Submissions Are No Longer Being Accepted!
1. Fill out the registration form. The teacher information is very important, as your teacher will be consulted should your essay be chosen as one of the top 25.
2. Attach a copy of an original work in English on the designated topic, which should include a comprehensive list of sources consulted.
3. All submissions must include a word count, excluding the list of sources.
4. Entries must be typed, double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman or an equivalent font with a one-inch margin on all sides of the page. Standards of content and style from MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th ed., will be expected for (1) documentation of sources in the text of your essay (see chapter 5); (2) the format of the list of works cited (see sample page at end of the MLA Handbook); and (3) margins and indentation (see sample page also at end of Handbook).
5. AT LEAST three of the sources you cite must be primary sources, i.e. books, periodicals or newspapers that you have physically researched. Other sources may be online-only materials, provided they are cited correctly as such. Any submissions lacking three primary sources will be disqualified. Note: Any essay using sources such as Wikipedia will be disqualified! Please make sure to also separate your primary source list from your Internet source list.
6. Do not place your name or your school's name on any of the pages of the essay. Only the registration form should include this information.
7. Essays MUST be submitted in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) format. Essays submitted in any other format will not be considered.
8. Your essay will be disqualified if it does not meet the requirements or is submitted after the submission date of April 15, 2012. The deadline has passed and we are no longer accepting submissions.
9. The contest is open to all high school students who are (i) U.S. citizens and (ii) do not have parents in the U.S. Foreign Service. (Note that only winners who live in the U.S., including Hawaii and Alaska, are eligible for airfare to Washington, DC for their meeting with the Secretary of State. Unfortunately, we are unable to provide airfare for a winner residing outside the U.S.) Children of the employees of AFSA, Booz Allen Hamilton, and Semester at Sea are also ineligible.
Your essay will become the property of the American Foreign Service Association once it is submitted, and will not be returned.
The decisions of the judges are final.
Thank you for your essay submission and good luck!
PRIVACY POLICY: AFSA does not collect your information for any purposes other than for this contest. Your information will not be provided to a third party. Your e-mail will only be used for communication regarding this year's contest. You will not be automatically signed up to receive any updates or information from AFSA. The only e-mail you will receive from AFSA will be a confirmation that your submission has been received and a notification if you are the winner or an honorable mention.