1. What is the Marshall Society Essay Competition?
The Marshall Society is the Economics Society of the University of Cambridge in England founded in 1927. This group consists of university students interested in studying and discussing economics. The Marshall Society hosts speaker events, exclusive socials, mentorship and networking opportunities, and the annual Marshall Society Essay Competition. The Marshall Society also publishes an annual economics magazine, The Dismal Scientist, in which winning past essays from the competition are included.
2. Marshall Society Essay Competition Details
The premise of the Marshall Society Essay Competition is for pre-university students to write a convincing and well-structured essay related to economic theories.
Past topics are listed below. These prompts give you a good sense of the caliber and enthusiasm for economics that’s required by students to write a compelling essay for the Marshall Society competition.
- Evaluate how, and to what extent the State influenced the economic prosperity of the Song Dynasty (960 CE – 1279 CE).
- To what extent should society be concerned about the consequences of crisis stimulus packages?
- Climate change is widely considered to be the greatest threat facing the human race in the modern era. However, the economic costs of tackling it are significant, with lost growth contributing to greater poverty and potentially human mortality, particularly in the developing world. With these costs in mind, discuss whether it is worth taking drastic global action to stop climate change.
- Is it in the United States’ interest to isolate and sanction the Chinese economy, or should it continue its previous policy of greater co-operation and trade?
- How should Venezuela tackle its hyperinflation?
- Is an authoritarian government better for economic development than a democracy?
- Explain the impact on the UK economy of military involvement in the Middle East since 2000.
- Why do we need the Bank of England to act as a lender of last resort and how does this affect the incentives faced by financial institutions?
- Is a high degree of inequality bad for the richest in society?
- Milton Friedman said Keynes has a “very bad” influence on economic policy and the general intellectual climate. Do you agree?
- In what ways could Artificial Intelligence reshape the labour market? Will it usher in Keynes’ ‘age of leisure’?
- ‘Policymakers can’t exploit the Phillips curve to reduce unemployment due to the Lucas critique.’ Evaluate this statement.
- The US Federal Child Tax Credit is scheduled to revert from $2,000 to $1,000 by 2025. Is this policy a mistake?
- ‘There were no meaningful long-run changes in living standards until the Industrial Revolution.’ Discuss.
- Has Economics run out of big new ideas? If so, what are the implications? If not, justify with an example.
Who is eligible?
Any student from anywhere in the world who has not yet enrolled in university/college is eligible to enter in the Marshall Society Essay Competition. The competition is entirely free to enter and doesn’t require in-person attendance; hence, making this competition accessible to countless students and consequently very competitive.
3. When is the Marshall Society Essay Competition 2024?
Timeline and Important Dates
The submission deadline for the 2024 Marshall Society Essay Competition is August 11, 2024, 11:59pm British Summer Time (BST).
What is the format of the essay?
Below are the 2024 Marshall Society essay prompts. Choose ONE essay prompt and write a max 1,250 word essay:
- In the face of disinflation, policymakers are hesitant to reduce interest rates. Is this in line with economic theory?
- What are the causes and consequences of low fertility rates in advanced economies? How do we combat them?
- Is the attention economy necessarily harmful?
- To what extent is a merger between two big firms beneficial to the consumers?
- “In an efficient market, at any point in time, the actual price of a security will be a good estimate of its intrinsic value.” – Eugene Fama. To what extent does this apply today?
- Why did Britain choose to return to the $4.86 gold standard rate in 1925? Was this the right decision?
- Has the field of Economics become too mathematical? Is this a problem?
How to write your essay:
Follow the word limit of 1,250 words. Footnotes are included in this word limit, but bibliography and text in data tables are not included. Due to the word limit, focus your essay on the important aspects of the question. Provide key insights with supporting facts rather than a complete topic overview. Assume the judging panel has a basic understanding of the topic, so avoid lengthy definitions or background information.
You’ll be evaluated on the logic and persuasiveness of your arguments, quality of evidence used to support claims, and the originality of your ideas.
Style Rules:
- Submissions should be written in English with good grammar and structure.
- Properly reference all sources and use APA (Author, Year) style for in-text citations.
- Provide a bibliography listing all sources at the end of the essay. You may use APA or other citation formats for the bibliography.
- Include page numbers on every page.
- Format the essay in Times New Roman, size 12, with 1.5 line spacing.
- On the first page, include the question, question number, your name, and your school.
- The use of Generative AI is not prohibited, but it must be declared on the form used to submit your essay.
How to submit your essay:
Convert your file to PDF format. Name your file “[your name] Q[question number].pdf” (e.g., “John Doe Q1.pdf”). Ensure the file size is no larger than 10 MB. Use the Google Form provided for submission. Do not email your essay. Double-check all details before submitting. If there are any issues, contact jg2107@cam.ac.uk at least 48 hours before the deadline.
Marshall Society Essay Competition Prizes
Essay competition results and winners will be released late August. First place wins £100 (~$130) while second place wins £50 (~$65). Sometimes, third place winners will be recognized as well. Several outstanding student essays will be shortlisted and receive commendations, recognizing their excellent work. In 2022, three winners were selected and 13 shortlisted students received commendations. Selected winning essays will be featured in the Marshall Society’s annual publication, The Dismal Scientist. You can read past winning essays at the bottom of this blog.
4. Why Should You Participate in the Marshall Society Essay Competition?
The Marshall Society is a well-known, prestigious student organization with almost 100 years of history in promoting discussion of economics among passionate, intelligent students. This essay competition is easily accessible to students everywhere in the world, making it a very competitive and prestigious competition. In 2020, the Marshall Society Essay Competition received 500 entries, and only two years later in 2022, the Marshall Society Essay Competition received over 1,000 submissions. It’s reasonable to assume a couple thousand submissions for 2024. The essay topics are very challenging and require an advanced, in-depth understanding of history and the current state of world economics. If you’re a high school student who’s considering a college degree in economics, this competition is a great opportunity to showcase your skills to college admissions and get practice for other economics competitions. You have to show that you’re passionate about your subject.
The Marshall Society essay competition differentiates itself by focusing on contemporary economic issues. The competition asks more of students than to just memorize and identify historical trends; students are required to apply theory to real-world problems. The Marshall Society Essay Competition is a chance to challenge yourself to think independently and formulate your own opinions/theories separate from the trite points taught in economics courses’ curricula. The essay prompts are broad enough for students to provide a variety of justifiable answers, with none being a definite “correct” answer. Write for the Marshall Society to prove your potential for creative, innovative thinking.
5. How to Write a Good Economics Essay
Be structured and precise and keep the word limit (1,250 words) in mind. Create an essay plan with clear structure, including introduction, conclusion, and (sub)headings if necessary. Distinguish between central and side points to make sure the bulk of your word count is dedicated to your main idea. Connect and discuss the applicability of an economic model, theory, and/or data analysis tool to the essay prompt and your thesis. Introduce the model/theory/tool only briefly and focus more on how you’re using it to answer the question. Bring in statistics that support the model/theory/tool; it’s best to reference a wide range of relevant evidence. Show off your in-depth understanding of the complexity and multifaceted aspects of the essay topic. Conclude with key insights and a discussion of limitations. Overall, keep quotes to a minimum, but integrating models and diagrams into your discussion can prove very helpful.
Further reading:
How to Overcome Writer’s Block in High School Writing Competitions
6. Marshall Society Essay Competition Past Winners
Read the past winning essays in the Marshall Society’s publication The Dismal Society.
7. How to Prepare for the Marshall Society Essay Competition
Do a lot of background research in economics.
Start with resources from the Marshall Society: read the Marshall Society blog and watch the Marshall Society Conference videos.
Read our list of recommended books:
- Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa by Dambisa Moyo
- The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008 by Paul Robin Krugman
- How to Lie with Statistics by Darrell Huff
- Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Skim the American Economic Review’s Top 20 articles from the past 100 years.
Stay up to date on economics news with a free student subscription to The Economist. Also check out The Curious Economist, an economics news outlet catered towards students.
Watch online lessons and play interactive games on economics with PBS Learning Media.
Take a competition prep class with Aralia Education. Throughout 5-10 hours of 1:1 classes packed with personalized guidance and support, students will build critical analysis and thinking skills necessary to address complex economic questions. Learn more about our Marshall Society Essay Competition Preparation class.
Study a variety of subtopics in economics.
Make sure you cover all your bases and don’t stick to a favorite. Subtopics include Fundamental Economics, Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, International Economics, Personal Finance Economics. Topics in Fundamental Economics include decision making and cost-benefit analysis, division of labor and specialization, incentives, opportunity cost, property rights, etc. Topics in Macroeconomics include aggregate supply and demand, budget deficits and public debt, business cycles, fiscal policy, GDP, etc. Topics in microeconomics include competition and market structures, price ceilings and floors, government failures/public-choice analysis, income distribution, consumers, etc. Topics in International Economics include balance of trade and balance of payments, barrier to trade, benefits of trade/comparative advantage, economic development, foreign currency market/exchange rates, etc. Topics in Personal Finance Economics include compound interest, credit, human capital, insurance, risk and return, saving and investing, etc.
Get more involved in economics.
Understand your options for economics classes in high school. Enter other competitions such as the National Economics Challenge and John Locke Economics Essay Competition. Conduct research in economics with an expert instructor at Aralia Education.
