Who Can Participate?

In addition to the rules below, students must be between the ages of 13 and 19 by the first day of the tournament to participate in MIST.

Public/Private High school students

1. If you are a high school student attending public or private high school, you may be a competitor in MIST if you are a freshman, sophomore, junior or senior.

2. For those students who attend public/private high schools, you may not join MIST if you have already graduated from high school, regardless of your age.

3. For those students who have graduated from high school and would like to volunteer their time to help out with MIST, we welcome your offer of help. You can let us know you want to volunteer by contacting your Regional Headquarters.

Home Schooled Students

The following rules apply ONLY to students who are home schooled:

If you are home schooled, you can join MIST as long as you do not have your high school diploma or GED and/or you are 17 years of age or younger by the first day of the tournament. For example, if you home school and are taking college level classes to fulfill your graduation requirements or to take the GED, you can join MIST. If you are unsure whether you can join MIST, please email your Regional Registration Headquarters.

Students Younger Than 14

Students who are 13 years of age by the first day of the tournament AND who exhibit a strong sense of maturity and intellect may compete in MIST if they complete a one page essay describing why they want to compete. The essay, written in MS Word or another word processor application must be EMAILED to your Regional Registration Headquarters no later than the early registration date.

Additionally, MIST is for students:

Of any faith: Since our topics and workshops are geared towards developing critical thinking skills while promoting a greater understanding of Islam and Muslims, MIST is a great educational opportunity for anyone who is interested in broadening their socio-environmental knowledge. Hence, we encourage people of all different faiths and backgrounds to be a part of their high school MIST team. With so much going on in the world today, understanding the faith of over a billion inhabitants of our planet has never been more important. Through MIST, we hope to train the future leaders of this world with the right tools to garner a global environment of respect, understanding, and peace.

No previous Islamic knowledge required. MIST is not only for the brainiacs, but for the average Joes who have little or no information about Islam or Muslims but are willing to learn. All students need to have is a desire to increase their knowledge, develop their talents, exercise their creativity, and have fun! Through our invigorating competitions and engaging workshops, we hope to make learning about Islam and Muslims both easy and fun for everyone!

1. Be on time! Each student competing is responsible for being prompt to the Orientation Session for his/her event and for the time period for which they are scheduled to compete. Students must be on time or risk losing their chance to compete.

2. Attendance matters! Be prompt in attending all workshops. Students and their teams receive points for attending the workshops they’ve chosen. Failure to appear at these workshops will cause your team to lose points.

3. Don't skip out on workshops. Students must stay until the end of each workshop in order to be counted present.

4. Be respectful. Always show utmost respect to the person(s) leading and taking part in workshops, competitions, and all other parts of MIST.  Any discrimination or acts that may infringe the rights of others in any part of MIST, including but not limited to competition submissions, will not be tolerated.  This includes but is not limited to discrimination against individuals based on religion, race, color, gender, sex, ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy, ancestry, national origin, mental health, and socio-economic background.  

5. Keep your hands to yourself. Any unwanted physical contact is not permitted.

6. No private meetups. Any unwanted private one-on-one interactions are not permitted. Anyone reserves the right to request a third person in any interaction.

7. Act professionally. Be a mature representative of your high school or city. Remember that you are representing the next generation of community leaders. Your behavior should reflect that image.

8. Don't be MIA from your tournament. MIST participants may not leave the building without a registered coach from their own team, or without the MIST Board’s permission.

9. Always have your ID! MIST name badges and/or identification bands must be worn at all times. If a replacement is needed, see a MIST Representative immediately.

8. No ditching. No student is allowed to leave the tournament early on any day. All teams/students must arrive on time and leave only when the tournament is over. If there is an important reason for a student to leave early, he/she needs to let MIST know no less than 7 days in advance. To obtain permission to leave early, contact your Regional Registration Headquarters. We reserve the right to allow/refuse a student from leaving early. Also, once MIST gives the student permission to leave early, he/she MUST let the team coach know that they are leaving and when they will return.

9. Stick with your coach! Each team MUST be accompanied by at least one coach. A coach can be a parent, a teacher, an administrator, or a sibling older than 21 years of age. At least one coach MUST be at the tournament with their team at all times and never leave the campus. If a coach has to leave, he/she must have a replacement. Please plan ahead and send a coach registration form for each of the coaches who will be accompanying your team.

10. Follow the rules and regulations! Read the program and your competition rules carefully. Participants are required to follow the rules published in the Annual Competitions Rulebook published at www.getmistified.com. If you don’t know, ASK!

11. Dress professionally. All participants are required to follow the MIST dress code.

12. Have good sportsmanship! Share ideas with others, help each other solve problems, and HAVE FUN!

The following dress code will be required at MIST:

– Students cannot wear clothes that contain language or symbols that demean an identifiable person or group or otherwise infringe on the rights of others.

– Students should wear business casual attire for all their interviews with the judges. Jeans are not allowed.

– Students should not wear short sleeve shirts, shorts, and/or skirts above the ankle. 

– Students should not wear clothes that are see through, tight, or suggestive in any way. Shirts should be long enough to cover the stomach and back side.

–Students should not wear low rise pants that show any skin.

Dress points may be considered in each competition.

Note: There is no compulsion in religion, nor in MIST. We simply and kindly ask for cooperation in creating a modest and professional environment.