Young Minds Prize
Voucher + Oxford Event
International essay competition for students aged 14 and under, run by Minds Underground, offering certificates and an Oxford award ceremony for category winners.
Mode
Online
Fee
Free
Participation format
Individual
Duration
Annual competition cycle running several months, from essay question release through the submission deadline the following spring
Time needed
Depends on individual research and writing time
Eligibility
Open to students aged 14 and under worldwide, judged in two age bands: 8-11 years and 12-14 years. No academic prerequisites. Entry is free and open to UK and international students; essays must be written in English.
- Age range
- 8 to 14 years
- Eligibility region
- Available nationwide across India
See if your child qualifies.
Rewards and recognition
Prizes
Voucher + Oxford Event
One winner from each of the two age categories receives a voucher redeemable on U2 Tuition or Minds Underground courses, along with an invitation to an award ceremony and camp hosted at Oxford University.
Certificate
Certificate of Recognition
Winners, runners-up, and highly commended entrants each receive a certificate from Minds Underground.
Recognition
Global Website Recognition
Skills your child builds
How to apply
- 1Read the essay questions published on the Young Minds Prize competition page and choose one
- 2Write an original essay within the word limit; no referencing is required
- 3Submit the essay as a PDF or Word document through the official online submission form by the deadline
- 4Winners, runners-up, and highly commended entrants are notified by email a few weeks after the deadline
Rules and guidelines
- One entry per student for the Young Minds Prize
- Essays must be written in English
- Junior essays must be up to 1000 words, with no lower limit
- Submissions must be original work; formal referencing is optional
- Late submissions after 11pm UK time on the deadline are not accepted
Technology requirements
- Internet access to complete the online submission form
About this opportunity
The Young Minds Prize is a global essay writing competition run by Minds Underground for students aged 14 and under, inviting them to explore imaginative and thought-provoking questions beyond the standard school curriculum.
Participants choose one of three set questions spanning creative, scientific, and reflective themes and submit an original essay of up to 1000 words through an online form. The competition is open to students worldwide and is free to enter, with two age categories judged separately: 8 to 11 years and 12 to 14 years.
Winners, runners-up, and highly commended entrants are recognized with certificates, and one winner from each age category receives a voucher for Minds Underground or its parent company U2 Tuition, along with an invitation to an award ceremony hosted at Oxford University. Essays are evaluated for originality, clarity, creativity, and command of written English.
Minds Underground is the co-curricular arm of U2 Tuition, an educational company staffed by Oxbridge and Ivy League graduates, and runs the Young Minds Prize alongside a wider suite of subject-specific essay competitions for older students.
Rounds and format
Single round: participants choose one of three set essay questions, write and submit their essay online by the deadline, and entries are reviewed by Minds Underground's academic team, with winners, runners-up, and highly commended entries announced by email a few weeks after the deadline.
How entries are judged
Essays are assessed on originality of ideas, clarity and structure of argument, creativity and engagement with the set question, and accuracy of spelling, punctuation, and grammar.
Selection process
One winner is selected from each of the two age categories, 8-11 years and 12-14 years, based on originality of ideas, clarity and structure of argument, creativity and engagement with the topic, and quality of spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Runners-up and highly commended entries are also recognized in each category.
Academic details
Difficulty: Mixed Levels
What's covered
Participants craft a single original essay responding to one of three set creative, scientific, or imaginative prompts, with no fixed syllabus.
Frequently asked questions
What kind of essay questions do participants typically face in the Young Minds Prize?
Entrants choose from three set questions each year that span creative, scientific, and imaginative themes, such as speculative futures, invention-based problem solving, or descriptive world-building, rather than a single fixed topic.
How are entries in the two age categories evaluated differently?
Judges review the 8-11 and 12-14 age categories separately, so entrants are compared only against peers of a similar age when originality, argument structure, creativity, and language accuracy are assessed.
What helps an essay stand out among the thousands of global entries Minds Underground receives each year?
Published model essays from past winners show that strong entries commit fully to one original idea rather than covering many themes, and pay close attention to grammar and structure within the word limit.
Does the shorter Junior word limit put younger writers at a disadvantage?
The up-to-1000-word Junior limit and absence of a minimum length mean entrants are judged on the quality and originality of their ideas rather than essay length.
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