cambridge essay competition examples

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Discourse, debate, and analysis

Cambridge re:think essay competition 2024.

Competition Opens: 15th January, 2024

Essay Submission Deadline: 10th May, 2024 Result Announcement: 20th June, 2024 Award Ceremony and Dinner at the University of Cambridge: 30th July, 2024

We welcome talented high school students from diverse educational settings worldwide to contribute their unique perspectives to the competition.

Entry to the competition is free.

About the Competition

The spirit of the Re:think essay competition is to encourage critical thinking and exploration of a wide range of thought-provoking and often controversial topics. The competition covers a diverse array of subjects, from historical and present issues to speculative future scenarios. Participants are invited to engage deeply with these topics, critically analysing their various facets and implications. It promotes intellectual exploration and encourages participants to challenge established norms and beliefs, presenting opportunities to envision alternative futures, consider the consequences of new technologies, and reevaluate longstanding traditions. 

Ultimately, our aim is to create a platform for students and scholars to share their perspectives on pressing issues of the past and future, with the hope of broadening our collective understanding and generating innovative solutions to contemporary challenges. This year’s competition aims to underscore the importance of discourse, debate, and critical analysis in addressing complex societal issues in nine areas, including:

Religion and Politics

Political science and law, linguistics, environment, sociology and philosophy, business and investment, public health and sustainability, biotechonology.

Artificial Intelligence 

Neuroengineering

2024 essay prompts.

This year, the essay prompts are contributed by distinguished professors from Harvard, Brown, UC Berkeley, Cambridge, Oxford, and MIT.

Essay Guidelines and Judging Criteria

Review general guidelines, format guidelines, eligibility, judging criteria.

Awards and Award Ceremony

Award winners will be invited to attend the Award Ceremony and Dinner hosted at the King’s College, University of Cambridge. The Dinner is free of charge for select award recipients.

Registration and Submission

Register a participant account today and submit your essay before the deadline.

Advisory Committee and Judging Panel

The Cambridge Re:think Essay Competition is guided by an esteemed Advisory Committee comprising distinguished academics and experts from elite universities worldwide. These committee members, drawn from prestigious institutions, such as Harvard, Cambridge, Oxford, and MIT, bring diverse expertise in various disciplines.

They play a pivotal role in shaping the competition, contributing their insights to curate the themes and framework. Their collective knowledge and scholarly guidance ensure the competition’s relevance, academic rigour, and intellectual depth, setting the stage for aspiring minds to engage with thought-provoking topics and ideas.

We are honoured to invite the following distinguished professors to contribute to this year’s competition.

The judging panel of the competition comprises leading researchers and professors from Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Cambridge, and Oxford, engaging in a strictly double blind review process.

Keynote Speeches by 10 Nobel Laureates

We are beyond excited to announce that multiple Nobel laureates have confirmed to attend and speak at this year’s ceremony on 30th July, 2024 .

They will each be delivering a keynote speech to the attendees. Some of them distinguished speakers will speak virtually, while others will attend and present in person and attend the Reception at Cambridge.

Why has religion remained a force in a secular world? 

Professor Commentary:

Arguably, the developed world has become more secular in the last century or so. The influence of Christianity, e.g. has diminished and people’s life worlds are less shaped by faith and allegiance to Churches. Conversely, arguments have persisted that hold that we live in a post-secular world. After all, religion – be it in terms of faith, transcendence, or meaning – may be seen as an alternative to a disenchanted world ruled by entirely profane criteria such as economic rationality, progressivism, or science. Is the revival of religion a pale reminder of a by-gone past or does it provide sources of hope for the future?

‘Religion in the Public Sphere’ by Jürgen Habermas (European Journal of Philosophy, 2006)

In this paper, philosopher Jürgen Habermas discusses the limits of church-state separation, emphasizing the significant contribution of religion to public discourse when translated into publicly accessible reasons.

‘Public Religions in the Modern World’ by José Casanova (University Of Chicago Press, 1994)

Sociologist José Casanova explores the global emergence of public religion, analyzing case studies from Catholicism and Protestantism in Spain, Poland, Brazil, and the USA, challenging traditional theories of secularization.

‘The Power of Religion in the Public Sphere’ by Judith Butler, Jürgen Habermas, Charles Taylor, and Cornel West (Edited by Eduardo Mendieta and Jonathan VanAntwerpen, Columbia University Press, 2011)

This collection features dialogues by prominent intellectuals on the role of religion in the public sphere, examining various approaches and their impacts on cultural, social, and political debates.

‘Rethinking Secularism’ by Craig Calhoun, Mark Juergensmeyer, and Jonathan VanAntwerpen (Oxford University Press, 2011)

An interdisciplinary examination of secularism, this book challenges traditional views, highlighting the complex relationship between religion and secularism in contemporary global politics.

‘God is Back: How the Global Rise of Faith is Changing the World’ by John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge (Penguin, 2010)

Micklethwait and Wooldridge argue for the coexistence of religion and modernity, suggesting that religious beliefs can contribute to a more open, tolerant, and peaceful modern world.

‘Multiculturalism’ by Tariq Modood (Polity Press, 2013)

Sociologist Tariq Modood emphasizes the importance of multiculturalism in integrating diverse identities, particularly in post-immigration contexts, and its role in shaping democratic citizenship.

‘God’s Agents: Biblical Publicity in Contemporary England’ by Matthew Engelke (University of California Press, 2013)

In this ethnographic study, Matthew Engelke explores how a group in England seeks to expand the role of religion in the public sphere, challenging perceptions of religion in post-secular England.

Gene therapy is a medical approach that treats or prevents disease by correcting the underlying genetic problem. Is gene therapy better than traditional medicines? What are the pros and cons of using gene therapy as a medicine? Is gene therapy justifiable?

Especially after Covid-19 mRNA vaccines, gene therapy is getting more and more interesting approach to cure. That’s why that could be interesting to think about. I believe that students will enjoy and learn a lot while they are investigating this topic.

The Hall at King’s College, Cambridge

The Hall was designed by William Wilkins in the 1820s and is considered one of the most magnificent halls of its era. The first High Table dinner in the Hall was held in February 1828, and ever since then, the splendid Hall has been where members of the college eat and where formal dinners have been held for centuries.

The Award Ceremony and Dinner will be held in the Hall in the evening of  30th July, 2024.

Stretching out down to the River Cam, the Back Lawn has one of the most iconic backdrop of King’s College Chapel. 

The early evening reception will be hosted on the Back Lawn with the iconic Chapel in the background (weather permitting). 

King’s College Chapel

With construction started in 1446 by Henry VI and took over a century to build, King’s College Chapel is one of the most iconic buildings in the world, and is a splendid example of late Gothic architecture. 

Attendees are also granted complimentary access to the King’s College Chapel before and during the event. 

Confirmed Nobel Laureates

Dr Thomas R. Cech

The nobel prize in chemistry 1989 , for the discovery of catalytic properties of rna.

Thomas Robert Cech is an American chemist who shared the 1989 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Sidney Altman, for their discovery of the catalytic properties of RNA. Cech discovered that RNA could itself cut strands of RNA, suggesting that life might have started as RNA. He found that RNA can not only transmit instructions, but also that it can speed up the necessary reactions.

He also studied telomeres, and his lab discovered an enzyme, TERT (telomerase reverse transcriptase), which is part of the process of restoring telomeres after they are shortened during cell division.

As president of Howard Hughes Medical Institute, he promoted science education, and he teaches an undergraduate chemistry course at the University of Colorado

Sir Richard J. Roberts

The nobel prize in medicine 1993 .

F or the discovery of split genes

During 1969–1972, Sir Richard J. Roberts did postdoctoral research at Harvard University before moving to Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, where he was hired by James Dewey Watson, a co-discoverer of the structure of DNA and a fellow Nobel laureate. In this period he also visited the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology for the first time, working alongside Fred Sanger. In 1977, he published his discovery of RNA splicing. In 1992, he moved to New England Biolabs. The following year, he shared a Nobel Prize with his former colleague at Cold Spring Harbor Phillip Allen Sharp.

His discovery of the alternative splicing of genes, in particular, has had a profound impact on the study and applications of molecular biology. The realisation that individual genes could exist as separate, disconnected segments within longer strands of DNA first arose in his 1977 study of adenovirus, one of the viruses responsible for causing the common cold. Robert’s research in this field resulted in a fundamental shift in our understanding of genetics, and has led to the discovery of split genes in higher organisms, including human beings.

Dr Aaron Ciechanover

The nobel prize in chemistry 2004 .

F or the discovery of ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation

Aaron Ciechanover is one of Israel’s first Nobel Laureates in science, earning his Nobel Prize in 2004 for his work in ubiquitination. He is honored for playing a central role in the history of Israel and in the history of the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.

Dr Ciechanover is currently a Technion Distinguished Research Professor in the Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine and Research Institute at the Technion. He is a member of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the Russian Academy of Sciences and is a foreign associate of the United States National Academy of Sciences. In 2008, he was a visiting Distinguished Chair Professor at NCKU, Taiwan. As part of Shenzhen’s 13th Five-Year Plan funding research in emerging technologies and opening “Nobel laureate research labs”, in 2018 he opened the Ciechanover Institute of Precision and Regenerative Medicine at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen campus.

Dr Robert Lefkowitz

The nobel prize in chemistry 2012 .

F or the discovery of G protein-coupled receptors

Robert Joseph Lefkowitz is an American physician (internist and cardiologist) and biochemist. He is best known for his discoveries that reveal the inner workings of an important family G protein-coupled receptors, for which he was awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize for Chemistry with Brian Kobilka. He is currently an Investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute as well as a James B. Duke Professor of Medicine and Professor of Biochemistry and Chemistry at Duke University.

Dr Lefkowitz made a remarkable contribution in the mid-1980s when he and his colleagues cloned the gene first for the β-adrenergic receptor, and then rapidly thereafter, for a total of 8 adrenergic receptors (receptors for adrenaline and noradrenaline). This led to the seminal discovery that all GPCRs (which include the β-adrenergic receptor) have a very similar molecular structure. The structure is defined by an amino acid sequence which weaves its way back and forth across the plasma membrane seven times. Today we know that about 1,000 receptors in the human body belong to this same family. The importance of this is that all of these receptors use the same basic mechanisms so that pharmaceutical researchers now understand how to effectively target the largest receptor family in the human body. Today, as many as 30 to 50 percent of all prescription drugs are designed to “fit” like keys into the similarly structured locks of Dr Lefkowitz’ receptors—everything from anti-histamines to ulcer drugs to beta blockers that help relieve hypertension, angina and coronary disease.

Dr Lefkowitz is among the most highly cited researchers in the fields of biology, biochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, and clinical medicine according to Thomson-ISI.

Dr Joachim Frank

The nobel prize in chemistry 2017 .

F or developing cryo-electron microscopy

Joachim Frank is a German-American biophysicist at Columbia University and a Nobel laureate. He is regarded as the founder of single-particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), for which he shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2017 with Jacques Dubochet and Richard Henderson. He also made significant contributions to structure and function of the ribosome from bacteria and eukaryotes.

In 1975, Dr Frank was offered a position of senior research scientist in the Division of Laboratories and Research (now Wadsworth Center), New York State Department of Health,where he started working on single-particle approaches in electron microscopy. In 1985 he was appointed associate and then (1986) full professor at the newly formed Department of Biomedical Sciences of the University at Albany, State University of New York. In 1987 and 1994, he went on sabbaticals in Europe, one to work with Richard Henderson, Laboratory of Molecular Biology Medical Research Council in Cambridge and the other as a Humboldt Research Award winner with Kenneth C. Holmes, Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg. In 1998, Dr Frank was appointed investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). Since 2003 he was also lecturer at Columbia University, and he joined Columbia University in 2008 as professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics and of biological sciences.

Dr Barry C. Barish

The nobel prize in physics 2017 .

For the decisive contributions to the detection of gravitational waves

Dr Barry Clark Barish is an American experimental physicist and Nobel Laureate. He is a Linde Professor of Physics, emeritus at California Institute of Technology and a leading expert on gravitational waves.

In 2017, Barish was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics along with Rainer Weiss and Kip Thorne “for decisive contributions to the LIGO detector and the observation of gravitational waves”. He said, “I didn’t know if I would succeed. I was afraid I would fail, but because I tried, I had a breakthrough.”

In 2018, he joined the faculty at University of California, Riverside, becoming the university’s second Nobel Prize winner on the faculty.

In the fall of 2023, he joined Stony Brook University as the inaugural President’s Distinguished Endowed Chair in Physics.

In 2023, Dr Barish was awarded the National Medal of Science by President Biden in a White House ceremony.

Dr Harvey J. Alter

The nobel prize in medicine 2020 .

For the discovery of Hepatitis C virus

Dr Harvey J. Alter is an American medical researcher, virologist, physician and Nobel Prize laureate, who is best known for his work that led to the discovery of the hepatitis C virus. Alter is the former chief of the infectious disease section and the associate director for research of the Department of Transfusion Medicine at the Warren Grant Magnuson Clinical Center in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland. In the mid-1970s, Alter and his research team demonstrated that most post-transfusion hepatitis cases were not due to hepatitis A or hepatitis B viruses. Working independently, Alter and Edward Tabor, a scientist at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, proved through transmission studies in chimpanzees that a new form of hepatitis, initially called “non-A, non-B hepatitis” caused the infections, and that the causative agent was probably a virus. This work eventually led to the discovery of the hepatitis C virus in 1988, for which he shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2020 along with Michael Houghton and Charles M. Rice.

Dr Alter has received recognition for the research leading to the discovery of the virus that causes hepatitis C. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, the highest award conferred to civilians in United States government public health service, and the 2000 Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research.

Dr Ardem Patapoutian

The nobel prize in medicine 2021 .

For discovering how pressure is translated into nerve impulses

Dr Ardem Patapoutian is an Lebanese-American molecular biologist, neuroscientist, and Nobel Prize laureate of Armenian descent. He is known for his work in characterising the PIEZO1, PIEZO2, and TRPM8 receptors that detect pressure, menthol, and temperature. Dr Patapoutian is a neuroscience professor and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator at Scripps Research in La Jolla, California. In 2021, he won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly with David Julius.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why should I participate in the Re:think essay competition? 

The Re:think Essay competition is meant to serve as fertile ground for honing writing skills, fostering critical thinking, and refining communication abilities. Winning or participating in reputable contests can lead to recognition, awards, scholarships, or even publication opportunities, elevating your academic profile for college applications and future endeavours. Moreover, these competitions facilitate intellectual growth by encouraging exploration of diverse topics, while also providing networking opportunities and exposure to peers, educators, and professionals. Beyond accolades, they instil confidence, prepare for higher education demands, and often allow you to contribute meaningfully to societal conversations or causes, making an impact with your ideas.

Who is eligible to enter the Re:think essay competition?  

As long as you’re currently attending high school, regardless of your location or background, you’re eligible to participate. We welcome students from diverse educational settings worldwide to contribute their unique perspectives to the competition.

Is there any entry fee for the competition? 

There is no entry fee for the competition. Waiving the entry fee for our essay competition demonstrates CCIR’s dedication to equity. CCIR believes everyone should have an equal chance to participate and showcase their talents, regardless of financial circumstances. Removing this barrier ensures a diverse pool of participants and emphasises merit and creativity over economic capacity, fostering a fair and inclusive environment for all contributors.

Subscribe for Competition Updates

If you are interested to receive latest information and updates of this year’s competition, please sign up here.

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A Comprehensive Guide to the Cambridge College Essay Competitions

Cambridge college essay competitions, thinking of applying to oxbridge but need new ways to get ahead of the game with your application what plenty of students aren’t aware of is the fact that many of the cambridge colleges hold essay prizes for students in year 12 focusing on various subjects, allowing prospective applicants to get a taste of what uni-level essay writing might be like, as well as giving you something great to put on your cv. below is a comprehensive list of the essay competitions help by the various cambridge colleges, listed by subject. if any of them take your fancy, be sure to head over to the college website to get more details about how to enter and when the deadlines are we’ve also included past and present questions to give you a bit of an idea about what each competition is likely to entail., multi-disciplinary/humanities robinson college essay prize the robinson college essay prize is open to all students in year 12 (lower sixth, or equivalent) at a uk school during the 2020-21 academic year. it is designed to give students the opportunity to develop and showcase their independent study and writing skills. entrants are invited to submit a response to any one of the questions given, which should be no longer than 2,000 words (including footnotes and captions). the questions may be discussed with reference to any academic discipline or area of interest. up to three entries may be submitted per school, so please discuss your application with your school prior to entry. 2021 questions: 1. "a person may cause evil to others not only by his actions but by his inaction, and in either case he is justly accountable to them for the injury." (js mill). do you agree 2. 'creativity should be the highest goal of education.' discuss. 3. "in policy making, there is no such thing as 'the data', and therefore no such thing as 'acting on the data'." do you agree 4. "the translated text must add up to the original... [translation] is like a problem in math—using different numbers, the answer must be the same, different numbers must add up to the same answer." (lydia davis). discuss. 5. watch this video featuring the poet kamau braithwaite and discuss the significance of 'archives of freedom'. girton college humanities writing competition this annual competition is an opportunity for year 12 students to research and write beyond the curriculum, using one or more of the lawrence room museum objects, as their focus. essays or creative responses (such as dramatic monologues or short stories) are equally welcome. the judges are looking for the ability to connect different areas of knowledge, to think about details and to communicate clearly. archaeology fitzwilliam college archaeology essay competition this essay competition is for students in year 21 or equivalent; limit of 2500 words. 2022 questions: 1. what can responses to climate in the past teach us today 2. in what ways does the study of archaeology remain political 3. how is construction and building in the past symptomatic of imminent social collapse architecture fitzwilliam college architecture design competition 2022 brief: you are challenged to design a new building somewhere on the fitzwilliam college site. this building will serve as a hub for interaction between teaching staff and students, where they can share and explore ideas. during the design process, you will need to think about what programmes or activities need to be accommodated in the new building. for instance, you can consider including spaces for social interaction such as a new cafe, as well as spaces to have quieter conversations in groups of different sizes. you must also consider possible locations for the new building within the college site, taking into consideration the other college buildings in your design, as well as the landscaped areas preserving mature trees as much as possible. this should be seen as an opportunity to create an interesting relationship between the interior and exterior spaces. you are required to submit: - project title that best describes your design intention and final design solution - design narrative of 500 words that concisely explains your design inspiration, design objective, and final design strategy developed to meet your design objective - drawings that show the following: 1) floor plan(s) of your building at 1:200 scale 2) one elevation and one section of the building that best describes main features of the design solution 3) one site plan that indicates the location of the building in relation to existing buildings in the college site. a detailed site plan showing the ground floor plans of the individual buildings is available on the essay competition website for reference, but you should produce a new drawing for the competition submission. 4) one perspective drawing of your building that highlights your design intention and shows the placement of a new building in relation to existing college buildings nearby. classics fitzwilliam college ancient world and classics essay competition this essay competition is for students in year 21 or equivalent; limit of 2500 words. 2022 questions: 1. do ancient audiences / readers / listeners matter to our interpretations of ancient texts discuss with reference to any text or texts of your choice. 2. why do we need new translations of ancient texts discuss with reference to any text or texts of your choice. 3. “the ancient world was more concerned with controlling nature than conserving it.” discuss with reference to any area or period of your choice. 4. when does childhood end in the ancient world discuss with reference to any area or period of your choice. 5. why does aristotle say that people are ‘political animals’ was he right 6. how important was trade with the near east and / or egypt in any period of your choice english trinity college gould prize for essays in english literature trinity college launched the gould prize for essays in english literature in 2013. this is an annual competition for year 12 or lower 6th students. the prize has been established from a bequest made by dr dennis gould in 2004 for the furtherance of education in english literature. candidates are invited each year to submit an essay of between 1,500 and 2,500 words on a topic to be chosen from the list of questions. newnham college the woolf essay prize n 1928, virginia woolf addressed the newnham arts society on the subject of ‘women and fiction’, and from this talk emerged her seminal text, a room of one’s own. a room of one’s own raises a number of questions surrounding the place of women in society and culture, and the competition allows students to contemplate these themes and ideas while developing the independent research and writing skills essential to university-level study. 2021-22 questions: 1. ‘only the fellows and scholars are allowed here; the gravel is the place for me.’ how have female writers been inspired by limitations placed on their educational experiences you may discuss historical or modern-day examples. 2. ‘a woman might write letters while she was sitting by her father’s sick-bed. she might write them by the fire whilst the men talked without disturbing them’. how might letters add to our understanding of female writers and their work you may discuss the letters of any female author, poet or playwright. 3. ‘anonymity runs in their blood. […] they are not even now as concerned about the health of their fame as men are, and speaking generally, will pass a tombstone or a signpost without feeling an irresistible desire to cut their names into it’. should the women of the past be commemorated in a different manner to their male counterparts explain. queen’s college the estelle prize for english queens' college invites submissions for the english prize 2021, which will be awarded to the best essay submitted by a year 12 (lower sixth form) student. essays must be less that 2500 words., fitzwilliam college history essay competition this essay competition is for students in year 21 or equivalent; limit of 2500 words. 2022 brief: fitzwilliam college traces its origins to 1869, when the university of cambridge launched an initiative to facilitate access to higher education for the many students who could not afford the costs of college membership. the initiative was part of the broader transformation of education in britain, as the changes wrought by industrialisation and urbanisation created a need to cater for a growing, increasingly diverse and literate population. earlier decades had already witnessed the establishment of king’s college london, durham university, and the university of london, for instance, and colleges for women were beginning to open in cambridge and oxford. these radical social and economic changes were themselves connected to the intensification of globalisation in the second half of the nineteenth century, which placed britain at the heart of an ever-tighter web of economic relations between the world’s continents. but the same year also witnessed the birth of mohandas – later mahatma – gandhi, who would come to challenge britain’s colonial rule and lead india on the path to independence; the death of alphonse de lamartine, the poet and politician who had proudly proclaimed france’s second republic in 1848, but whose final years were lived under the more authoritarian second empire; the marriage of emperor meiji, which consolidated japan’s monarchy as the country began a new process of industrialisation; and the establishment by susan b. anthony and elizabeth cady stanton of the national woman suffrage association in a united states still recovering from the civil war. in 1869, as throughout history, old and new worlds collided. we invite applicants to examine, in their essays, a topic of their choice, connected to the changes taking place in or around the year 1869. essays may focus on a particular event, a person, a political movement, or even a process of social, economic or cultural change, but they should consider the interaction of ‘old’ and ‘new’ forces which the chosen topic illuminates. fitzwilliam college rosemary horrox medieval world essay competition this essay competition is for students in year 21 or equivalent; limit of 2500 words. 2022 questions: 1. how can the study of dead languages help us understand medieval cultures 2. what qualities made heroes heroic and villains villainous in medieval literature 3. how far do medieval texts give us any cause for optimism in their presentation of gender 4. did the european middle ages witness the “invention of race” 5. were war and/or rebellion the defining features of medieval society 6. “medieval europe cannot be studied in isolation from the rest of the world”. do you agree trinity college robson history prize the robson history prize is an annual competition for year 12 or lower 6th students. the prize was established in 2007 in memory of the historian robert robson, who was for many years a fellow and tutor at trinity. the aims of the robson prize are twofold: firstly, to encourage ambitious and talented year 12 or lower sixth students considering applying to university to read history or a related discipline; and secondly, to recognize the achievements both of high-calibre students and of those who teach them. 2022 questions: the robson history prize for 2022 had 94 questions in the categories of british history, european history, world history, and historiography, so head to the website for the full list. newnham college history essay prize the newnham history essay prize is open to all female students currently in year 12 (lower sixth) at uk state school. essays should be between 1500 and 2500 words. 2021-22 questions: 1. ‘historians shouldn’t be political pundits’. discuss 2. can the history of clothing tell us about anything other than changes in fashion 3. is historical change driven by great individuals, land economy fitzwilliam college land economy essay competition this essay competition is for students in year 21 or equivalent; limit of 2500 words. 2022 questions: 1. do you believe that environmentalist civil society organisations, such as extinction rebellion and greenpeace, can be effective at pushing governments to adopt environmental policies aimed at addressing the climate and ecological crises 2. ‘territorial inequality between different parts of the uk is extremely high. this undermines the principle of equality of opportunities, because individuals’ life chances crucially depend on where one happens to be born and raised.’ discuss, possibly drawing on examples from your own area of residence. 3. some argue that the covid-19 pandemic has dramatically impacted the fate of inner cities and, in the future, expensive, commuter-driven urban cores will decline in favour of less compact/dense areas such as towns and the countryside. do you agree, law trinity college robert walker prize for essays in law the prize is named after an honorary fellow of the college, lord walker of gestingthorpe, a retired justice of the supreme court and former law student at trinity. essays can be of any length up to 2,000 words (including footnotes). 2022 question: ‘what responsibilities in connection with the environment and sustainability, if any, should the law assign to owners and to occupiers of land’, linguistics trinity college linguistics essay prize this annual essay competition aims to raise awareness of the systematic study of language as an interesting and multifaceted subject in and of itself. the competition is open to all students with an interest in how language works regardless of the specific subjects they are currently studying at a-level (or similar qualification). for example, it may be of interest to students taking a-levels in modern languages, english language or classics, but also to students taking psychology or mathematics. 2022 topic: ‘people who speak two or more languages or dialects sometimes switch between them within the same conversation, and even within the same sentence. what reasons make people switch languages (or dialects) why is this interesting for linguists should linguists prescribe if switching is good or bad’, philosophy trinity college philosophy essay prize the philosophy essay prize is open to year 12 or lower 6th students. the aim of the prize is to encourage able sixth formers to pursue their interest in philosophy, with the hope that they will be encouraged to read this or related subjects at university. 2022 questions: - which philosophical insight that you have come across in your life so far has been the most important one for you - what is the difference between knowledge and understanding - is truth a human invention newnham college philosophy essay prize the newnham philosophy essay prize is open to all female students currently in year 12 (lower sixth) at a uk state school. it is designed to give students the opportunity to think and write about philosophy and philosophical matters in the broadest sense, while developing their independent study and writing skills. through exposure to the type of work they might be expected to do at cambridge, newnham hope to encourage philosophy applicants to the university – and hopefully to newnham, where women’s history and educational excellence are, of course, central. 2021-22 question: ‘sentences such as “a good oak tree has deep roots” can be true, and true irrespective of anybody’s opinion. in other words, such sentences can be objectively true. now, the word “good” doesn’t change its meaning just because it’s being applied to members of one species rather than another. so, sentences such as “a good human being is kind” can be objectively true as well.’ should we be convinced by this kind of argument for the objectivity of ethical judgements, politics trinity college r.a. butler politics prize the objectives of the r.a. butler prize are twofold. firstly, it aims to encourage students with an interest in modern politics and world affairs to think about undertaking university studies in politics, international studies or a related discipline; it is not limited to those already studying these subjects or indeed other social sciences. secondly, its intention is to recognise the achievements both of high-calibre students and of those who teach them. essays can be up to 3,000 words, including all footnotes and references but excluding the bibliography. 2022 questions: - whom do elected representatives, in practice, represent - are the police institutionally discriminatory -  is it ever legitimate for one country to invade another - should countries be punished for the actions of their leaders - do international regional organisations offer the best prospects for cooperation between states in the contemporary world - are international organisations biased towards the interests of wealthy countries - what should the uk be doing to help refugees - should every family own its own home - what statues should come down, and which (if any) should stay up - what policies should the uk government be implementing to ensure it meets its commitments made at the un climate change conferences, maths newnham college philippa fawcett mathematics essay prize the philippa fawcett mathematics prize is open to all female students currently in year 12 (lower sixth) at a uk state school. the prize may be of particular interest to those studying mathematics, statistics or further mathematics but we welcome entries from interested students studying any combination of subjects. entrants are invited to submit a response to any one of the questions below. submissions should comply with the following: • 4-6 a4 sides maximum including all figures, diagrams, tables and bibliography • 12 point font minimum • 2 cm margins minimum • 2500 words max. 2021-22 questions: 1. how does mathematics protect your privacy online 2. what are the most fascinating aspects behind the mathematics of music discuss how mathematics is related to the theory of musical structures and/or instruments. 3. mathematics and climate change: what role do you think mathematics can play in guiding policy makers and in helping public understanding, medicine newnham college medicine prize the newnham college medicine prize is open to all female students currently in year 12 (lower sixth) at a maintained sector uk school. the prize may be of particular interest to those studying biology and chemistry, but we welcome entries from interested students studying any combination of subjects. entrants are invited to submit a response to any one of the questions below. submissions should comply with the following: • 6 a4 sides maximum including all figures, diagrams, tables and bibliography • 12 point font minimum • 2 cm margins minimum • 1500-2500 words total (including footnotes and figure captions, but excluding bibliography) 2021-22 questions: 1. how realistic is it to develop a small molecule therapy for covid-19 could such a therapy be rolled out in a timeframe that it could have an impact on the current pandemic 2. sleep deprivation in clinical health settings. does it matter 3. looking to the future. will stem cell therapies be outpaced by machine-brain interfaces for the treatment of retinal disease, music newnham college music essay prize the newnham music essay prize is open to all female students currently in year 12 (lower sixth) at a maintained sector uk school. it is designed to give students the opportunity to think and write about music in its broadest context, while developing their independent study and writing skills. 2021-22 questions: 1) how have improvements in transport and communications infrastructure affected the history of music – and in what ways might they do so in future 2) evaluate the challenges and opportunities presented to musical culture in a time of global pandemic. 3) in some ways music can be thought of as the ultimate interdisciplinary subject, but it is also highly specialised in other respects. examine this paradox in the context of the debate about music’s role in primary and secondary education., sciences newnham college engineering essay prize the newnham engineering prize is open to all female students currently in year 12 (lower sixth) at a uk state school. the prize may be of particular interest to those studying physics, mathematics, further mathematics, chemistry, biology, design and technology or economics, but they welcome entries from interested students studying any combination of subjects. 2021-22 questions: 1. what can engineers do to mitigate climate change - atmospheric levels of co2 are increasing and the world is waking up to the problem of climate change brought about by human-generated greenhouse gas emissions. as engineers, we have the skills and expertise to make a difference, providing technological solutions to reduce global carbon emissions. all engineering disciplines have a role to play and some areas are suggested below. (a) electric power generation and consumption. what are ‘renewable sources’ of electric power generation how do they work and what are their strengths and limitations are there any new sources being researched and developed that might provide solutions for the future could the uk generate all its electricity from renewable sources - how can we reduce our demand for electric power so that we don’t need to generate so much - there may be opportunities in both domestic and commercial/industrial consumption, e.g. energy efficient homes, energy-efficient manufacturing, low power consumer electronics. (b) transport. modern lifestyles involve a lot of transport, of people as well as goods. how energy-efficient are different modes of transport, and what is the potential for reducing their carbon footprint (c) construction. this sector is one of the biggest emitters of carbon globally. the carbon emissions arise from many sources, especially the huge amount of concrete used in construction projects but also including the energy to power machines. do we have any alternatives for materials or technology strategies to reduce these emissions (d) other engineering areas. technological solutions can be found in all engineering disciplines. you are encouraged to choose for the topic of your essay an example that interests you. 2. data and information engineering data and information engineering is being used everywhere around us. our life increasingly relies on data analysis, from the recent developments in the automotive sector to social media, from machine assisted surgery to law forensics. the data deluge provided by recent technological advances has made automation in data analysis necessary to identify hidden patterns of information within the considered datasets. it is also true that a fully automated world could bring new risks and dangers that did not exist even just a few years ago (e.g., the ethical dilemmas of self driving cars). write an essay on the major aspects of social awareness in ai development, and how this could impact: a) the health sector. b) government, democracy and policing. c) sustainable development. d) another major topic of your interest. you are encouraged to think about the engineering considerations related to some of these topics as well as the ethical considerations. what makes an algorithm particularly helpful or harmful newnham college biological sciences essay prize the newnham college biological sciences prize is open to all female students currently in year 12 (lower sixth) at a uk state school. the prize may be of particular interest to those studying biology, chemistry, physics, or mathematics, but we welcome entries from interested students studying any combination of subjects. entrants are invited to submit a response to any one of the titles overleaf. submissions should comply with the following: - 5 a4 sides maximum including all figures, diagrams, tables and bibliography - 12 point font minimum - 2 cm margins minimum - 2500 words max. 2021-22 questions: 1. is biology in a reproducibility crisis 2. assess the contribution of artificial intelligence (ai) to recent scientific advances. 3. past and present: how has infection shaped the human genome newnham college computer science essay prize the computer science essay prize is open to all female students currently in year 12 (lower sixth) at a maintained sector uk school. the prize may be of particular interest to those studying computer science, mathematics, physics, or chemistry, but we welcome entries from interested students studying any combination of subjects. entrants are invited to submit a response to any one of the questions overleaf. submissions should comply with the following: - 4-6 a4 sides maximum including all figures, diagrams, tables and bibliography - 12 point font minimum - 2 cm margins minimum - 2500 words maximum 2021-22 questions: 1. is there a fundamental difference between self-driving cars and a "slaughter army" of killer drones 2. mobile phone apps are generally written by commercial entities for private gain. if you had the same resources to design one mobile phone app that would make the world better, what would it be and how would it work, get in touch.

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Armstrong Arts and Humanities Essay Competition

2024 competition applications are closed.

The competition is open to students attending state-maintained schools in the UK, and who are in their penultimate year of education (Year 12 in England and Wales, S5 in Scotland, or Year 13 in Northern Ireland).

Essay Questions

The essay questions cover the breadth of arts and humanities subjects offered at undergraduate level at the University of Cambridge.

Questions are often multi-disciplinary, designed to encourage entries to consider the connections between various subjects, and to allow entries to approach the question from varying angles. Effective essays will present a clear argument supported by specific, relevant examples.

1. Are there some fundamental rights which legislation cannot remove?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Human, Social, and Political Sciences , and Law .

2. Is translation more like an art or more like a science?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic ; Asian and Middle Eastern Studies ; Classics ; Modern and Medieval Languages ; and Theology, Religion, and Philosophy of Religion .

3. “It's all about feeling. If you can play 1,000 notes a minute, and it just goes straight across the board and there’s no feeling, it doesn't mean anything.” – B. B. King (blues guitarist), The Life of Riley (2012 documentary film). Discuss the role of feeling in music-making, and answer the question ‘could a robot be a good guitarist?’

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Music , and Philosophy .

4. ‘Crime does not exist. Only acts exist, acts are often given different meanings within various social frameworks.’ (Christie, 2004). Do you agree?

5. For studying literature, the selection of a canon should not only be based on quality of the texts but also on equal representation, in terms of age, gender and ethnicity, of its intended readers. Do you agree?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies ; Classics ; Education ; English ; and Modern and Medieval Languages .

6. If aliens existed, would they have a concept of God?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Philosophy , and Theology, Religion, and Philosophy of Religion .

7. ‘As one reads history . . . one is absolutely sickened not by the crimes the wicked have committed, but by the punishments the good have inflicted’ (Oscar Wilde, 1891). How should punishments be determined?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Education ; History, and Human, Social, and Political Sciences .

8. Does the power of multi-national corporations now exceed that of the nation state?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in History; Human, Social, and Political Sciences ; and Law .

9. Why do languages change?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic ; Asian and Middle Eastern Studies ; Classics ; Linguistics ; Modern and Medieval Languages ; and Theology, Religion, and Philosophy of Religion .

10. "We are bored when we don't know what we are waiting for. That we do know, or think we know, is nearly always the expression of our superficiality or inattention. Boredom is the threshold to great deeds." (Walter Benjamin, The Arcades Project, 105). Write an essay in defence of boredom using this quotation as a starting point.

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in English ; Human, Social, and Political Sciences ; Philosophy ; and Theology, Religion, and Philosophy of Religion .

11. What can the study of sexuality in the ancient world teach us about the formation of the modern self?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Archaeology ; Classics ; English ; History ; and Human, Social, and Political Sciences .

12. "A picture is worth a thousand words". What is the place of studying texts in a world that is increasingly dependent on visual communication?

If you are interested in this question, you may wish to explore Cambridge undergraduate courses in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies ; Classics ; English ; History of Art ; Linguistics ; and Modern and Medieval Languages .

The essay questions are available to view in PDF format here:

Submissions should adhere to the word limit of 2,000 words, which does not include footnotes or bibliographies. The word count should be stated at the end of the essay.

All sources should be cited and listed in a bibliography. We understand that entrants may not have prior experience of referencing and would recommend  Harvard referencing system website  for an explanation of the Harvard referencing system. Entrants are welcome to use alternative reference styles if they prefer.

Entrants should submit one essay only. The submission must be entirely the entrant’s own work, and should not contain any work generated by ChatGPT or other forms of artificial intelligence. The competition judges are mindful of the advancements in generative AI and will disqualify any submissions which demonstrate similarities to responses produced by AI tools. Entries must not be submitted or have been submitted to an exam board as part of any coursework, extended essay, or Extended Project Qualification (EPQ), either in part or in full.

The deadline for submissions is 3 May 2024 at 18:00.

Essays should be submitted by the form at the link below.

First prize: £300 Second prize: £200 Third Prize £100.

Honourable mentions may also be awarded. Prize winners will be invited to visit Magdalene College in Summer 2024.

The webinars below, recorded in 2023, may provide some advice and inspiration for researching, writing, and refining your essay.

If you have any questions regarding the competition, please contact Natalie Thompson, Schools Liaison Officer, by emailing [email protected] .

Essay-writing Webinars

Magdalene College Schools Liaison Officer is delivering a series of webinars to provide advice on the stages of the essay-writing process.

Planning and Researching

The Writing Process

Refining and Referencing

The following pages contain information about our Essay Prizes run for Lower and Upper 6th Students internationally, including how to apply.

The Robson History Prize will not run in 2024 but we are expecting to run it again in 2025.

Gould Prize for Essays in English Literature

Languages and Cultures Essay Prize

Linguistics Essay Prize

Philosophy Essay Prize

R.A. Butler Politics Prize

Robert Walker Prize for Essays in Law

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Essay Competitions Deadline

Each year, Fitzwilliam College runs essay competitions in a variety of subjects, allowing talented pupils to explore their interests beyond the school curriculum.

The University of Cambridge seeks out students with a passion for their subject and who have investigated it outside the classroom. Our essay competitions provide students with an opportunity to engage with their interests in this way, allowing them to demonstrate their enthusiasm for their subject.

2024 Competitions

This year we will be running essay competitions in Ancient World and Classics, Archaeology, Economics, History, Land Economy, Medieval World and Slavonic Studies. We will additionally be running an Architecture design competition. Further particulars and this year's questions can be found at the links below. Please read the competition rules and submission guidelines carefully before entering a competition.

Ancient World and Classics

Archaeology

Economics (for state-school UK students only - please see link for details on eligibility)

Land Economy

Medieval World

Slavonic Studies

Architecture – students wishing to enter the Architecture Design Competition may find this plan of Fitzwilliam College and information on the history of Fitzwilliam’s buildings useful

The deadline for all competitions is  6pm on  Friday 1st March 2024 .

Competition rules

These essay competitions are exclusively for students in their penultimate year of education (Year 12 in England and Wales, S5 in Scotland, Year 13 in Northern Ireland). They are open to students in any country but submissions must be written in English.

Submissions should strictly adhere to the word limit set out in the subject brief (2500 words for Archaeology, Classics & Ancient World, History, Land Economy, Slavonic Studies and Medieval World; 1500 words for Economics; 500 words for the Architecture narrative), and contain a bibliography at the end. The word count should exclude the bibliography, but include any footnotes. Each page should be numbered and contain the applicant's full name.

We understand that not all students will have previous experience of writing a bibliography, and may not have equal access to advice on doing so. We therefore include this link to guidance on how to correctly use the Harvard referencing system. Anyone who wishes to use a different referencing system is free to do so.

Students are only permitted to enter one competition and may only submit one entry to that competition. There is a strict limit of five submissions per school for each competition. If more than five students from the same school enter the same competition, a teacher from that school will be contacted and asked to select the five entries; failure to do so will result in all submissions from the school to that competition being disqualified. Please note that this limit does not apply to Sixth Form Colleges where year groups are over 1000 students in size. When submitting an essay, the student will be asked to provide the name and email address of a teacher who may be contacted in order to verify the submission.

The submission must be entirely the individual student's work and must not be submitted or have been submitted to an exam board as part of any coursework or extended essay, either in part or in full.

Submission guidelines

Anyone who wishes to enter an essay competition must complete the online form .

Submissions can be uploaded to the online form in a PDF format. If the file size is too big to upload to the form, please email your submission to [email protected] . We can also accept entries by post. Please address postal submissions to: Schools Liaison Officer, Fitzwilliam College, Storey's Way, Cambridge, CB3 0DG.

You should receive an email confirmation after submitting the form. If you do not receive confirmation within 24 hours, please contact us at the email address below. Any technical difficulties will be dealt with on the next day, and students affected may be allowed to submit late in some circumstances.

Writing Webinars

Students preparing submissions who would like advice on essay writing may wish to seek advice from our two essay writing webinars:

•   Webinar 1 - Initial Preparation - 12th January 2024  at 6pm

**Please note, due to an issue with recording, this is last years webinar. All the information is the same bar these two changes**:

• The deadline for the competition is Friday 1 st of March 2024 at 6pm
• We are running a Slavonic studies competition this year, in addition to the competitions listed in this webinar
• Webinar 2 - Finalising your Essay - 16th February 2024 at 2pm

The webinars are delivered by the Schools Liaison Officer - the first webinar focuses on initial planning, research, and structuring of an academic essay, while the second provides advice on how to finalise arguments, edit, and reference your essays. Please email [email protected] with any questions about this event. 

If you have any questions relating to the competitions please contact us on  [email protected]

Peterhouse Kelvin Biological Sciences Essay Competition

We are pleased to announce the 2024 Peterhouse Kelvin Biological Sciences Essay Competition! This competition aims to give students the opportunity to explore scientific concepts and topics beyond the classroom, and to engage with scientific research.  

Who can take part?

The Kelvin Biological Sciences Essay Competition is open to students in their penultimate year of study (Year 12 in England and Wales, S5 in Scotland, Year 13 in Northern Ireland, or equivalent) who are educated in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Please make sure that you have read the submission guidelines and FAQs sections carefully before entering.

You can read a selection of the winning entries from last year’s competition here ( https://www.pet.cam.ac.uk/essay-competition-winners-2023 )

Submission Guidelines

Your essay should be no more than 2,000 words including footnotes and appendices on one of the four questions listed below. You should include a bibliography and ensure that all sources are referenced. The bibliography is excluded from the word limit. We know that not all students will be familiar with referencing, so you might find the following page from the University which includes a Guide to Harvard Referencing helpful ( https://libguides.cam.ac.uk/Official-Publications/referencing ) . Any other standard system of referencing style is also acceptable. Please note that all work should be your own, should not be produced by Artificial Intelligence, and should not include any work that has been or will be submitted to an exam board as part of your studies. The main focus of your essay should not be material previously or currently being studied as part of your school courses.

There is a maximum of four entries per school, preferably across the range of questions. Please note that this limit does not apply to Sixth Form Colleges where year groups are over 1000 students in size. All entries must be approved by a teacher, so please make sure a teacher at your school knows that you are entering. On the submission form you will be asked to provide a name and contact information for the teacher who will be supporting your application. If more than four entries are submitted by one school, we will contact the referees at this school to let us know which submissions are to be considered. Schools with lots of potential entrants may wish to run their own internal competition before the chosen answers are submitted to us for consideration.

Submissions will close on Monday 29th April at 23:59 pm GMT . We are unable to consider essays which have not been submitted by this deadline.

Your essay must be submitted as a PDF via the following form: https://cambridge.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_080XQThHYlhMuPk Please ensure that all pages in your essay are numbered, and that your name and school appears clearly on the first page. You should name your PDF file in the following format: Question number-Surname-First Initial e.g. Q2-Smith-T. Your teacher will then receive an email from Peterhouse asking them to confirm that you are eligible and that your essay complies with our guidelines. They will need to complete this by Tuesday 7th of May – please do make sure that they are aware of this.

Kelvin Biological Sciences Essay Competition Questions – 2024

• Why do duckbill platypuses fluoresce under UV light?
• Mitochondria are always shown as ovals; in reality they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Why?
• Why are there so few venomous mammals and no birds, whereas there are so many venomous reptiles?
• Reintroduction of ecosystem engineers (e.g. beavers) can have major impacts on the environment. What species would you reintroduce (or introduce) to the British Isles and why has this not been done already?

Summary of Key Dates

Deadline for submissions – Monday 29th April 23:59 pm GMT

Deadline for teacher confirmation – Tuesday 7th May 23:59 pm GMT

Can I answer more than one of the four questions for the 2024 Kelvin Essay Competition?

We ask that students only submit one essay per person.

Can I make any changes once I have submitted my essay using the above form?

Please note that once you have submitted your entry it is not possible to make any changes – please ensure you are happy with your work before pressing ‘submit’.

Will I receive feedback on my essay?

Unfortunately, due to the high volume of submissions, it is not possible to provide feedback on individual essays.

Why do I need to include contact information for a teacher at my school, and who should this be?

After you submit your essay we get in touch with a contact at your school so that they can confirm you are eligible for the competition, and that the essay is your own work. This can be any teacher at your school who knows you, for example, the Head of Biology, one of your subject teachers, your form tutor, or your Head of Year.

The competition has a prize pool of £750, which will be shared between the winners. Winners will be contacted by email - please make sure your contact details are entered correctly! A prizegiving ceremony will be held in Cambridge in summer 2024.

If you have any further questions relating to the competition, please email us at [email protected] .  

Day Nursery

Student wins Cambridge University English Prize for essay competition

James Green, Year 12, has been awarded the Thomas Campion English Prize by Peterhouse College, Cambridge University.

The commendation puts James among the top 10 entrants worldwide.

Stylish and original say Cambridge judges

Judges felt that James’ essay stood out for its clarity of argument, stylish prose, level of research and originality of thought.

His work enabled him to explore the relationship between maths and poetry. He said “I was drawn to the idea of comparing two rather disparate discourses in the same essay and the opportunity to unpack the concept of ‘poetic patterning’ in detail. The question elicits quite a panoramic view on poetry, which I felt afforded a good deal of room to explore a range of texts within the 4000-word limit.

“In my essay, I have tried to take the approach of considering poetic patterning in three distinct areas: the rhythmic, the phonetic, and the syntactical. Having considered some examples of each, I argue that poetry and mathematics cannot be seen as synonymous due to several fundamental distinctions, not least of which the role of human experience.”

Sense of freedom beyond the curriculum

Studying A Level English Literature, Spanish and Latin at Berkhamsed Sixth Form, James also independently studies A Level Maths. The Peterhouse competition series are opportunities for talented students to explore their academic interests beyond the curriculum.

“Passionate about the study of literature, I was attracted to the Thomas Campion essay competition by the range of engaging questions and the opportunity to craft an argument about texts of my own choosing. There’s a unique sense of freedom here, I suppose, which is not to be found within English syllabuses at GCSE and A Level; such competitions offer invaluable experience in putting together a more individual response than one might in the exam hall. I’m absolutely thrilled to be a winner of the competition, though didn’t expect to be in this position at all!”

James is looking forward to travelling to Cambridge for the Prize-Winners Luncheon later this month. He will have the opportunity to meet like-minded students and receive his cash prize in person.

Aiming high with integrity

Named as Berkhamsted’s Head Boy for 2019/20 James’ display of the school values ‘aiming high with integrity’ is exemplified by his success in the competition.

English teacher Alistair Harrison said “I am delighted for James – this is indicative of his honourable commitment to literature. These competitions present something rather beautiful to the critical and curious mind – the freedom they offer to explore ideas and texts allows a student like James to truly challenge himself. What greater reward can there be for a teacher than to see his student flourish in the most academic of arenas? James has a very exciting future.”

Read James’ essay

‘In that poetry is always patterned language, we may say that poetry is language tending towards mathematics.’ Discuss some examples of poetic patterning in the light of this judgement.

View James’ prize winning essay

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Essay – examples & model answers | C1 Advanced (CAE)

CAE Essay Example & Model Answer:  Younger people

Example exam task:.

Write an  essay  discussing only  two points . You should  explain which point is more important , giving reasons in support of your answer.

CAE Essay: Example Answer (Grade: 3-4)

Example answer:.

Adults can influence younger people in a good way, but also in a bad way. There are various possibilities how this can happen.

On the one hand, setting a good example is a quite useful way, because younger people will be able to see the adult’s behaviours and ways of thinking. They will see and feel the adult’s values and lives and may decide to become like them someday or at least to try to behave and think like adults.

On the other hand, offering advices seems to be the better way for me, how adults can influence younger people. Because, setting a good example to follow can be useful, but it also is pretty exhausting for adults and they may have some pressure as well. In addition, it’s just an opportunity for younger people, because they’ll decide rather they want to become like these adults or not.

In my opinion, younger people should try to learn how life works on their own. This will lead to more failures, but in my opinion, failing is normal and necessary. Of course this way of influencing is more exhausting for younger people, but I guess they’ll figure out how to do things on their own.

Failures are crucial for learning and for success, therefore I think that adults just should offer advices and show them, that they believe in them. That’s going to encourage younger people and they will try to learn and believe in themselves. That’s why I think, that offering advices is the better way how adults can influence younger people.

FCE, CAE, CPE

Practice, write & improve, examiners comments & grade:, cae essay: model answer (grade: 4-5).

Many parents, struggle with bringing up their child into be responsible adults and are unsure how to influence them. There are of course, many ways of influencing young adults, and I want to present and discuss two of them: giving rules to obey and offering your children advice.

First of all, it has to be said that advice is easy to ignore, and that children especially in their adolescent years, don’t even want advice, and will tell you so, too: ‘I don’t need your help’, they will say to you or even shout at you. Kids often feel misunderstood they think their parents can’t understand them, because they are ‘too old’. If your son or daughter has a problem, it is important to make him or her feel that you do understand and only want their best and are, therefore, offering some advice, hoping it will help them.

Then again, there are rules. Rules can be placed differently, they don’t need to be a stone-hard barrier to your child’s freedom. Adolescents will often bend rules or utterly break them all because they need this certain feeling of rebellion and freedom. Rules also help the maturing of the conscience. If a child doesn’t need to follow rules, it’s conscience will never mature and it will not know wrong from right. If, however you place rules, and punishments should they not be followed, your son or daughter will learn not to steal, to be home on time simply because he or she doesn’t want to be punished. Don’t overdo it, though. Placing too hard punishments could also lead to destruction of the conscience your child never being able to make it’s own decisions.

I think that giving rules to obey is the best way of influencing young people. Wherever you go, you find certain rules. Not every rule is absolutely sensible, but while growing older, your child will learn by itself which rules should be followed and will follow them of free choice.

CAE Essay Model Answer: Crimes

The documentary investigated what makes young people commit crimes. It seems to me that the most important reason is lack of appropriate control by parents.

To put the blame for youth crime on parents may seem rather unfair, but a lot of the interviews and information in the documentary backed up this belief. There is more than one reason why many parents fail to control their children. Some parents believe that it is wrong to discipline children in any way, and think that children should be free to do whatever they want. Some parents are simply too lazy and selfish to control their children, preferring to let them behave badly so that they can continue doing what they want. Another reason is that some parents did not grow up being disciplined by their parents and so they do not do that with their own children.

Factors such as economic position and influence from peers can of course play a major role in causing young people to turn to crime. However, it is my view that how children am brought up is more important than either of those. They need firm rules to be given to them by parents who they respect, and if they are not given firm guidance by parents, some of them are bound to behave badly. Some of this bad behaviour will be criminal. If you do something wrong and you get away with it, you will do it again or do worse things.

CAE Essay Model Answer: Talent Shows

The discussion focused on various issues connected with TV shows that feature members of the public. They have been a worldwide phenomenon for some time and views on them vary greatly.

One of the main aspects of these shows is the entertainment they provide for viewers. Obviously, they would not be watched by so many people if audiences didn’t find them entertaining. During the discussion. It was said that the shows are enjoyable to watch and do no harm. People enjoy watching ordinary members of the public living their lives, doing their jobs or taking part In talent competitions because they can relate to those people. I think that this 15 true. Although I don’t personally find them interesting and therefore seldom watch them, I agree that many people find them very entertaining.

However, a morn serious aspect was discussed and that Is the Influence these shows can have on people. especially young people. This, I think, Is the most Important aspect. Many young people are Influenced by these shows and the people on then They too want to appear on TV, to be ‘famousjust like the people they see. Rather than thinking realistically about their futures and about getting jobs and careers. they get the Impression that anyone can be famous. Instead of focusing on building a life in a practical way, they dream of being like those people on the shows. I think this 15 the most important consequence of these shows and It is a harmful one.

CAE Essay Example & Model Answer: Facilities

Facilities in need of funds

Having listened to today’s radio programme about facilities that need financial help, I realised that sports centers and public gardens have been neglected over the years by the local authorities.

There are few sports centers out there that meet the right characteristics that a good sports center must have. This is one of the many reasons that people avoid sport. We see lots of kids nowadays suffering from obesity and other health problems caused by the simple fact that they don’t do sport.

Another reason for this is that people have nowhere to go out for a walk or to run in a nice place. Public gardens, parks for example are also lacking in numbers. The ones that are already there are not very nice and they don’t look very good. I think that by improving this two facilities the population can benefit from this. By creating more sports centers, there will be some more jobs offered, and some kids might even follow a sports career. By making more public gardens people can get out more often and spend some good quality time relaxing.

I think that local authorities should invest money in both facilities because, this is a good way to increase the populations health.

Example Answer:

In regard of a recent discussion about the facilities, which are financially supported by local authorities, I would like to write a few of my personal thoughts. Whether we are talking about sports centres or public gardens, there is no doubt that they are both a good thing to have in the city and should both be supported somehow. The only question then is which one of these is more important, what are the pros and cons of each one?

Let me start with the sport centres as I think these are a bit more problematic. Obviously, in our times where lots of people spend days sitting in their office staring at a computer, some sort of physical training is very important. We have to balance that shift in our lifestyles. The problem I see with supporting the sports centres is the number of activities that you can do at these days. There is almost countless list of either individual or team sports that we can think of, and each centre is usually designed for a specific type or at least a group of sports similar in its nature. Therefore I think that it is too difficult to support them equally and we can’t say which activity is better than the others either. Another reason for not financing sports as much as green parks is their commercial use. What I mean by that is that we usually pay for everything the centre offers us to do and therefore they are more able to last from their own money than gardens.

Regarding of the green spaces, the situation is much clearer I think. Every city needs gardens where people can sit and relax, but nobody is going to pay a tax for just walking around.

These factors lead me to my conclusion, that the public gardens are definitely a facility which should be financed from public money, whereas in the case of sports centres, the situation is questionable.

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Home › Essay Competition 2024 › Essay Competition Winners › 2021 Essay Competition Winner – 16-18

2021 Essay Competition Winner – 16-18

Table of Contents

Take a look at one of the winning entries to the Immerse Education Essay Competition from the Business Management category. Congratulations to all participants and in particular to those who won 100% scholarships!

by Kornelia K . Read Kornelias Scholarship Story Here.

What makes a good role model in business?

A role model can mean different things to different people however a widely accepted term is a person who someone admires and whose behaviour they may imitate(1). To be a good role model in business, one should be responsible, ethical, and possess good judgement. These admirable characteristics are a necessity in order to ensure that those under the influence of a person will emulate those qualities, instead of ones that could be viewed as harmful, such as selfishness or unreliability. Moreover, in business, adopting unethical practises and poor judgement can lead to dire consequences. Some repercussions can include legal issues, loss of your company or an inadequate reputation.

Being ethical is one of the most fundamental attributes of a role model, particularly in a business environment. Unethical business practices are anything that falls below minimum standards for business code of conduct (2) and some examples can include defamation, harmful habits,, false product claims and discrimination. The gender pay gap is one controversial case of unethical business practice; in 2020 it was reported that from 2019 to 2020, there was a mean wage gap of 6.5% and a median of 15.9% between men and women (3). Difference in salaries is just one method of discrimination. Fortunately, in a further progressing society, prejudice is being viewed as what it is : unethical. It is crucial for a role model in business to be ethical as aspiring entrepreneurs may believe certain practices to be acceptable which produces a generation of corrupt business people. Another quality of a successful role model is responsibility. To be responsible is to be accountable for one’s behaviour or action (4). Part of human nature is to make mistakes and although this may be inevitable, our actions subsequently are ultimately our decision. Whether we accept responsibility or place blame on other individuals can define our character to those around us. When one acknowledges their errors, it encourages those who associate with them to do the same and also makes adopting solutions uncomplicated. On the other hand, confessing to one faults can make one seem incompetent; however disclosing your short-comings not only assists you in learning from them, but also those who consider you a role model. Having good judgement is an essential aspect of being an influential role model. A person’s reputation can rely heavily on the decisions that affect a business. Kay Whitmore (former CEO of Kodak) unfortunately lacked this attribute when he failed to adapt to an evolving reality. His poor judgement cost him his position when he was eventually fired from his own company in 1993 (5). In contrast, Elon Musk shaped his career through a series of intelligent choices. One of his most prominent companies (Tesla), is believed to be defining a new era with its electric cars (6). They adapted to the world’s concern of climate change and have created one of the most sustainable cars (7) which not only is environmentally friendly but also motivates customers to buy from them. The difference between whether one’s judgement is poor or not, can change your or your company’s reputation. In summary, to be a good role model in business, one should possess qualities of responsibility, morality and be able to make decisions that help your company evolve. Only then can the next generation of entrepreneurs truly thrive.

Bibliography

Cambridge Dictionary, “Role model”. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/role-model (Accessed 2021-05-28)

L. Holton, “The Ugly Truth About Unethical Business Practices [Updated]”, 17-05-20. https://myva360.com/blog/the-ugly-truth-about-unethical-business-practices

(Accessed 2021-06-03)

Gov.uk, “DIT gender pay gap report 2019 to 2020”, 15-12-20.

%20gender%20pay%20gap,hourly%20difference%20is%20%C2%A34.04 (Accessed 2021-06-03)

Lexico, “Responsible”. https://www.lexico.com/definition/Responsible (Accessed 2021-06-03)

business.com Member, “Leading By Bad Example: Famous Leaders You Want to be Nothing Like”, 09-02-16.

https://www.business.com/articles/famous-leaders-you-want-to-be-nothing-like/   (Accessed  2021-06-12)

E . Taylor, N. Shirouzu, J. White, “How Tesla defined a new era for the global auto industry”, 22-07-20.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-autos-tesla-newera-insight-idUSKCN24N0 (Accessed 2021-06-12)

M. Lewis, “EGEB: Tesla (surprise!) is the most eco-friendly car brand – study”, 13-12-19. https://electrek.co/2019/12/13/egeb-tesla-most-eco-friendly-car-brand-european-green-deal/ (Accessed 2021-06-12)

Why Apply To The Immerse Education Essay Competition? 

Are you a highly motivated student aged 13-18? Have you ever wanted to experience studying at Cambridge or Oxford? 

The Immerse Education essay competition allows you the chance to submit an essay for the chance to be awarded a scholarship to the award-winning Cambridge summer school . 

How To Apply To The Immerse Education Essay Competition? 

The Immerse Education annual essay competition is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to win a scholarship to a Cambridge or Oxford summer school . 

If you’re aged 13-18 and you’re interested in applying to the Immerse Education essay competition then please visit our essay competition page for more details.

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