Submissions are invited for The Woolf Essay Competition 2023 by University of Cambridge. The last date of submission is July 14, 2023.
About the University
The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England.
Competition Details
The Woolf Essay Competition is open to all women students currently in Year 12 (or equivalent), from any country or school. It is designed to give students the opportunity to think and write about women in literature, history, society and culture, while developing their independent study and writing skills.
Through exposure to the type of work they might be expected to do at Cambridge, high flying students will be encouraged to consider applying to the University – and hopefully to Newnham, where women’s history and educational excellence are, of course, central.
This competition may be of particular interest to those studying English Literature, History, Politics, Philosophy or Sociology; but entries from interested students studying any combination of subjects are welcomed.
Essay Questions
- She had to work on equal terms with men. She made, by working very hard, enough to live on. The importance of that fact outweighs anything that she actually wrote, […]”.
Discuss the significance of the struggle for financial independence and equality on the place of women in academia or any other profession, either historical or contemporary.
- “It would be a thousand pities if women wrote like men […] considering the vastness and variety of the world, how should we manage with one [sex] only?”
Using at least two examples, discuss the impact and value of the voices of women and/or gender non-conforming individuals to the literary world.
- “The history of men’s opposition to women’s emancipation is more interesting perhaps than the story of that emancipation itself”.
Analyse the role and responsibility of men in combatting gender inequality in a specific place and historical period.
Prizes
The Woolf Essay Competition will have book tokens as prizes (£300 for first prize, £200 for second prize, and £100 for third prize, with a small number of highly commended and commended certificates also awarded).
How to Submit?
Interested participants can submit their essays online via this link.
Submission Deadline
The last date of submission is July 14, 2023.
Contact
Email: essayprizes[at]newn[dot]cam[dot]ac[dot]uk
Click here to view the official notification for The Woolf Essay Competition 2023 by University of Cambridge.
