Wentworth Medal

Established in 1854 by a gift of £200 from W.C. Wentworth, the interest to be applied in the shape of a medal as a reward for the best essay in English prose. The medal is now supplemented by a prize of $10,000. The competition for the medal is open to all students enrolled at the University of Sydney in the current year, except for previous winners of the Wentworth Medal. The award of the medal shall be made annually by the Academic Board provided that there is an entry of sufficient merit.

The topic or topics for the essay will be set, and the examiners of the essay will be appointed by a committee consisting of the Chair of the Academic Board, the Deans of the Faculties of Arts, Economics and Law and the Registrar, with the power to co-opt. The committee reserves the right to share the prize if there are two or more entries adjudged to be of equal highest and sufficient merit. The selection criteria will be the quality of the writing and the level and standard of argument

For: The competition for the medal is open to all students enrolled at the University of Sydney in the current year, except for previous winners of the Wentworth Medal
How much: Medal + $10,000
Application due: Late July
How to apply: The Scholarships and Prizes Office accepts applications for the Wentworth Medal from beginning June - late July each year. All entries must be accompanied by the Wentworth Medal Cover Sheet. The exact closing date will be specified on this form. You can download this from the Current Scholarship Opportunities page of this site during the application period each year.

The winning entry is decided based on the quality of writing and the level and standard of argument.

Entries should be approximately 3000 words in length.

The Wentworth Medal essay Topic for 2008 is:

"Climate change: a way forward"