Frequently Asked Questions

• What does my registration fee include?
  
• What is the presentation copy I can order for $7?
  
• What kind of overnight accommodations are provided?
  
• What kind of adult supervision is provided?
  
• What do I need to bring with me?
  
• Can my friend and I be in the same company?
  
• What if I cannot attend part of the weekend?
  
• Can parents or teachers attend Spaceset?
  
• What if I register and then find that I am unable to attend?
  
  If you have any additional questions, send them to us. We will respond with answers to them, and they may also appear here in a future update to this page.
  
  

  ---

  
  
  
• What does my registration fee include?
  
  Your registration fee of $110 ($90 if you register by December 1) includes breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Saturday, and breakfast and lunch on Sunday. It also includes overnight lodging on Friday and Saturday nights, prizes for each member of the winning company, and certificates for every participant. Also included is a commemorative program for each participant, a packet of background information on the engineering discipline you choose, and the use of reference materials, computer equipment, and photocopying equipment during the weekend.
  
  Items not included in your fee are dinner on Friday night (participants should eat dinner before they arrive), and any snacks you may wish to purchase between meals. In addition, T-shirts and presentation copies are optional items which are available at additional cost.
  
  Back to Top
  
  
• What is the presentation copy I can order for $7?
  
  Each Spaceset company will prepare a presentation for the panel of judges, explaining every aspect of the settlement the company designs. This presentation will consist of between 30 and 50 viewgraphs to be displayed on an overhead projector during the presentation. In past years, many Spaceset participants have requested a printed, paper copy of the set of viewgraphs their company spent the weekend preparing. Since there is not sufficient time on Sunday to make photocopies for everyone who wants a set, we offer to send a set to any participant who wants one, for a modest fee of $7 to cover photocopying and mailing expenses.
  
  Back to Top
  
  
• What kind of overnight accommodations are provided?
  
  Overnight lodging on Friday and Saturday nights is provided in a local high school's gymnasium. Separate sleeping areas are provided for the ladies and for the gentlemen. Each sleeping area will have adult supervision at all times. Hot showers are available on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Participants will need to bring sleeping bags, pillows, towels, shampoo, etc.
  
  Participants living in the Pasadena area, who wish to spend the night at home instead of in the gym, may do so with their parents' permission.
  
  Back to Top
  
  
• What kind of adult supervision is provided?
  
  Each Spaceset "company" will be assigned a CEO, who is a manager in a real aerospace company. In addition, each group of participants will be accompanied by one or more JPL employees at all times.
  
  During the two overnight stays in the high school gym, the separate male and female sleeping areas will each have adult supervision at all times.
  
  The moving of participants between JPL and the school gym will also be supervised by adults.
  
  Back to Top
  
  
• What do I need to bring with me?
  
  Bring anything you would need for a weekend away from home. Some items you will definitely need include: a sleeping bag and pillow, changes of clothing for Saturday and Sunday, and toiletries such as soap, shampoo, towels, toothbrush, etc. You may also bring things such as reference materials and drafting supplies.
  
  A complete list of items to bring with you will be sent to you when we receive your completed registration form.
  
  You will also be sent a set of parent permission forms, which you need to fill out and bring with you to the competition.
  
  Back to Top
  
  
• Can my friend and I be in the same company?
  
  In a word, yes!
  Spaceset allows up to four people to register together and be guaranteed to be placed in the same company. There are two things you need to do:
  1. On each registration form, there is a space to list the names of other people who you are registering with. Each person (up to four) should place the other (up to three) people's names here.
  2. Mail all of your registrations together in the same envelope.
  That's all there is to it! We will take care of the rest. Please understand that out of fairness to all participants, we do not allow groups of more than four people to be guaranteed in the same company. Also, one of the ways that Spaceset simulates a job in a real engineering company is that it gives you the opportunity to work with people whom you do not already know and with whom you have not worked before.
  
  Back to Top
  
  
• What if I cannot attend part of the weekend?
  
  We recognize that occasionally students who would like to participate in Spaceset have other commitments to family or school activities that prevent them from attending part of the weekend. We want to be as flexible as possible in this regard.
  You will need to look at the weekend schedule and see which activities you would miss during the time or times you must be away from Spaceset. If you are still interested in attending Spaceset, there are only two additional things you need to do:
  1. Fill out and bring with you the Home Permission Form which will be in the packet of materials we will send you after we process your registration. This form notifies us that you will be leaving for part of the competition and returning. Participants who do not turn in a completed Home Permission Form will be expected to stay at the competition the entire weekend.
  2. Before you leave, you must check out with the Spaceset staff member on duty at JPL or at the school gym. When you return, you must check back in.
  Please be aware that you are solely responsible for any part of Spaceset that you miss. If you are gone for a significant portion of the weekend, you may put your "company" at a disadvantage. There will be no reduction of fees for participants who leave for part of the competition, even if they are gone when a meal is served.
  
  
  Back to Top
  
  
• Can parents or teachers attend Spaceset?
  
  Participation in Spaceset is limited to students ages 15-19. However, teachers, parents, and other family members are welcome to come and observe the competition for part of the weekend.
  
  The most common times for visitors are Friday evening, for the presentations describing what Spaceset will be like and how to work as a company, Sunday morning, for the presentations to the judges, and Sunday afternoon, for the announcement of the winning design.
  
  Visitors should come to the guard gate at JPL. The guard will either direct you to the location that is currently being used, or call a Spaceset staff member to come to the gate and escort you to the location that is being used.
  
  Because meals are catered based on the number of registered participants, we cannot provide food for guests of participants.
  
  Back to Top
  
  
• What if I register and then find that I am unable to attend?
  
  Spaceset is able to refund your registration fee and allow another participant to take your place, up to three weeks prior to the start of the event.
  
  As soon as you find that you will be unable to attend, send us an e-mail message to request cancellation and a refund. Please be sure your message contains the participant's first and last names. Your request must be sent no later than March 1, 2004. All refunds are subject to a $10 processing fee and refund will be sent by check.
  
  Back to Top
  
  
  
  If you have any additional questions, send them to us. We will respond with answers to them, and they may also appear here in a future update to this page.