Staton Essay Prize 2017

Date: 24/04/2017


The College is now accepting entries from Year 12 students for this year’s Staton Essay Prize, on the theme of ‘Revolution and Dissent’.

500 years ago, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to a church door in Wittenberg; 100 years ago French troops on the Western Front mutinied and the Bolsheviks toppled the Tsar in the Russian Revolution, and 50 years ago the Sexual Offenses Act decriminalised homosexuality in the UK.  In 2017, the British government invoked Article 50 and began the process of Brexit and Donald Trump became the 45th President of the USA: are these dissenting and revolutionary events?

Tara Snelling, 2014 prize-winner and current student in English, writes: Definitely enter! There is a feeling that students who win or place in these contests are superhuman or Einsteins in the making, but honestly I was far from a perfectly polished essay writing machine. I didn’t expect anything, but thought it would be a brilliant opportunity to stretch my knowledge and pack in some extra reading before the application process. Don’t worry about expectations, the essay contest provides an invaluable opportunity to stretch yourself beyond what you’ve been taught in class time, which is going to provide a fantastic foundation later on during the UCAS application process regardless of if you place or not. It also gives you a chance to find out if Oxbridge is for you, as the competition works as a tester for writing a university style essay, and lets you figure out whether higher learning or a particular subject is the best fit for you personally.