FAQ

What is the B4DPA - Bocconi for Digital Public Administration Award?
It is an initiative for young talents promoted by Bocconi University with the objective of awarding the design and development of solutions to transform public administration and encourage it to be more innovative.

Who is it for?
B4DPA is for groups of students from Italian or non-Italian universities who would like to submit agile and concrete solutions to familiar problems or contribute to redesigning the future of Italian public administration or part of it.

Is there a maximum number of members for project groups?
Each project must be presented by a group of minimum 3 and maximum 5 people, whose project representative is a student enrolled in a Bocconi University study program (at the Undergraduate School, School of Law, Graduate School, PhD School or SDA Bocconi School of Management) in any year, duly enrolled in the 2018-2019 academic year.
Please see the rules for more information.

How should the group be composed?
Teams consisting of students originating from different study programs and multi-university and multi-disciplinary teams are welcomed.
Please see the rules for more information.

Who can propose a project?
Projects must be proposed by the project representative.
Please see the rules for more information.

When can applications be completed?
We highly recommend that you pre-register your group for the opportunity to receive consultations before submission of your proposal.
To do so, the project representative must access the registration form available at this link, complete it with their information, the name of the group and the email addresses of the other members. Each member will then receive a link via email, where they can access the form and personally complete their registration. Please remember that it is NOT required to upload a project document in this first phase. The final proposal must be submitted by 30 November 2018 (11:59pm).

How can I complete my application?
Each group must complete registration using the form available at this link. As soon as the project representative has pre-registered the group and each group member has confirmed their information, you will receive a reference code to be included in your project proposal. The final submission should be completed by submitting the proposal made up of the objectives, content, intended outcomes, stages and timelines of the project, as specified in the guidelines for submitting a project.

How is the competition organized?
The competition is divided into two stages:

• Registration: Each group must complete registration by 30 November 2018, first by pre-registration of the group (at your earliest convenience) and its members in each section of the form available at this link and then by submitting the proposal made up of the objectives, content, intended outcomes, stages and timelines of the project, as specified in the guidelines for submitting a project.

• Mentoring: the teams that submit the most interesting projects will have access to the second stage (20 December 2018 – 28 February 2019), during which they will be supported by Bocconi faculty members, professional experts and startuppers and will begin deploying their proposal.

The best and most innovative projects will be awarded during a ceremony that will take place by the end of March 2019.

All projects admitted to phase 2 will be briefly presented to the public as part of the awards event.

Is there an age limit for participating in the selection for the Competition?
No, there is no absolute age limit. All members of the teams must be students at Italian or non-Italian universities.
Please see the rules for more information.

Is there a participation fee?
No, participation is free for all applicants.

What are the prizes?
Two winning projects will be chosen by the end of March 2019:
The group that submitted the winning project for the 2018-2019 edition will receive a maximum monetary prize of € 35,000
The Commission may also award a  winning group in the 2018-2019 edition access for each member of one group to participate in one of the four concentrations offered in spring 2019 as part of the Master of Public Administration at the SDA Bocconi School of Management.

What projects can be submitted?
Participants are asked to identify concrete answers to problems for the public sector relating to projects that aim to define a new problem or face a known and unsolved problem, offering an innovative solution through the use of new technologies; or projects aimed at redefining the public administration of the future, directing its culture and influencing its functioning starting with adopting emerging technologies.

Are there fixed formats for the documents to upload during the application process?
Yes, the documents to upload must be in pdf format.

What language must the press release and proposal be written in?
Either Italian or English.

What happens if the formats required for uploading the registration form are not followed?
If the formats are not complied with, applications will be automatically disqualified.

What happens if all sections of the registration form are not completed?
Incomplete application forms will result in the application’s automatic disqualification.

How will the information in the registration form be used?
Personal information obtained will be handled, including with electronic means, exclusively for purposes related to the contest, that is, to implement obligations under the law, by Bocconi University.
Please see the rules for more information.

Who will evaluate the projects?
Projects will be evaluated by a special commission made up of Bocconi faculty members, experts and representatives of the public sector and digital transformation.

What are the assessment criteria?
The commission will evaluate projects based on the following criteria:
•    impact for stakeholders in the public sector
•    real contribution to transforming public administration

When and how will the projects admitted to the phase 2 be announced?
Projects admitted to the phase 2 will be announced by and no later than 20 December 2018.

What happens after being admitted to the phase 2?
Selected projects will be admitted to the mentoring stage with the support of Bocconi University faculty members and experts who will guide the groups in refining their proposal and further developing it.

All projects admitted to phase 2 will be briefly presented to the public as part of the awards event.

For more information, please contact b4dpa@unibocconi.it