Advice for Writing a Peterhouse Essay
Thursday, January 6th, 2011Tips for successful Peterhouse essays
Writing a Peterhouse essay is a great way to gain confidence and enhance your possibilities of attending to a famous college. When you are in your Year 12s or Lower Sixth of Secondary School, it is time to start thinking about applications, essays and assignments. Surely, being part of a Peterhouse annual essay contest will tip the balance in your favour… Are you willing to take part? Keep reading our tips, then!
About Peterhouse essay prizes
Founded in 1284 by Hugo de Balsham, Bishop of Ely, Peterhouse is the oldest college in the University of Cambridge. It is also the smallest college, but widely known for its stimulating atmosphere, and the range of its activities (academic as well as extra-curricular and social).
Peterhouse runs three annual essay prizes in History, English and the Sciences. Entering in the Peterhouse essay competition gives you the chance to write about a subject in which you are personally interested. The essay writing contest is meant to develop and make you experience new study skills you will later need to do well once in college. Thus, Peterhouse essays provide a challenging first contact with Higher Education you are looking forward to.
And something else to keep in mind is the prizes themselves! The top prize in each competition is £500 and the second prize is £250 –plus an invitation to a presentation at the Peterhouse Open Day! However, even if you don’t win, a good Peterhouse essay will be taken into account when applying to Cambridge, and you will receive feed-back from leading scientists, historians and English specialists.
Three different essay competitions
Peterhouse organizes three different competitions: the traditional Vellacott History Prize, the Kelvin Science Prize (established in 1999) and the Thomas Campion English Prize (the most recent competition, instituted in 2008 by the Friends of Peterhouse). For each of them, students should write essays between 2,000 and 4,000 words on one of the given topics. This year 2011, the deadline is 25th March. Winners and highly commended entrants get notified by letter a few months later. Check out the official web page for further information.
What does your essay need?
How does Peterhouse choose the winners? According to their website, it is always a difficult choice, since the standard of entries is high. When writing your Peterhouse essay, try to express originality of thought in a clear writing style. Always organize your essay following a logical and persuasive essay structure. Make sure you have researched enough and provide a variety of sources, as well as a critical approach to them.
Of course, Peterhouse essays should always answer the given question, otherwise they won’t be given any credit. You have to demonstrate that you understand the task, and that you are following the instructions.
When you have finished your Peterhouse essay, make sure you have it edited and proofread by our team of academic writers. We do not only provide custom essays, we also check yours, correct its grammar and get rid of spelling mistakes, providing your work with the right touch of professionalism you need!
