Essay Contest

JASNA conducts an annual student Essay Contest to encourage the study and appreciation of Jane Austen's works in new generations of readers.

Students world-wide are invited to compete for scholarship awards in three divisions: 

• High School: students and home-schooled students enrolled at the high school level during the contest year

• College/University: students enrolled in at least six credit hours of course work at a junior college, college, or university during the contest year

• Graduate School: students enrolled during the contest year in at least three credit hours of graduate course work at a college or university leading to an advanced degree 

Membership in JASNA is not required to enter the contest.

2025 Contest Details

Jane Austen's writing table in the dining room of her cottage home in Chawton.

2025 marks the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth. The theme for our annual general meeting is “No check to my genius from beginning to end,” a joking remark from one of her letters. This suggested the prompt for our contest this year, which was to choose something Austen has used in her novels—a particular word, a recurring situation or motif, perhaps a physical object, symbol or activity—and then choose two scenes (from either the same novel or different ones) where she employs the chosen “something” in contrasting or complementary ways. Students were asked to explain the different roles the "something" plays and why Austen uses it as she does. What point is she trying to make? Does she succeed? In conclusion, what prompted its choice?

A few additional guidelines:

• Do not choose a word from the title of one of the novels. 
• Do not analyze any proposal nor any letter.
• Use quotations from the scenes chosen to provide context.
• High school and undergraduate students only needed to choose one novel to write about, though they could choose a second one if they wished.
• Graduate students were encouraged to quote from more than one novel, and where possible, to bring in connections to Austen’s life.

Submissions

The deadline for submissions was June 2, 2025. Come back this fall for the 2026 Essay Contest topic and rules; we will begin accepting submissions in February 2026.

Essay Contest Awards

JASNA awards scholarships to winners in each of the three divisions: 

• First Place:  $1,000 scholarship, plus free registration and two nights’ lodging for JASNA’s upcoming Annual General Meeting. (Transportation to the conference is not provided.)
• Second Place:  $500 scholarship
• Third Place:  $250 scholarship 

Winners also receive one year of membership in JASNA, publication of their essays on this website, and a set of Norton Critical Editions of Jane Austen's novels. 

Questions?

Please review the Essay Contest FAQs. If you have any questions, please contact Meg Levin at essay-contest@jasna.org. Use “JASNA Essay Contest” in your subject line.