activity suggest and explore creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts?
    4. How well conceived and organized is the proposed activity?
    5. Is there sufficient access to resources?
  3. Social Good
    1. Does this project improve the world?
    2. Will the results be open and shared to enhance scientific and technological understanding?
    3. Does the project promote sharing, openness, decentralization and world improvement (as prescribed by Stephen Levy in The Hacker Ethic)?
  4. Coolness Factor
    1. Is it cool? (after all, the prime directive of LVL1 is to Have Fun!)

Application Materials

Applications need to contain, at a minimum, the details below. There are no specifications on format, length, or detail contained within the documents, so it's entirely up to you. Just make sure you include information for each of these four points. Please email completed applications to: makership@lvl1.org.

    1. Personal Statement Tell us a little about yourself, including your technical background as it relates to your makership proposal.
    2. Personal Impact How will receiving the LVL1 makership and the resources it provides contribute towards your goals as a maker?
    3. Project Proposal Provide an overview of your project. What do you plan to do with your makership?
    4. LVL1 Space Impact If any part of your project proposal potentially impacts the space safety, cleanliness or accessibility please include all plans to prevent those negative impacts.
    5. Project Timeline Create a project plan with milestones for your progress. Be as detailed as possible.

FAQ

        Q:

Can people work in a group? what if 2-3 people work together for a great project? Would that be accepted even though the scholarship goes to 1 person would you accept a group project?

        A: Collaborate with as many people as you want! All we care about is that you utilize any resources you need to complete your proposal. The Makership is only awarded to 1 individual, and the applicant should write the project proposal from the perspective that s/he is the PI (principal investigator) on the project. However as a member, you will have a key for 24x7 access to the space and can invite any collaborators you choose to work with you while you're present.

 

        Q:

If I get stuck can I ask for other members help or will that disqualify me?

        A: We encourage you to ask for help (from anyone, and at any point in the project)!

 

        Q:

Is there a limit on how much I can spend? If I find a company to sponsor me, but keep the final project open would that be allowed?

        A: Nope, there's no limit to how much additional funds you want to spend on the project. Spend as much of your own personal money or sponsored money as you need. The $100 USD is our way of helping you get started toward achieving your dream.

 

        Q:

Will the final project be taken apart for review of all internals or is it a work / fail project?

        A: It's a work / fail project. But if it works, we'd appreciate it if you show us how it works. Ideally, you will be dying to show us how it works!

 

        Q:

Are there any limitations to size , power requirements , weight that must be met?

        A: Er... If your project requirements exceed what LVL1 can provide we'll let you know pretty quick.

 

        Q:

Must the project be displayed onsite?

        A: No, but your project proposal won't score very highly if you don't plan on sharing it with others.

 

        If you have additional questions, please mail them to:

makership@lvl1.org

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