Enter the 2027 Immerse Education Essay Competition

• Ideas clearly, effectively and imaginatively communicated
• Careful selection of tone, adapted where necessary, along with, style and register for the form and purpose of the essay
• Shows a clear understanding of its audience
• Has organised information and ideas effectively, using structural and grammatical features to support coherence and cohesion of texts

• Uses a relevant range of vocabulary
• Uses a range of sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect
• Accurate spelling and punctuation
• Uses relevant and consistent topical terminology
• Employs original and creative approaches to explore and present ideas
• Channels the author’s authentic voice

• Effectively explains, comments on and analyses the essay question
• Shares insightful knowledge and a deep understanding of the topic at hand
• Demonstrates a thorough understanding and a range of perspectives
• Objective yet reflects a personal understanding informed by comprehensive research

• Effectively identifies and interprets explicit and implicit information
• Uses reputable sources of evidence
• References sources correctly using the right format
• Relevant ideas have been selected and synthesised using evidence from different sources to support the claims made
• Uses in-text citations correctly
• Creates an accurate reference list as per the referencing guide

• This submission is free from spelling, punctuation and grammar errors
• Demonstrates a firm grasp of the conventions of standard English throughout their writing

The Immerse Education Essay Competition is open to entries from young people aged 13-18 interested in all subjects, from Architecture to Medicine, Creative Writing to Film Studies. However, students aged 18 should only submit an essay if they will still be 18 when the programmes the scholarships are valid for begin.

Any scholarships or vouchers awarded during the current round of the essay competition will only be valid for 2026 Immerse Education Programmes

mmerse provides a full essay-writing guide which is sent to your email address once you register your interest in the competition. This guide includes a full list of essay questions, our essay specification, top tips for writing an academic essay, referencing guidance, our terms and conditions and guidance on plagiarism! Registering interest also ensures that you’re on track to submitting your essay on time, through a series of helpful reminder prompts.To support further you can register for our webinars, which offer top tips and guidance with essay writing from our experts. You are also welcome to explore our creative writing resources.

Funded scholarship to study abroad: Our essay competition offers students like you the chance to win a full or partial scholarship to one of our Online Programmes or residential programmes in locations such as Oxford, Cambridge, Sydney, London and more.

Ongoing support from Immerse while you write: Full support from our team as you write your essay, with free guides and top tips to help you along the way. Sign up to receive our full Essay competition Guide and free tips and tricks as you write. You can also follow us on Instagram and Tik Tok to get more useful essay writing tips.

Demonstrate what you know: The competition is a chance for you to demonstrate your content knowledge by answering advanced university-style questions.

Build your skills and knowledge: The opportunity to apply and advance your essay writing skills. You will likely learn something new in the process!

Develop your self-discipline: A chance to strengthen your self-discipline as you commit to a challenging project and complete it from start to finish.

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Essays are graded by expert markers and guest judges who assess the essays across the following criteria:

• Content
• Research & Critical analysis
• Word choice & structure
• Evidence and inference
• Spelling, Grammar & Punctuation

Scholarship offers depend on the grades that students achieve. The higher the grade a student receives, the higher the likelihood of achieving a 100% or high partial scholarship.

The essay competition receives thousands of entries each year, and with the vast number of high-standard entries, we acknowledge the efforts of all participants who have dedicated their time to completing an essay. As such, beyond our full and high-partial scholarships we provide further offers to entrants to facilitate access to our transformative programmes.

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If you win a scholarship via the Essay Competition 2025/2026 you can use it toward any residential course in any of our locations. Use your scholarship to enrol on one of our renowned online programmes or enriching in-person/residential summer school programmes in cultural melting pots such as Cambridge, Oxford, London, New York, Toronto, Sydney and more.

No, there is no entry fee and you do not need to have already enrolled onto any of our programmes to take part in the essay competition.

The deadline for the Immerse Essay Competition falls in September and early January each year. The deadline for the current round is 18 September 2025.

1. To submit your essay, create an account or login to Succeed.
2. Visit the Competitions section and complete the submission form.
3. Your essay is automatically saved if you are connected to the internet but you must click ‘submit’ to finalise your entry.

Your essay’s word count should be 500 characters; there is a 10% allowance, meaning that your essay can be between 450 and 550 words. Captions, bibliographies and references are not including in your word count.

Scholar’s Laureate essays are published on our website and in our academic showcase. Other tiers may be eligible for publication depending on quality and space.