1. The Road to Level 3

2. Prerequisites Must be an Area Judge (L2) in good standing for at least 12 months Must have scored at least 80% on a Level 3 Assessment Exam in the last 6 months Must have acted as Head Judge or Team Lead for at least 5 Competitive/Professional REL events, managing at least 2 other judges, including at least 2 such events in the last 12 months Must have acted as Head Judge for at least 20 other events, including at least 5 such events in the last 12 months Must have participated extensively in the pre-certification training and mentoring of at least 2 judges who certified for level 1 in the last 12 months Must demonstrate English competency sufficient to operate as a Team Lead at an international event and to participate on international mailing lists and projects Must demonstrate participation in the judge community on a regional or global level beyond just being on staff at events (examples include mailing lists, seminars, articles, projects, etc.) Must have written a general (i.e. non-event-specific) self-review in the last 12 months, covering ALL of the Qualities of Regional Judges listed above as Strengths or Areas for Improvement. Must have written at least 10 reviews in the last 12 months

3. Recommendations You may not begin requesting recommendations until at least one year after your L2 certification date AND until your self-review is written and approved by the Verification Committee Before requesting recommendations, you must send a copy of your self-review to both your Regional Coordinator and l3.testing.manager@gmail.com. Once you receive notification that your self-review has been approved by the Verification Committee, you may ask for recommendations from any L3+ judge. Any request for a recommendation must include a copy of your self-review and must be cc-ed to your Regional Coordinator.l3.testing.manager@gmail.com

4. Must have received written recommendations from at least two of the following categories: Your Regional Coordinator An L3+ judge within your region An L3+ judge outside of your region Must have received a written recommendation from an L4+ judge within the last 36 months indicating success in a Team Lead position at a Grand Prix where the recommending judge was the Head Judge

5. If you believe that you have met all of the Candidacy Prerequisites, send your application to both your RC and l3.testing.manager@gmail.coml3.testing.manager@gmail.com Your application must include: Review IDs for advancement reviews (even if you were not the certifying judge), self-review, recommendation reviews, and other relevant reviews Exam ID for your L3 assessment exam Event dates for the Competitive/Professional REL events for which you acted as Head Judge or Team Lead Specific examples of your participation in the judge community Your application will be reviewed by the Verification Committee.

6. Qualities of Regional Judges Rules and Policy Knowledge Are the leading experts in the rules of Magic and tournament policies.

7. Qualities of Regional Judges Leadership, Presence and Charisma Effective leadership in a broader context both within and outside of tournaments

8. Qualities of Regional Judges Mentorship Improve the judging communities in their local regions through active recruitment, training, and mentoring of other judges

9. Qualities of Regional Judges Teamwork and Diplomacy Understand that organized play requires teamwork with other judges, players, stores, organizers and venues. They can follow as well as lead

10. Qualities of Regional Judges Penalty and Policy Philosophy Understand the underlying philosophies that inform the MTR, the MIPG, the JAR and other policies

11. Qualities of Regional Judges Communication Skills Can communicate well enough in English to be able to effectively lead a judge team at an international event

12. Qualities of Regional Judges Attitude and Maturity Maintain a positive attitude when interacting with other members of the community and demonstrate a solid and consistent work ethic

13. Qualities of Regional Judges Self-Evaluation Self-reflective and capable of assessing their own strengths and weaknesses

14. Qualities of Regional Judges Assessment of Other Judges Evaluate and formally review other judges on a regular basis

15. Qualities of Regional Judges Program Construction and Philosophy Can describe the roles of Level 1, 2, and 3 judges and the qualities that make good judges at those levels

16. Qualities of Regional Judges Stress and Conflict Management Can perform under pressure, maintaining a calm and focused demeanor at all times

17. Qualities of Regional Judges Investigations Identify instances where an investigation for potential cheating, fraud, etc. is appropriate

18. Pre-event Interview Passing the Candidacy Prerequisites does not make you a Regional Judge. Instead, it gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your ability level in each of the Qualities of Regional Judges. After you have met the Candidacy Prerequisites, you will be contacted via email by an L3+ judge who will serve as your initial evaluator. The evaluator’s goal is to begin documenting your strengths and weaknesses with respect to the Qualities of Regional Judges.

19. Written Test and Panel Interview After your pre-event interview, you will be scheduled for a written test and a panel interview, most likely at a Grand Prix event. The L3 written exam is a difficult 50-question multiple-choice exam covering Magic rules and tournament policy. The passing score is 80%. An L3 panel interview is an intensive one- to two-hour discussion with, generally, one L4+ judge and one or more L3+ judges. In this interview, the panel will complete the investigation of the Qualities of Regional Judges listed above, covering areas that were not previously covered by your evaluator.

20. Written Test and Panel Interview If your panel decides that you have a major deficiency in one or more of the Qualities of Regional Judges, or that you have minor deficiencies in three or more of the Qualities, you will remain L2. Otherwise, your panel will recommend promotion to L3. If you are not promoted, then shortly after your interview, you will receive from your panel and your evaluator a list of Supplemental Activities.

21. Supplemental Activities Supplemental Activities are the activities you will be expected to complete to continue on your path to L3. Seminars Articles Etc.