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TMJ Essay Prize

SAIMS invites entries for its annual Essay Competition, submitted according to the following rules:

1. The competition is open to all medievalists who are graduate students or have completed a higher degree within the last three years. For PhD students the time period of three years begins from the date of the successful viva, but excludes any career break. Any candidate in doubt of their eligibility should contact the Director of SAIMS ([email protected]).

2. A candidate may make only one submission to the competition.

3. The submission must be the candidate’s own work, based on original research, and must not have been previously published or accepted for publication.

4. Submissions are welcomed on any topic that falls within the scope of medieval studies.

5. The submission should be in the English language.

6. The word limit is 8,000 words, including notes, bibliography, and any appendices.

7. The text should be double-spaced, and be accompanied by footnotes with short referencing and a full bibliography of works cited, following the guidelines on the TMJ webpage. An abstract of 200 words should preface the main text.

8. The deadline for submissions is 31 March 2015.

9. The essay must be submitted electronically to [email protected], in both Word and pdf formats, to arrive by the deadline.

10. The submission must be accompanied by a completed cover sheet and signed declaration; the template for this is available here. The candidate’s name should not appear on the submission itself, nor be indicated in any form in the notes.

11. Decisions concerning the Competition lie with the Editors and Editorial Board of The Mediaeval Journal, who can, if they consider there to have been appropriate submissions, award an Essay Prize and in addition declare a proxime accessit. In the unlikely event that, in the judges’ opinion, the material submitted is not of a suitable standard, no prize will be awarded.

12. The value of the Prize is £500.

13. A candidate whose entry is declared proxime accessit will be awarded £100.

14. In addition to the Prize, the winning submission will be published within twelve months in The Mediaeval Journal, subject to the usual editorial procedures of the journal.

Please direct any queries to the Director of SAIMS ([email protected]).