The St Mary's Theology Essay Competition 2026

Essay title: Can the death penalty ever be justified? (Approximately 1,000 words excluding references and footnotes)

Deadline: 5pm Friday 10 July 2026

Prizes

The St Mary’s Theology Essay Competition is open to students who are currently in Year 12. It is open to students in England and Wales.

The essay competition is offered by St Mary’s University, Waldegrave Road, Strawberry Hill, Twickenham TW1 4SX.
The competition is open to students who are currently in Year 12.
Essays should be submitted using the form below.
Once submitted you will receive a confirmation email.
Essays must be of approximately 1,000 words (excluding references and footnotes), typed in double line spacing, with your full name at the top of each page, and be submitted in Word document or PDF format.
The essay must be the sole creation and original work of the entrant.
Any form of plagiarism will result in automatic disqualification.
No person may submit more than one essay for each annual competition.
The award winners grant the University the right to publish or reproduce at any time all or part of the award-winning entries.
The award of all or any of the prizes lies solely within the discretion of the judges. The judges’ decision will be final.
The deadline for the receipt of entries is 5pm on Friday 10 July 2026. Please note that late entries cannot be accepted.
All entries will be acknowledged. Unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to provide feedback on unsuccessful entries.
Winners are entitled to refer to the achievement on their CV.
It is anticipated that the prize-winners will be announced in early September 2026.
The decision of the Head of the School of Theology on the interpretation of these Rules will be final.

If you have any questions, please contact the School of Theology administrator: TheologyAdmin@stmarys.ac.uk

To enter, please complete the form and upload your essay in a word of PDF format.