Harvard Crimson Essay Competition
The Harvard Crimson, probably the most famous school newspaper in the country, runs an annual global essay competition. The standard is high, but the prizes are top notch. Eight winners are featured on the Crimson website and earn highly coveted internship spots. This is a major credit to any aspiring journalist (with ambitious of attending an ultra-selective college).
“The Harvard Crimson Global Essay Competition (HCGEC) brings together from around the world ambitious high school students (aged 13 - 18) with a passion for, or interest in, writing. This competition is an annual opportunity for students to showcase their talents on a global stage, compete to win exclusive educational opportunities and prizes, and explore different possibilities of a future in writing.
The two Principal Partners of HCGEC are The Harvard Crimson and Crimson Education. Find out more about our partners here.
The 2022 Global Prizes are exceptional and include exclusive internships with The Harvard Crimson, the opportunity to have work published and endorsed by two global educational organizations, and much more!
The competition is hosted completely online, breaking down geographical barriers and providing students from all over the world access to explore and develop their writing interests.
HCGEC believes that it’s important to cater to students with different interests, and therefore provides prompts from two different tracks: creative and argumentative (or persuasive). Each participant selects a prompt at the beginning of the competition and will submit a 500 word (max) essay. “
How do I get started? Click here.
How do I expand this narrative arc? Are you interested in journalism and keen to go beyond your school newspaper?
If you have a journalistic bent, check out our post on this incredible organization promoting written and visual journalism, YR Media
Consider starting a school radio or TV station
Do a summer course like this one at the New York TImes.
Submit your work to Affinity Magazine, a magazine for young journalists.
Be recognized for your work when you submit it to one of the many national writing competitions and awards programs like the Edward R. Murrow Awards
Also check out the impressive summer program at the Medill Northwestern Journalism Institute.