ACTIVITY AS A STUDENT JUDGE
1. Student judges certificates
The applicant has to provide the following certificates for student judges:
- Category Longhair: at least 20 certificates only in this category
- Category Semi-Longhair: at least 30 certificates only in this category
- Category Shorthair: at least 30 certificates only in this category
- Category Siamese/ORI: at least 15 certificates only in this category
The Semi-Longhair training requires for the better understanding of the Oriental Semi-Longhair (Balinese, Javanese and Mandarin)
the acquisition of at least one judge’s pupil certificate in the category Siamese/ORI.
For the better understanding of the Somali, Tiffany and Cymrics the acquisition of at least one certificate in the category Shorthair.
For the better understanding of the Exotic Shorthair the Shorthair training requires the the acquisition of at least one student judge certificate
in the category Longhair.
The Longhair training requires the acquisition of at least one student judge certificate, in which the Exotic Shorthair is listed.
For each hair category two foreign assignments as a judge’s pupil must be carried out.
If a judge is processing his All Breed education in a country which is devided in regions, he must acquire obligatory a student judge certificate from another continent.
For each activity of the applicant as a student judge the training judge issues a certificate which comprises the following:
- Information on all breeds and colours which the student judge got acquainted with
during the judging - Information on skills, behaviour and general demeanour of the student judge.
The certificate is only valid with the signature of the training judge as well as stamp and signature of the club that organized the show.
The certificate will be handed over to the student judge.
Every student judge must have received at least one certificate from a member of the Judges’ Committee or a member of the Board.
This certificate is to be obtained for the first WCF examination and is included into the required number of certificates.
Applications for participation at a show as a student judge have to be addressed by the applicant to the organizing club at the latest 4 weeks before the beginning of the show.
The organizing club is allowed to assign a student judge only to judges approved by WCF in the relevant hair category.
Exceptions must be permitted by the Chairperson of the WCF Judges’ Committee.
Members of WCF clubs can act at WCF shows as student judge free of charge.
2. Participation in student judges seminars
Acquisition of up to 6 student judge certificates for each hair category is also possible through the participation
in special student judges seminars, which are held by the WCF for training purposes.
A 1-day seminar is valid for 1 – 2 student judge certificates, a 2-3-days seminar for 4 – 6 certificates.
For the seminar “Breeders of Excellence” 2 certificates per day are valid, that means 6 certificates for 3 days.
3. Genetics seminar
Participation in a genetics seminar is recommended. For every seminar day the student judge will get one certificate.
4. Training period
The period of training of a student judge must not exceed 4 years from the day of the successfully passed preliminary examination.
If this happens, a preliminary examination has to be taken once again.
After a successfully passed repetition the applicant has the obligation to enter the judge’s examination within 6 months.
During this time the applicant is obliged to provide 2 further student judge certificates from shows or training seminars.
If the period given expires, the applicant will be irrevocably withdrawn.
5. Application to take the judge’s examination
The applicant has to send the admission for the examination to the club whereof he is a member.
The informal application has to include enclosed all documents of his activities as a student judge, the indication of the hair category
for which the qualification should be acquired, date and place of the show where the examination should take place and
the names of the examining judges.
The application has to be forwarded by the club to the WCF office within two weeks after receipt for the purpose of its approval.
6. Admission to the examination
The WCF Judges’ Committee is obliged to admit the applicant to the examination if the documents he sent do not give any reason
for objections and if the applicant has reached the age of 25 on the day of the examination.
The judge’s examination can only be taken for one hair category on one date of an examination.
The examinee is not allowed to perform any other official functions at the exhibition on this day.
It is not allowed to take more than one exam on a weekend.
7. Examination panel
The examination panel consists of two international WCF judges, of which at least one must be an Allbreed judge.
Both judges must be active as WCF judge since at least 3 years.
If one of the judges chosen by the candidate rejects giving the exam, the candidate can choose one of the other judges present at the show, provided that he possesses the neccessary qualifications for the exam.
If no one of the present judges matches the requirements, the examination has to be postponed.
The examination panel alone is entitled to award the title “judge”.
8. Course of examination
The judge’s examination can only take place during an international show.
At least 35 cats for Semilonghair and Shorthair and at least 20 cats of the categories Longhair and Siamese/ORI to be examined
must be registered, and the total number of the present cats must not be less than 80.
The examinee can choose one of the official judging languages, which has to be stated in the application.
9. Theoretical examination
The theoretical examination consists of 45 questions of the official question catalogue to be answered in writing, of which 15 will be chosen from the general part and 30 refer to the examined hair category.
Of the 30 questions of the relevant hair category 15 have to be chosen with short answers and 15 with long ones.
The theoretical examination lasts at most 120 minutes and starts – except when technical difficulties prevent this – at the latest at 8.30 a.m.
on the first day of the show. The examinee should have a separate place which he is not allowed to leave for the duration of the exam.
The theoretical examination is to be regarded as passed if the examinee answered at least 80 % of the questions correctly.
The result of the theoretical examination has to be written down and has to be announced to the examinee at least until 11.00 a.m.
of the same day.
Is the necessary percentage of correct answers in the theoretical examination not reached, the entire examination is regarded as not passed.
A repetition of the theoretical examination on another date is possible once.
The official “question catalogue for the theoretical judge’s examination”, produced and published by the Judge’s Committee, will be sent
to the applicant by his club on a written request so that he has enough time for preparation.
10. Practical examination
The practical examination consists of judging of at least
- 20 cats for Longhair (including 1-5 Exotic Shorthair)
- 20 cats for Siamese/ORI
- at least 30 and 35 cats at maximum for the category Semilonghair
- at least 30 and 35 cats at maximum for the category Shorthair,
which can be distributed by the organizing club in case of two one-day-shows on both show days.
The practical examination includes the selection of Best Variety winners and proposals for the Best in Show.
The practical examination starts – except if technical difficulties prevent this – at the latest at 11.00 a.m. on the first day of the show and
has to be finished before the beginning of the Best in Show vote (if necessary on the second show day).
The practical examination is to be regarded as passed if the rate of at least 80 % of required points has been reached.
The result of examination has to be presented in writing and has to be announced by the examining judges to the examinee
on the last day of the examination, at the latest by 16.00 p.m., and to the to the Judge’s Committee within 4 weeks.
Is the necessary percentage of points not reached, the practical part of the examination can be repeated once at the occasion of another show.
During the whole duration of the practical examination the organizing club has to provide for the examinee, if possible, 2 stewards,
as well the regular judging conditions (working place, lighting, cages etc.). Carrying by the owner is not allowed.
The examinee must be informed of the class, colour and sex of the cats which he has to judge.
It is forbidden to change these details in any way. The examinee is not responsible for mistakes in these details.
Has the applicant passed the judge examination in all parts, he is considered to be an “International judge”, and receives a WCF judge’s diploma signed by the president and the chairperson of the Judges commission.
11. Examination fees
The candidate has to pay a one-off examination fee of 105 Euro at the time of the application for the admission to the judge’s examination.
The payment has to be in the account of the WCF at the latest before the beginning of the examination.
12. Other duties
The candidate may only exhibit his own cats out of competitions at the shows where he takes part as a student judge.
It is applicable also to cats living in his household.
In the case of changing the club-membership student judges are obliged to inform the chairperson of the Judge’s Commission.
13. National judges
Knowledge of at least one of the of the WCF official languages is obligatory for International judges.
1. Category “National judge” can be assigned to
- Judges, passed the first exam (Beginner) during two years after the exam.
- Judges, who don’t speak any official lancuage, accepted be the WCF (English, German, French) except their mother language or don’t prove the abillity of using an official WCF language.
2. The National judge has the right
- to judge on cat shows inside countries with the same official language as his/her mother language.
- to award all kind of WCF titles up to CAGCE/CAGPE and nominations for Best in Show.
- to judge Breed- and Fun Shows in accordance with the existing hair category.
3. The National judge has no right
- to accept any student judge
- to take any student judge exam
- to take any judge exam
- to hold any judge or student judge seminar
- to judge at World Shows, Jubilee Shows or Joint Shows.
4. Time of validity for the permission of a National judge is two years.
After that period is finished:
4.1 The beginner judge gets international status and has the International judge permission,
if he provides the language test certificate (only if the language test was made by a member of the judges commission).
4.2 In case of
- not passing the language test by a member of the Judges commission
- absence of judging on at least 3 shows per year (1 show = 1 C-number)
a judge can receive a prolongation of the National judge’s permission for the next two years only from the date of expiry
of the first National judge’s permission