Questions, Answered
FAQ
Everything you need to know about entering the Global Youth Science Writing Competition.
Registration and Fees
Yes. We offer flexible participation options for students from different academic backgrounds.
Basic Registration: Includes standard competition registration and judging services. Early-bird pricing is available for registrations submitted before the early-bird deadline.
Optional Services: You may choose to add a Writing Masterclass and a Professional Essay Analysis Report. Early-bird rates may also apply. Please refer to the registration site for fees available during the current registration period.
Once regular registration closes, standard registration is no longer available. Students with a genuine need to participate may use the late-submission option and pay the additional late-registration fee shown in the registration system.
After registration and payment, log in to your participant account and check the order and registration status on your dashboard. A status of "Registered" confirms that registration is complete.
No. Registration payments are nonrefundable.
Eligibility and Divisions
The competition is open to students worldwide who are interested in science and interdisciplinary writing. Participants must be under age 20 on March 1, 2027, the final late-submission deadline in Eastern Time (ET). A participant who is already 20 on that date is not eligible. There is no minimum age requirement, and students of any nationality or school may participate if they meet the age requirement.
Yes. To support fair judging, your division is determined by your age on March 1, 2027, the final late-submission deadline in Eastern Time (ET). Participants are placed in the Junior Division if they are under 15, or the Senior Division if they are 15 to under 20. You only need to provide your correct date of birth when registering.
Essay Requirements and Submission
Yes. Name each submission using this format: FirstName-LastName-Division-TopicNumber.pdf.
Use "1" for the Senior Division and "2" for the Junior Division. For example, a senior participant submitting for Topic 1 would use FirstName-LastName-1-1.pdf.
No. Only the main body of the essay is included in the word count. Footnotes, endnotes, and the reference list are excluded. In-text citations are included. We ask that Junior essays be fewer than 1,500 words and Senior essays be fewer than 2,000 words.
Yes. If you use in-text citations, such as APA-style citations, that content is included in the word count. We ask that Junior essays be fewer than 1,500 words and Senior essays be fewer than 2,000 words.
Yes. Every submitted essay must be written entirely in English.
Each participant account is limited to one essay so that participants can focus on the depth and quality of a single submission. Choose the topic that best reflects your expertise or interest. To submit another essay, you must register a new account.
Before the regular essay submission deadline of February 1, 2027, Eastern Time (ET), you may log in to the participant system, delete the submitted file, and upload the latest version.
Academic Integrity and Artificial Intelligence
AI may be used to help interpret and understand scientific questions. Using AI to generate the main body of the essay is strictly prohibited. The system and judges may use relevant technologies to verify originality.
No. GYSH is an individual academic challenge. Each submission must be completed fully and independently by one author.
Judging, Feedback, and Awards
Basic registration does not include individualized feedback. Participants who select the Professional Essay Analysis Report during registration will receive a detailed academic evaluation after judging, including analysis of research methodology and argumentation.
No. Awards are based solely on the quality of the essay. Attendance at the ceremony does not affect award decisions.
No. Official certificates are issued only to shortlisted or award-winning participants.
Yes. Whether or not you are shortlisted, you are welcome to attend in person and experience the dinner's academic atmosphere.
Log in to your participant account to view the final shortlisting result on the system home page. Please also check your email regularly for competition communications.
Masterclass
The Masterclass is generally delivered as a live online session led by scholars or consultants, offering advanced academic writing guidance and analysis of key competition topics.
Yes. Participants who purchase the Masterclass may watch session recordings through the participant system an unlimited number of times, from registration until the end of the 2026–2027 competition. Replay access is limited to that period.