The Committee of the Society awards an annual postgraduate Prize for a Research Essay on a Scottish theme in the general area of economic, social and cultural history. The winner s or winners essay(s) will be automatically considered for publication in Journal of Scottish Historical Studies. The rules for entry are:

1.   The essay must be on a Scottish historical theme in economic, social and cultural history (including diaspora or international trade studies). Entries in historical geography, historical anthropology and cognate areas will be welcomed. The next deadline is 31 December 2010.

2.   The competition will be open to Postgraduate Students enrolled for masters or doctoral study anywhere in the world. High caliber submissions from Honours students who plan to progress to postgraduate study will also be considered. Members of the ESHSS committee are excluded. 

3.   The essay must be of 5-10,000 words, including footnotes and any appendices, and must not exceed these limits. It must conform otherwise to the guidelines for the submission of research articles to Journal of Scottish Historical Studies. It must not have been published or offered for publication elsewhere, including to online journals. It must be original research work which may have been conducted for undergraduate or postgraduate studies, or be an independent piece of research.

4.   The essays will be judged by a panel consisting of Editors of the Journal, plus a member of the Society s Council, aided by anonymous referees appointed by them. Their decision will be final. They reserve the right not to award a Prize. Each entrant will receive feedback from the panel.

5.   The prize is £250. In addition, the Editors will consider the winning essay for publication, with or without amendments. The Editors will also consider non-winning essays for publication.

6.   Each submitted essay must be accompanied by the name and affiliation of the entrant, the entrant s registration/matriculation number and degree registered for, the name of the university/college, full postal address and email address.

Enquiries are welcomed. These, and entries, should be sent to Dr Katie Stevenson, Joint Editor Journal of Scottish Historical Studies.  Email: Katie.stevenson@st-andrews.ac.uk