Event Partners hosting a qualifying VEX V5 Robotics Competition event can invite nearby VEX U, VEX AI, or JROTC teams that aren't competing at the event to volunteer, in exchange for a Robot Skills Challenge opportunity. This article covers how that arrangement works and what needs to be submitted afterward.
It is written for Event Partners.
Definitions of the terms used here are maintained in the central glossary.
For inspection requirements referenced below, see the VEX V5 Inspection Checklist.
When This Applies
You may invite VEX U, VEX AI, or JROTC teams to volunteer at your event in exchange for letting them run Robot Skills Challenge matches. This gives those teams a chance to earn Skills Challenge scores without needing a separate event of their own, and gives you an additional pool of volunteers to draw from. Teams may also reach out to you directly seeking a volunteer arrangement, so it's worth being ready to explain how the process works if one contacts you.
If you host a VEX U, VEX AI, or JROTC event yourself, you may also allow those teams to run skills matches on the day of your event, provided they follow the scoring and submission guidelines below.
Scoring and Submission
VEX U, VEX AI, and JROTC Robot Skills Challenge scores are kept separate from your VEX V5 event's own results in Tournament Manager. Certain steps must be followed for a team's scores to be verified and to count toward the World Skills Standings.
Robots must be inspected by the Referee at the event, with the inspection sheet signed by the Referee and verified. After a successful inspection, a team can run 3 Autonomous Skills matches and 3 Driver Skills matches.
All Skills scores must be written on paper scoresheets, completed in full: every value filled in, with the score total written clearly, and the Referee's name and signature on the back of each sheet.
Any incomplete or incorrectly filled out inspection sheets or scoresheets will not be added to the World Skills Standings. After the event, you're responsible for scanning and submitting the signed inspection sheet and scoresheets for each VEX U, VEX AI, or JROTC team to the Program Support Team within 48 hours.
Timing
Most Event Partners schedule VEX U, VEX AI, or JROTC Skills matches before or after the VEX V5 Robotics Competition tournament begins, since VEX U and VEX AI use different field setups than VEX V5 High School and Middle School events. This also lets VEX U, VEX AI, and JROTC students finish their own runs outside of competition time and then be available to volunteer during the main event.
Volunteer Support
Many Event Partners use this as an opportunity to invite VEX U, VEX AI, or JROTC students to volunteer, helping with inspections, running Skills fields, resetting fields, or queuing matches. For general guidance on finding and recruiting volunteers, see Recruiting Volunteers for Events.
Some events choose to offer Skills opportunities specifically in exchange for volunteer commitments, for example requiring a minimum number of volunteers to unlock a maximum of three Driver Skills and three Autonomous Skills runs per team. This kind of arrangement is entirely at your discretion as the Event Partner; there's no Global Robotics and Science Foundation requirement tying the two together.