diff --git a/app/controllers/admin/difficulty_levels_controller.rb b/app/controllers/admin/difficulty_levels_controller.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..6b500ac1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/controllers/admin/difficulty_levels_controller.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+class Admin::DifficultyLevelsController < ApplicationController
+  before_filter :verify_organizer
+  
+  def index
+    @conference = Conference.find_all_by_short_title(params[:conference_id]).first
+  end
+
+  def update
+    if @conference.update_attributes(params[:conference])
+      if !(@conference.difficulty_levels.count > 0) && @conference.use_difficulty_levels == true
+        begin 
+          @conference.use_difficulty_levels = false
+          @conference.save!
+          flash[:error] = "You cannot enable the usage of difficulty levels without having set any levels."
+          redirect_to(admin_conference_difficulty_levels_path(:conference_id => @conference.short_title))
+        rescue ActiveRecord::RecordInvalid
+          flash[:error] = "Something went wrong. Difficulty Levels update failed."
+          redirect_to(admin_conference_difficulty_levels_path(:conference_id => @conference.short_title))  
+        end
+      else
+        flash[:notice] = "Difficulty Levels were successfully updated."
+        redirect_to(admin_conference_difficulty_levels_path(:conference_id => @conference.short_title))
+      end
+    else
+      flash[:error] = "Difficulty Levels update failed."
+      redirect_to(admin_conference_difficulty_levels_path(:conference_id => @conference.short_title))
+    end
+
+  end
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/app/controllers/admin/events_controller.rb b/app/controllers/admin/events_controller.rb
index 5c486b50..89266b71 100644
--- a/app/controllers/admin/events_controller.rb
+++ b/app/controllers/admin/events_controller.rb
@@ -70,6 +70,7 @@ class Admin::EventsController < ApplicationController
     @comments = @event.root_comments
     @comment_count = @event.comment_threads.count
     @ratings = @event.votes.includes(:person)
+    @difficulty_levels = @conference.difficulty_levels
   end
 
   def edit
@@ -101,6 +102,9 @@ class Admin::EventsController < ApplicationController
     if params.has_key? :event_type_id
       @event.update_attribute(:event_type_id, params[:event_type_id])
     end
+    if params.has_key? :difficulty_level_id
+      @event.update_attribute(:difficulty_level_id, params[:difficulty_level_id])
+    end
     if @event.update_attributes(params[:event]) && @event.submitter.update_attributes(params[:person])
       flash[:notice] = "Successfully updated #{@event.title}."
     else
diff --git a/app/models/conference.rb b/app/models/conference.rb
index d1be19fb..28c7a1a0 100644
--- a/app/models/conference.rb
+++ b/app/models/conference.rb
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ class Conference < ActiveRecord::Base
   attr_accessible :title, :short_title, :social_tag, :contact_email, :timezone, :html_export_path,
                   :start_date, :end_date, :rooms_attributes, :tracks_attributes, :dietary_choices_attributes,
                   :use_dietary_choices, :use_supporter_levels, :supporter_levels_attributes, :social_events_attributes,
-                  :event_types_attributes, :registration_start_date, :registration_end_date, :logo
+                  :event_types_attributes, :difficulty_levels_attributes, :use_difficulty_levels, :registration_start_date, :registration_end_date, :logo
 
   has_paper_trail
 
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ class Conference < ActiveRecord::Base
   has_many :events, :dependent => :destroy
   has_many :event_types, :dependent => :destroy
   has_many :tracks, :dependent => :destroy
+  has_many :difficulty_levels, :dependent => :destroy
   has_many :rooms, :dependent => :destroy
   has_many :registrations, :dependent => :destroy
 
@@ -22,6 +23,7 @@ class Conference < ActiveRecord::Base
 
   accepts_nested_attributes_for :rooms, :reject_if => proc {|r| r["name"].blank?}, :allow_destroy => true
   accepts_nested_attributes_for :tracks, :reject_if => proc {|r| r["name"].blank?}, :allow_destroy => true
+  accepts_nested_attributes_for :difficulty_levels, :allow_destroy => true
   accepts_nested_attributes_for :social_events, :allow_destroy => true
   accepts_nested_attributes_for :venue
   accepts_nested_attributes_for :dietary_choices, :allow_destroy => true
@@ -41,6 +43,7 @@ class Conference < ActiveRecord::Base
                         :social_tag
   validates_uniqueness_of :short_title
   validates_format_of :short_title, :with => /^[a-zA-Z0-9_-]*$/
+   
   before_create :generate_guid
   before_create :create_venue
   before_create :create_email_settings
diff --git a/app/models/difficulty_level.rb b/app/models/difficulty_level.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..6dd526fe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/models/difficulty_level.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+class DifficultyLevel < ActiveRecord::Base
+  attr_accessible :title, :description, :color
+  
+  belongs_to :conference
+  has_many :events
+
+  validates :title, :presence => true
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/app/models/event.rb b/app/models/event.rb
index b5aafd29..9abc4521 100644
--- a/app/models/event.rb
+++ b/app/models/event.rb
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
   include ActiveRecord::Transitions
   has_paper_trail
-  attr_accessible :title, :subtitle, :abstract, :description, :event_type_id, :people_attributes, :person,
-                  :proposal_additional_speakers, :track_id, :video_id, :video_type, :require_registration
+  attr_accessible :title, :subtitle, :abstract, :description, :event_type_id, :people_attributes, :person, :proposal_additional_speakers, :track_id, :video_id, :video_type, :require_registration, :difficulty_level_id
+
   acts_as_commentable
 
   has_many :event_people, :dependent => :destroy
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
 
   belongs_to :track
   belongs_to :room
+  belongs_to :difficulty_level
   belongs_to :conference
 
   accepts_nested_attributes_for :event_people, :allow_destroy => true
@@ -92,6 +93,7 @@ class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
       person
     end
   end
+
   def as_json(options)
     json = super(options)
 
@@ -106,6 +108,7 @@ class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
     else
       json[:track_color] = self.track.color;
     end
+
     if self.event_type.nil?
       json[:length] = 25
     else
@@ -114,6 +117,7 @@ class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
 
     json
   end
+
   def transition_possible?(transition)
     self.class.state_machine.events_for(self.current_state).include?(transition)
   end
@@ -125,6 +129,7 @@ class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
       end
     end
   end
+
   def process_acceptance(options)
     if options[:send_mail] == "true"
       Rails.logger.debug "Sending acceptance mail"
@@ -156,6 +161,7 @@ class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
     end
     public_state
   end
+
   def abstract_word_count
     if self.abstract.nil?
       0
@@ -163,6 +169,7 @@ class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
       self.abstract.split.size
     end
   end
+
   private
 
   def abstract_limit
@@ -184,6 +191,7 @@ class Event < ActiveRecord::Base
       errors.add(:person_biography, "must be filled out")
     end
   end
+
   def generate_guid
     begin
       guid = SecureRandom.urlsafe_base64
diff --git a/app/views/admin/conference/_sidebar.html.haml b/app/views/admin/conference/_sidebar.html.haml
index 17c35727..e082fb9f 100644
--- a/app/views/admin/conference/_sidebar.html.haml
+++ b/app/views/admin/conference/_sidebar.html.haml
@@ -31,6 +31,10 @@
       %li.active= link_to "Event Types", "#"
     - else
       %li= link_to "Event Types", admin_conference_eventtype_list_path(@conference.short_title)
+    - if activated == "Difficulty Levels"
+      %li.active= link_to "Difficulty Levels", "#"
+    - else
+      %li= link_to "Difficulty Levels", admin_conference_difficulty_levels_path(@conference.short_title)      
     - if activated == "Social Events"
       %li.active= link_to "Social Events", "#"
     - else
diff --git a/app/views/admin/difficulty_levels/_difficulty_level_fields.html.haml b/app/views/admin/difficulty_levels/_difficulty_level_fields.html.haml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5e8d86ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/views/admin/difficulty_levels/_difficulty_level_fields.html.haml
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+.nested-fields
+  = f.inputs do
+    = f.input :title, :required => true
+    = f.input :description, :input_html => {:rows => 3, :class => "span6"}
+    = f.input :color, :input_html => {:size => 6, :type => "color"}
+    = remove_association_link :difficulty_level, f
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/app/views/admin/difficulty_levels/index.html.haml b/app/views/admin/difficulty_levels/index.html.haml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..c720a402
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/views/admin/difficulty_levels/index.html.haml
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+.container-fluid
+  .row-fluid
+    .span3
+      = render 'admin/conference/sidebar', :activated => "Difficulty Levels"
+    .span9
+      = semantic_form_for(@conference, :url => admin_conference_difficulty_levels_path(@conference.short_title)) do |f|
+        = f.input :use_difficulty_levels, :label => false
+        = dynamic_association :difficulty_levels, "Difficulty_Levels", f
+        = f.action :submit, :as => :button, :button_html => {:class => "btn btn-primary"}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/app/views/admin/events/_proposal.html.haml b/app/views/admin/events/_proposal.html.haml
index 1e931836..0d66c232 100644
--- a/app/views/admin/events/_proposal.html.haml
+++ b/app/views/admin/events/_proposal.html.haml
@@ -72,6 +72,21 @@
               - @tracks.each do |track|
                 %li= link_to track.name, admin_conference_event_path(@conference.short_title, @event, :track_id => track.id) ,
                   :method => :put, :track_id => track.id
+      %tr
+        %td
+          %b Difficulty
+        %td
+          .dropdown
+            = link_to "#", :class => "dropdown-toggle", :id => "difficulty-dropdown" do
+              - if @event.difficulty_level.nil?
+                Difficulty Level
+              - else
+                = @event.difficulty_level.title
+              <b class="caret"></b>
+            %ul.dropdown-menu
+              - @difficulty_levels.each do |difficulty|
+                %li= link_to difficulty.title, admin_conference_event_path(@conference.short_title, @event, :difficulty_level_id => difficulty.id) ,
+                  :method => :put, :difficulty_level_id => difficulty.id
       - if !@event.room.nil?
         %tr
           %td
diff --git a/app/views/admin/events/index.html.haml b/app/views/admin/events/index.html.haml
index e5fd2047..604594ac 100644
--- a/app/views/admin/events/index.html.haml
+++ b/app/views/admin/events/index.html.haml
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@
             %b Type
           %th
             %b Track
+          %th
+            %b Difficulty
           %th
             %b State
         - @events.each do |event|
@@ -90,6 +92,8 @@
                   - @tracks.each do |track|
                     %li= link_to track.name, admin_conference_event_path(@conference.short_title, event, :track_id => track.id) ,
                       :method => :put, :track_id => track.id
+            %td
+              = event.difficulty_level.title if @conference.use_difficulty_levels && event.difficulty_level
             %td
               - if event.state == "withdrawn"
                 Withdrawn
diff --git a/app/views/proposal/_proposal_form.html.haml b/app/views/proposal/_proposal_form.html.haml
index 6159c54a..762ff6ac 100644
--- a/app/views/proposal/_proposal_form.html.haml
+++ b/app/views/proposal/_proposal_form.html.haml
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@
       %br
     - else
       = f.input :event_type_id,:as => :select, :collection => @event_types.map {|x| ["#{x.title} - #{show_time(x.length)}", x.id]}, :include_blank => false, :label => "Session Type"
+    = f.input :difficulty_level, :as => :select, :collection => @conference.difficulty_levels, :include_blank => "(Please select)" if @conference.use_difficulty_levels
     = f.input :require_registration
     = f.input :abstract, :input_html => {:rows => 5, :class => "span11"},
       :required => true, :label => "Session Abstract"
diff --git a/config/routes.rb b/config/routes.rb
index a5451c60..27847b88 100644
--- a/config/routes.rb
+++ b/config/routes.rb
@@ -35,6 +35,8 @@ Osem::Application.routes.draw do
       post "/cfp" => "callforpapers#create", :as => "cfp_create"
       get "/event_types" => "eventtype#show", :as => "eventtype_list"
       put "/event_types" => "eventtype#update", :as => "eventtype_update"
+      put "/difficulty_levels" => "difficulty_levels#update"
+      resources :difficulty_levels
       resources :events do
         member do
           post :comment
diff --git a/db/migrate/20140212172244_create_difficulty_levels.rb b/db/migrate/20140212172244_create_difficulty_levels.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..c4f06239
--- /dev/null
+++ b/db/migrate/20140212172244_create_difficulty_levels.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+class CreateDifficultyLevels < ActiveRecord::Migration
+  def change
+    create_table :difficulty_levels do |t|
+      t.references :conference
+      t.string :title
+      t.text :description
+      t.string :color, :default => "#ffffff"
+
+      t.timestamps
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/db/migrate/20140212175251_add_use_difficulty_levels_to_conference.rb b/db/migrate/20140212175251_add_use_difficulty_levels_to_conference.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..9fbb503f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/db/migrate/20140212175251_add_use_difficulty_levels_to_conference.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+class AddUseDifficultyLevelsToConference < ActiveRecord::Migration
+  def change
+    add_column :conferences, :use_difficulty_levels, :boolean, :default => false    
+  end
+end
diff --git a/db/migrate/20140213122424_add_difficulty_level_id_to_events.rb b/db/migrate/20140213122424_add_difficulty_level_id_to_events.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..56bcecb6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/db/migrate/20140213122424_add_difficulty_level_id_to_events.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+class AddDifficultyLevelIdToEvents < ActiveRecord::Migration
+  def change
+    add_column :events, :difficulty_level_id, :integer
+  end
+end