Judging is not an easy task. Sometimes the judges are as nervous as or more so than the contestant. They have the task of selecting the next Mrs., Miss and Teen Idaho International. This is not an easy job. All of the judges are volunteers. They have taken time out of their lives to be at the pageant, many of them consider it an honor to judge.
The judges will judge all the contestants in the following areas; Interview, Fitness Fun Fashion (Miss and Teen ONLY) and Evening Gown.
What do the judges look for when judging? Good question, in the International system there is no comparative judging. The judges judge each contestant individually, giving her a score appropriate to her performance in each competition.
During interview the judges are asked to ask questions of substance and discover the overall communication skills of each contestant and her personality. They are asked to judge on overall appearance, facial beauty, poise, vocabulary, diction, sense of humor, compassion, level of self-confidence, dedication, and sincerity. The interview score accounts for 50% of the Mrs. overall score and 40% for Miss and Teen.
The judges are asked to shy away from controversial topics like religion, or politics. They may ask you many questions about your platform/issue or just about yourself. This is the judges time to get to know the "real" you. Some judges make like to look for the contestant that has the "gift of gab," but also someone who is truly genuine, and real.
Evening Gown, Fitness Wear and for the Miss and Teen Fun Fashion Wear, give the judges the opportunity to evaluate the physical fitness of the contestant, focusing in on self-confidence, posture, poise, and that special magic or sparkle that brings a smile to the judges face when the contestant is on stage.
In Evening Gown, the judge is asked to judge the contestant on how she presents herself on stage rather than judging her on her gown choice.
Fitness Wear they are asked to judge not only on her physical fitness, but how she presents herself in Fitness wear on stage. Does she have self confidence?
In Fun Fashion (Miss and Teen only) each contestant is able to present herself in a style of her choice. The judges will not judge the contestant on her outfit, but how she models herself in the outfit. They want to see that the contestant is having a fun time and can be outgoing as well.
