M.A. Essay Prize Grant

The M.A. Essay Prize, awarded by the North American Conference on British Studies (NACBS), recognizes exceptional original research by students in stand-alone M.A. programs in the U.S. and Canada. With a prize of $500, it encourages scholarly excellence and invites winners to submit their work for publication. Faculty nominations are required, ensuring deserving candidates receive recognition for their academic contributions, thereby fostering a vibrant academic community within British studies.

The NACBS sponsors a scholarly journal, the Journal of British Studies, online publications, an annual conference, as well as several academic prizes, graduate fellowships, and undergraduate essay contests.
The NACBS awards a prize of $500 annually for the best piece of original research produced by a student as part of their requirements to receive the M.A. degree at a university or college in the U.S. or Canada. The winner of the prize will be invited to submit their essay for publication in Broadsides.
Procedures for Nomination
Nominating faculty must be current members of the NACBS. Submissions must be accompanied by a nominating letter from the professor, who should have supervised or be supervising the M.A. thesis or essay work. Submissions should include the permanent mailing address and email contact information for the student nominated.

Eligibility

The following conditions apply:Nominees must be students (or recent graduates) of a “stand-alone” M.A. program.“Stand alone” refers here to an M.A. degree earned at an institution that offers a master’s degree that is separate from a Ph.D. program and not simply a degree earned, as a matter of course, along the way to ABD status. This means that potential nominees might come from either a program with just an M.A. or programs where the M.A. and Ph.D. are awarded as separate degrees and candidates are admitted through separate application processes.Nominees may be currently enrolled in an M.A. program, recent graduates of an M.A. program (within one year of degree completion), or Ph.D. students (again within one year of having completed a degree in a terminal, “stand-alone” M.A. program).Submitted papers should be no more than 50 pages in length (inclusive of notes and/or illustrations). A longer (more than 50-page) M.A. thesis may be edited down to fit the word limit. Alternatively, stand-along chapters from a longer thesis will also be considered.The prize will be decided by a committee of three faculty members from institutions with “stand-alone” M.A. programs. Whenever possible, there will be broad disciplinary representation on this committee.
You must be a member of this organization to apply for this award - become a member. Nominating faculty must be current members of the NACBS. Submissions must be accompanied by a nominating letter from the professor, who should have taught the course for which the essay was written or supervised M.A. thesis work.