Top Essayists

A number of Sixth Formers have scooped prizes in national essay competitions run by leading universities and the GDST.

Molly and Sophia – our Head Girl and Deputy Head Girl (Environment) – were awarded second prizes in two different streams of the Trinity College, Cambridge essay competition. Molly wrote about the seventh-century expansion of Islam for the Robson History Prize and Sophia’s entry focused on the translation of poetry for the Languages and Cultures Essay Prize. Meanwhile Eleanor was commended for her essay on the poetry of Emily Dickinson for the Gould Prize for Essays in English Literature. All three will attend a special lunch at Trinity College to celebrate their achievements.

Meanwhile our Deputy Head Girl (Academic & Scholarship) Chiara won third prize in the Somerville & Gurney competition run by the Girls’ Day School Trust. For the annual essay prize, students from across England and Wales address a range of topical and ethical issues. Chiara, who is studying Chemistry, Maths and Physics at A Level, tackled essays on women’s equality, and the implications of resurrecting extinct species. The award was established in memory of Mary Somerville, a trailblazing scientist, and Mary Gurney, one of the founders of the Girls’ Day School Trust, and is one of the many scholarships and awards available exclusively to GDST pupils.

In addition, one of our Sixth Form bursary students was awarded a distinction for her entry to the LSESU Economics Essay Competition. Sahar, who plans to study Economics at university, responded to the title ‘Is it useful to bring social identity into economics in order to understand contemporary policy changes?’ As the largest academic society at the London School of Economics, the LSESU Economics Society hosts an annual competition with questions set by LSE professors; this year’s attracted a record number of submissions.