Grade 9-12 international or domestic students studying in the U.S or overseas
One-on-one and small group (Max. 7 students/class)
Competition Introduction
The HIR Harvard International Review Academic Writing Contest is founded by the Harvard International Review, a quarterly magazine covering insights on international affairs. The magazine has featured commentary by 43 Presidents and Prime Ministers, 4 Secretaries-General, 4 Nobel Economics Prize laureates, and 7 Nobel Peace Prize laureates.
Competition Format
The competition invites high school students from grades 9-12 worldwide to submit a short essay on the topic of international affairs. Submissions will be read and graded by the Harvard International Review academic journal. If selected, students will participate in a virtual HIR Defense Day. On that day, students will give a 15-minute presentation and oral defense to the judges, and the submission/presentation must be in English with traditional American spelling.
Submission Guidelines
Articles should be around 800-1200 words (not counting diagrams, tables of data, or authorship declaration). HIR does not accept op-eds, otherwise known as opinion pieces.
As a journalist organization, HIR requires submissions to follow the following adapted version of the HIR’s style guide. Submissions are also required to be culturally sensitive, fact-checked, and respectful.
Class Introduction
In this course, students will use college-level economic theory and models to analyze economic issues of major significance today, connected to international affairs. The instruction will provide students with the tools necessary to write an 800-1,200 word essay, which can then be submitted to the Harvard International Review Academic Writing Contest. The class will guide students to integrate their acquired knowledge of economic theory, phenomena, data, and policy.
Students will gain the analytical tools to make informed policy recommendations for how to best address the economic issues raised in their article.
This course aims to help students learn how to read, critically evaluate, and begin to produce economic articles, with a particular emphasis on empirical evidence. Students will review introductory concepts in international economics and macroeconomics. Students will learn to use graphs, charts, and data to analyze, describe, and explain economic concepts. The primary goal is to develop and then build on your understanding of the analytical tools and approaches used by economists, and to use those tools to develop an original article. By the end of the course, students will produce an essay suitable for submission to the Harvard International Review Academic Writing Contest. In addition to helping students prepare for the Harvard International Review Academic Writing Contest, this course will also provide a strong foundation for students who want to continue on with the study of college-level economics.
This year, we offer two classes within the HIR Academic Writing Contest Preparation Program:
- Economics direction Class
- Politics & History direction Class
Outcome
By the end of this course, students should:
- Navigate and analyze complex topics in international affairs.
- Conduct thorough, credible research independently.
- Articulate insightful analyses through formal, sophisticated writing.
- Present balanced arguments, backed by evidence, on global issues.
- Prepare and polish a submission for the HIR Academic Writing Contest, adhering to all
guidelines and ethical standards
Class Structure
For Economics direction Class:
- 2 group classes, 2 hours each, 4 hours of group classes in total;
- 6 one-on-one classes, 1 hour each, 6 hours of one-on-one classes in total.
Teacher Background: An Economics professor with nearly 15 years of teaching experience, author of multiple academic papers in economics, Special Research Fellow at the U.S. Census Bureau’s Center for Economic Studies. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics.
For Politics & History direction Class:
- 3 group classes, 1.5 hours each, 4.5 hours of group classes in total;
- 5 one-on-one classes, 1 hour each, 5 hours of one-on-one classes in total.
Teacher Background: History professor at a top U.S. private university with nearly 30 years of teaching experience. He holds a Ph.D. in History from Boston University and has served as a guest manuscript editor for Princeton University Press. He has guided many high school students to win awards in academic writing competitions.
Feedback
Students and their parents will receive brief feedback after each class regarding the student’s general participation in class. Students will also receive feedback on graded assignments via email.
