The National Outdoor Book Awards(NOBA) nomination process begins with the announcement of the program in May.  Books may be received at any time after the announcement is made, but all entries are due by the program's fall deadline (usually September 1st).  Nominated books are received at the NOBA central office based at Idaho State University where they are processed, packaged and sent to the appropriate judges. (For more details on the nomination process, see: NOBA Policy Guidelines).

In accordance with the program's high standards of objectivity, a great amount of effort goes into making the evaluation process as fair as possible.  Books are judged on the quality of writing and their merit and not by the author's or publisher's reputation.  To remove regional bias, judges serving on the panel come from throughout the country.  Additionally, the make-up of the panel is balanced as much as possible between men and women.

The backgrounds of the judges are diverse.  Included on the panel are educators, academics, trade representatives, authors, book reviewers, and outdoor columnists.  All of the judges serve without pay. 

Judging takes place during a six week period in the fall.  Judges use a pre-printed evaluation form and independently score books based on a series of criteria.  The best accumulated scores determine winning books. 

Winning books are announced in early November at the International Conference on Outdoor Recreation and Education.  (A list of the winners appears on the NOBA website at the same time the announcement is being made at the conference.)  News releases announcing the winners are provided to the wire services, selected newspapers, periodicals, web sites, and corporate and independent buyers.
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