Work zone billboard design contest for Massachusetts college students

Official rules for MassDOT's National Work Zone Awareness Week billboard design contest

Attention all aspiring graphic designers! National Work Zone Awareness Week 2025 will take place on April 21st-25th. The theme for NWZAW 2025 is "Respect the zone so we all get home.” It emphasizes the shared responsibility of drivers to follow traffic laws, reduce speed, and stay alert in work zones to protect both themselves and the workers maintaining and improving our roads.

MassDOT is hosting our third NWZAW Billboard Public Service Announcement contest. We're looking for creative and impactful designs that promote work zone safety and encourage drivers to be aware and cautious when passing through active construction and maintenance projects.

The top 3 designs will be displayed on a series of digital billboards along the highways in Massachusetts throughout the 2025 construction season. This year's winning designs will be awarded a scholarship generously provided by Construction Industries of Massachusetts (CIM) and the Massachusetts Aggregate and Asphalt Pavement Association (MAAPA).

The contest ends on April 11th and the winning designs will be announced on May 6th during the 2025 MassDOT Transportation Innovation Conference.

How to participate

The first step is to review the theme and think about what that means to you in your everyday travels on the roadways, particularly when you go through a work zone. Then, create a billboard design that includes the theme and promotes work zone safety. Please review the MassDOT Digital Billboard Design Specifications before you prepare your submission.

Eligibility

• The contest is open to all students who are currently enrolled in Massachusetts colleges.
• Participants are permitted to work in groups.

Submission guidelines

• No more than 3 entries may be submitted by any one individual/group. If more than 3 entries are submitted, some or all of the submissions of the individual/group may be excluded.
• No illegal, offensive, or obscene content of any kind.
• All designs must include the NWZAW theme and promote work zone safety.
• Each submission must be the original work of the participants. Designs utilizing professional or non-student support will not be eligible for entry. If it is discovered that a winning design used outside assistance, the design and participant(s) will be disqualified from the contest.
• The use of AI-generated imagery, language or other elements, either partially or fully, is strictly prohibited. Entries found to contain AI-generated imagery, language or other elements will be disqualified from the contest.
• Submissions that do not follow the design specs will not be considered. See detailed design specs below.
• Winner’s names will be posted and shared publicly. Winners hereby authorize MassDOT to publish, reproduce, disseminate, and use their names by all written, spoken, and filmed media provided that the purposes are publicity and information related to this contest. If a winning student is underage, the party holding parental authority or legal representation of the winning student will provide such authorization on the student’s behalf.
• Please submit contest design entries via the contest landing page on the MassDOT website.
• Contest submissions will be accepted through April 11th, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. (EST).

Design specifications

• Please prepare each design as JPEG files in RGB color @72 dpi.
• Full bleed to edges with NO crop marks, and NO surrounding border.
• Designs must include the MassDOT logo, the CIM logo, and the MAAPA logo. MassDOT, CIM and MAAPA logo may only be used in the original colors, all black, or all white.
• Avoid large white background areas, as it can result in exceeding acceptable brightness standards in certain communities.
• Put the size of the artwork in the file name (i.e.: NWZAW_LastName-1400x400.jpg).
• Files should not exceed 14 mb.

NWZAW 2020 Theme Example Graphic

Enter the contest

Contest is now closed. Winners will be announced during the 2025 Innovation Conference.

Contest prizes

The winning designs will be selected based on creativity, impact, and relevance to the NWZAW theme. Prizes include:

• 1st place: $1000 and 3-month billboard display (June, August, November)
• 2nd place: $600 and 2-month billboard display (July, October)
• 3rd place: $400 and 1-month billboard display (September)

Determination of winner

• The winning entries will be selected by a panel comprised of MassDOT, CIM, MAAPA senior management. Panel members will not include any MassDOT, CIM, or MAAPA employees who have a family member currently enrolled in a Massachusetts college.
• Entries will be judged on their visual appeal, adherence to the NWZAW theme, quality of design, and ease of reproduction for the purposes stated above.
• The winners will be notified via email and announced during the 2025 MassDOT Transportation Innovation Conference, Mass.gov website, and MassDOT social media accounts.

Intellectual property

• Participants affirm their submissions are their own original work, have not been copied from others or from previous designs, including their own, and do not violate the intellectual property rights of any person or entity.
• Submissions become the sole property of MassDOT and may be used for any MassDOT purposes, including, but not limited to, display on websites, billboards, press releases, social media, and other materials. CIM and MAAPA will also be permitted to use the winning submissions for its business purposes, including but not limited to, display on its website and in its advertising.
• MassDOT shall have the right to adapt, edit, modify, or otherwise use any winning submission in part or in its entirety in whatever manner it deems appropriate.

Additional rules and guidelines

• MassDOT is not responsible for lost, late, misdirected, incomplete, illegible, or otherwise unusable entries, including entries that are lost or unusable due to computer, internet, or electronic problems.
• MassDOT reserves the right to cancel or modify the contest any time, including after the submission window has closed. MassDOT reserves the right to reject any submission for any reason. MassDOT’s decisions, including not to select any winners, are final in all matters relating to this contest.
• MassDOT reserves the right to choose not to use the winning entries as described in these contest guidelines.
• MassDOT may substitute a prize of equal or greater value.
• If a winner is determined to have violated any rules, MassDOT reserves the right to rescind the award from the winner, even if the determination is made after the winner has been awarded.
• MassDOT is not liable, for the purpose of winner notification and delivery, in the event the contest winner has provided incorrect, outdated, or otherwise invalid contact information.
• No purchase is necessary to participate in this contest.
• Entrants agree to release, defend, indemnify, and hold MassDOT and MAAPA harmless with respect to any and all claims arising from their entries.
• Information collected from contest entrants is subject to the Mass.gov Privacy Policy: https://www.mass.gov/privacypolicy.