Fundamentals of Freedom: 2011 Asia Essay Contest

25 June 2011
Fundamentals of Freedom: 2011 Asia Essay Contest
Deadline: 16 September 2011

Welcome to the 2011 Fundamentals of Freedom Asia Essay Contest, created to further engage the next generation of leaders in Asia on the ideas of freedom. Contestants must be citizens of one of the eligible countries identified on our website here though they do not need to be currently residing there. Participants need not be alumni of The Fund for American Studies and do not have to be currently enrolled as a student.

Contestants must address the following essay question:

The Role of Social Media and Citizen Journalism

With the advent of citizen journalism and social media (For example: Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.) how have these tools changed the role of journalism in your society?

Have these tools improved the ethical standard and accuracy of reporting in your society? Have these new technologies allowed citizens a greater voice in the media? Has social media changed the way we, as individuals, gather information? Please use examples from your own country or another country in Asia to illustrate your argument.

Submit your essay by September 16, 2011

To view bios of the members of our judging panel, please click here.

ALL COMPLETE ENTRIES MUST INCLUDE:
  • ESSAY SUBMISSION
  • RESUME/CV
  • Release Form
THERE ARE TWO WAYS TO SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY:

1. Email it directly to Ms. Kelsey Strampe at kstrampe@tfas.org

2. Fax it to (202) 986-0390; ATTN: Kelsey Strampe

No mailed submissions will be accepted. Decisions of the judges are final. Winners and other entrants will be notified on or around October 15, 2011.

Eligibility

The 2011 TFAS-AIPE Essay Contest is open exclusively to university/college students at the undergraduate and graduate levels and young professionals throughout Asia. Applicants need not be currently enrolled students or alumni of The Fund for American Studies to participate. Participants must be 18 - 28 years of age as of September 16, 2011 and a citizen of one of the following states. Contestants do not have to be currently residing in their country of citizenship to qualify.

* Bangladesh
* Brunei Darussalam
* Cambodia
* China
* Hong Kong
* India
* Indonesia
* Japan
* Laos
* Macau
* Malaysia
* Mongolia
* Myanmar
* Nepal
* Philippines
* Singapore
* South Korea
* Sri Lanka
* Taiwan
* Thailand
* Timor Leste
* Vietnam

Each contestant must include a brief curriculum vitae or résumé, summarizing his or her academic and if applicable, work history. Contestants must also complete and submit the Release Form. The form must be signed and dated.

ESSAY Requirements

1. Essays must be written in English (differences in language ability will be taken into consideration)
2. Provide essay in Word Document
3. Provide resume and completed Release Form in Word Document
4. Write in a format that is easy to follow
5. Essays should be no fewer then 800 and no more than 1600 words
6. Essay must be solely the work of the contestant, no plagiarism. The use of scholarly material is encouraged and all works must be properly cited or it will result in disqualification
7. All essays must be type written, double-spaced and footnoted; annotations will not be counted in the final word count
8. Contestants must be 18 - 28 years of age by the deadline of September 16, 2011

Students will be judged on the following categories:

1. Style and Content – Clarity, Organization, Originality and Creativity
2. How well your essay responds to the question presented (focus)
3. Considers how well your arguments are supported (analysis)
4. Examines how well your conclusions and recommendations are expressed and how closely they follow from the analysis
5. Citations and references (no plagiarism)

Anonymous Essays

If you would prefer that we withhold your name from being made public should your essay be selected for an award, please be sure to indicate this on the Release Form by checking the appropriate box.

Essays must be emailed to Ms. Kelsey Strampe at kstrampe@tfas.org. Please write ‘2011 TFAS-ASIA Essay Contest’ in the subject line. Entries can also be submitted by fax to (202) 986-0390 attention Kelsey Strampe. All submissions must be received by September 16, 2011, no later than 5:00 PM; EST. No mailed submissions will be accepted. Decisions of the judges are final. Winners and other participants will be notified on or around October 15, 2011.

Judging

All essays will be read by a panel of three judges selected by The Fund for American Studies. All resumes/CVs and cover sheets will be removed from the essays prior to judging in order to ensure the anonymity of our participants and the fairness of the judging process. Winners’ names are unknown to judges until after essays have been ranked and the contest results finalized.

The panel of judges will identify the top essays and from that group of essays, the judges will select three winners. Decisions of the judges are final. Bios of the members of the panel of judges can be found here.

Awards

* First Prize Winner: $500
* Second Prize Winner: $250
* Third Prize Winner: $100

(All awards are in U.S. Dollars)

The winning essays may be published on The Fund for American Studies’ website and distributed to our network of universities, think tanks and other organizations throughout Asia and the U.S. Essays may also be published as part of The Fund’s recruitment materials.

As indicated in the release form below, all essay submissions become property of The Fund for American Studies which retains the right to reprint essays. However contestants are allowed to republish their ideas again for other written pieces.

Download release form >>

Contact Information:

For inquiries: kstrampe@tfas.org

For submissions: kstrampe@tfas.org

Website: http://www.tfasinternational.org
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