If you’re preparing your Tech Nation Stage 1 application, understanding what counts as strong evidence versus weak evidence is absolutely critical. Many applicants get tripped up by submitting vague, generic, or misaligned, evidence and documentation that doesn’t meet the guidance criteria.
To help you stay on track, here’s a quick breakdown of what could qualify as compelling evidence and what doesn’t:
Strong evidence includes:
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Measurable outcomes (e.g., user numbers, revenue, growth percentages, adoption rates, citations, downloads).
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Recognition from third parties (e.g., awards, major media coverage, speaking engagements at vetted and peer-reviewed conferences, criterion specific evidence reference letter).
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Independent verification (e.g., published papers about your work, granted patents, audited financials, signed client contracts).
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Detailed recommendation letters, that follows the guidance criteria from credible experts whose credentials are publicly available and verifiable and electronically signed.
Weak or questionable evidence includes:
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Self-published blog posts lacking editorial oversight.
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Mentoring via online platforms (like ADPList) used as sole proof of mentorship.
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Generic or templated recommendation letters that lack specificity.
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Team accomplishments without a clear explanation or not backed with evidence of your individual contribution.
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Evidence that doesn’t align with the stated criteria.
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Reusing the same evidence across multiple criteria.
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Inconsistent claims about your discipline or skillset - e.g., Positioning yourself as a Full Stack Developer, Product Manager, Project Manager, and Graphic Designer in different instances.
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Just submitting evidence examples without demonstrating what you did, the recognition and impact element. For example, showing that you made sales from a platform under OC1, without showing the primary criterion requirement - Innovation. The first thing to show is the innovation, then validate that, it was actually innovative with sales, user adoption and partnership.
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