To be considered as a candidate for advancement to Level 3, you must meet all of the following requirements (“the Level 3 checklist”). References to “last x months” refer to the date of formal submission of the application. Must be a Level 2 judge, in good standing, for at least 12 months.

Must have scored at least 80% on a Level 3 Preliminary Exam in the last 6 months.

Must have acted as Head Judge or Team Leader for at least 5 Competitive (or higher) REL events, managing at least 2 other certified 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 from the last 12 months.

Must have participated extensively in the pre-certification training and mentoring of at least 2 different judges who certified for Level 1 or Level 2 in the last 12 months.

Must demonstrate communication skills sufficient to act as a Team Leader at large, international scale events, such as Grand Prix. Must understand English well enough to be up-to-date on official documents.

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 Level 3 judges listed above, graded as Strengths or as Areas for Improvement. If that self-review is more than 6 months old, your application must include a brief update indicating progress on the Qualities of Level 3 judges.

Must have submitted at least 6 event-specific (non-certification) reviews on other judges to JudgeApps in the last 12 months, demonstrating the ability to provide accurate and constructive feedback, on both Strengths and Areas for Improvement. Must include at least one review of a Level 1, of a Level 2, and of a Level 3 judge. Must include reviews on judges of at least 2 Regions.

Must have received two written recommendations from Level 3 judges. Each recommendation must cover at least 7 of the 9 Qualities, each graded as Strength or Area for Improvement. Each quality must be supported by specific examples. One of the two recommendations may be co-authored by two Level 3 judges; in that case, the primary recommender is the judge who enters the review and thus vouches for your Level 3 candidacy. Each observation must be credited to one of the recommending judges.

Must hold a valid Team Lead Certification or have received confirmation from a GP Head Judge within the last 36 months indicating success in a Team Lead position at a Grand Prix where the evaluating judge was the Head Judge. Level 3 Preliminary Exam The Level 3 Preliminary Exam is a 25-question exam with difficulty similar to the written Level 3 test, including both rules and policy questions. To take one, you need to ask any Level 3 judge to create it for you. When you make such a request, you must include the dates and scores for all Level 3 Preliminary Exams you have previously taken. The first request by a Level 2 to create a Level 3 Preliminary Exam will always be granted. Second and further requests after a failed attempt will be granted after an increasing cooldown period (starting at 2 weeks) and will require some proof of study. Level 3 judges have precise instructions about test generation. Requesting Recommendations You may not begin requesting recommendations until at least one year after your L2 certification date.

You may not begin requesting recommendations until your self-review is written and approved by the Verification Committee. While you are encouraged to keep track of your progress on the Candidacy Prerequisites as early as you deem fit, the recommendation stage of the Level 3 advancement process is reserved for those candidates who have been Level 2 for at least a year, and who have taken an active role not only in the community, but in improving their craft and investing into their own development. 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 Level 3 judge. Any request for a recommendation must include a copy of your self-review and must be cc-ed to your Regional Coordinator. If you believe that you have met all of the Candidacy Prerequisites, send your application to both your Regional Coordinator and l3.testing.manager@gmail.com. This application must be detailed and specific; make sure that it contains explanations of the ways in which you have met each of the requirements. 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

If your self-review is more than 6 months old, a brief update indicating progress on the Qualities of Level 3 judges

Exam ID for your Level 3 preliminary 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. Candidates who wish to return to Level 3 after an absence of no more than five years may do so via a slightly modified list of Candidacy Prerequisites.

Passing the Candidacy Prerequisites does not make you a Level 3 judge. Instead, it gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your ability level in each of the Qualities of Level 3 judges. After you have met the Candidacy Prerequisites, you will be contacted via email by a Level 3 judge who will serve as your initial evaluator. Your evaluator will ask you a series of questions about you and your experiences as a judge. The evaluator’s goal is to begin documenting your strengths and weaknesses with respect to the Qualities of Level 3 judges listed above. You should expect your pre-event interview to last several weeks. The pre-event interview is a full part of the interviewing process. You’re expected to give proper thought and argumentation to your answers. In case the interviewer thinks you would fail a panel taken immediately after the pre-event interview (because of at least one Major Deficiency or three Minor Deficiencies), the Level 3 Testing Manager is alerted and two Level 3 Panel Leads are invited to analyze the pre-event interview. In case of doubt the panel will proceed. In case of agreed opinion that you show too many deficiencies, testing is stopped. You’ll be given full feedback based on the testing process so far and will have a corrective path at your disposal, requiring two Level 3 reviews instead of a checklist to resume testing. Failed Pre-Event Interview If testing is stopped at the pre-interview stage, you will receive feedback about testing so far with clear indication of which Qualities are deemed deficient. If you receive two reviews from Level 3 judges each indicating steps you’ve taken to improve in these deficient Qualities within twelve months of the interview stopping, testing can resume at the pre-event interview stage. Testing can’t be resumed less than three months after stopping. While this corrective action is in place, the rest of the Level 3 checklist is ignored (though you’re encouraged to continue judging in order to maximize your experience). Past twelve months you’ll need a new checklist in order to test.

Any time after you have met the Candidacy Prerequisites, you may schedule your written test with any Level 3 judge willing to proctor it. The date and identity of the Level 3 must be communicated to l3.testing.manager@gmail.com as the Level 3 Testing Manager will create the written test. If you’re unable to schedule the written test, it may be possible to take it at the event you’re paneling at; though advance testing is preferable. The Level 3 written exam is a difficult 50-question multiple-choice exam covering Magic: The Gathering™ rules and tournament policy. The passing score is 80%. Failed Test In the event of a failed written test, you will not be promoted but can still take the panel with the panel lead’s permission. If you pass that panel, you will not be promoted immediately, but will have 12 months to succeed at a second attempt at the written test.