Free to enter, New Scientist Prize for Science Writing, top prize: $1,500 (AUS/ NZ)

Deadline: 19 September 2011



The New Scientist Prize for Science Writing is now OPEN for student articles and editorials from all the far reaches of science.The competition aims to enhance excitement and enthusiasm about science and science communication; encompassing discoveries, new and old, technology and social commentary on present uses of science in the community



Apart from giving students the chance to express their opinions and writing prowess, three winners will be chosen from all the entries! First prize will be $1,500 and their article will be published on the New Scientist website http://www.newscientist.com/. Second prize will be $750 and third prize will be $250. The three winning entries will also be given a complementary yearly subscription to the New Scientist magazine.



Our delightful judges for this year will be Dr. Karl Kruszelnicki from the University of Sydney, Georgina Howden-Chitty and Dr. Ed Sykes from the Australian Science Media Centre, and Sumit Paul-Chourhury and Lucy Dunwell from New Scientist.



Entries will be accepted from the 1st August 2011 and will not be accepted after the 19th September 2011.



Conditions



Before entering, please make sure your entry complies with the following conditions.



* The prize is open to individuals.

* Submissions must be no more than 1000 words, excluding words used in captions.

* Work entered in this prize must have been undertaken by a current university student (undergraduate or postgraduate) who is able to provide evidence of having a valid student identification card from a university in Australia or New Zealand.

* Work entered in this prize must be original, unpublished and cannot be in the process of being published. Work previously submitted as academic coursework is acceptable as long as it has not been externally published.

* Each entrant may only enter one submission. If more than one are submitted, the last one submitted will be judged.

* Entrants are required to declare and disclose any subsequent corrections or challenges to the accuracy of an entry, or claims of plagiarism or defamation against work submitted.

* Where content from other sources is incorporated for purposes of proper coverage of the topic, this must be attributed. A full reference list is not required in the submission, but all statements should be verifiable.

* Online entry forms open 1st August 2011 and close 11.59pm, 19th September 2011. Hard copy entries will not be considered.

* Entries with insufficient sets of documentation will not be considered.

* The deliberations of the judging panel remain confidential. All recommendations and decisions taken are binding and final and no correspondence will be entered into on such matters. The judges reserve the right not to award a prize in any given year if, in their view, the quality of entries is insufficiently meritorious.

* Information provided by the entrant in relation to the New Scientist Prize for Science Writing (including photos) may be used by New Scientist for promotion/publicity purposes. This may include and is not restricted to the information being used on websites, social media, printed material, advertisements, press releases etc.

* The winning entry will be published by New Scientist at www.NewScientist.com.

* Personal information provided in connection with the New Scientist Prize for Science Writing will be used only by New Scientist and the prize organisers and only in connection with the New Scientist Prize for Science Writing.



How to Enter



So you’re interested in submitting an article to the competition? That is wonderful news! Read on to find out more…



What sort of articles are accepted?



Entries should be in either of two styles:



* a short feature report, in third person, discussing a scientific breakthrough or issue

* an editorial piece, in first person, arguing your opinion on a current scientific issue



Examples of both sorts of writing can be found at NewScientist.com or in New Scientist magazine. Your article should not have been published before, although it’s OK if you’d like to submit a reworked version of an article you’ve handed in as part of your coursework. If your article has been published somewhere that you control for copyright purposes (e.g. your own website or a student-run magazine that’s OK with us reprinting your piece), that’s fine too.



How should I present my article?



* Submit your article as PDF, DOC, DOCX or RTF.

* You’re welcome to include illustrations and photographs, as long as you have copyright permission for any images you use.

* Don’t include your name in the document. Just make sure it has a title, so that we can later match it to your entry form. This helps maintain anonymity during the judging process.

* Entries should be a maximum of 1000 words.



When does the competition open and close?



Entries will be accepted from Monday 1st August 2011 right up until Monday 19th September.



Contact Information:



For inquiries: newscientistprize@gmail.com



For submissions: submit via their website here



Website: http://newscientistprize.org/