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LUMIERE EDUCATION SCHOLARS ESSAY AWARD 2025

Application Deadline: November 16, 2025, 11:59 PM EDT

LOCATION: USA

A world-class essay competition for ambitious high school students. The Lumiere Scholars Essay Award invites high school students to examine issues that matter to them, cross disciplinary lines, test assumptions, and defend their arguments with rigorous evidence. 

ELIGIBILITY:

The competition is open to all students from any country who will be enrolled in high school (as of December 31, 2025).

Essay entries are reviewed by our Academic Advisory Committee, an international panel of distinguished professors and researchers.

Free to enter and open worldwide, the award celebrates rising thinkers, sparks dialogue about the ideas shaping our future, and continues Lumiere’s mission of empowering the next generation of researchers.

Participants can choose ONE of the following prompts:

Humanities Prompt #1: How should societies determine which past injustices deserve apologies and reparations from the state?

Humanities Prompt #2: How might popular culture reshape our understanding of the world around us?

Free entry: There are no fees required to enter this essay award. It is open to all eligible participants without cost.​

Single Submission: Participants may submit only one essay.​

Original Scholarship & Sole Authorship:
Each essay must be the original work of the participant.
While participants may seek feedback or engage in discussion, the writing must be conducted entirely by the student. No joint or collaborative submission is permitted.
The use of external writing services is strictly prohibited.

Language​: Essays must be in English.​

Academic​: Essays must be academic and use formal language. Students may not use personal anecdotes to substantiate their arguments. ​​

The award seeks well-reasoned, research-based argumentative essays rather than original research papers. ​​Participants are not expected to perform primary data collection or advanced data analysis to submit.

Word Limit​: Essays must not exceed 2,000 words, excluding footnotes and bibliography.

BENEFIT:

6 winners from 3 categories (Humanities, STEM, and Social Sciences) will receive a total of $20,000 in cash prizes and scholarships.

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TWAS FELLOWSHIPS FOR RESEARCH AND ADVANCED TRAINING

Application Deadline: 06 October 2025

LOCATION: Italy

TWAS offers fellowships to young scientists in developing countries to enable them to spend three to 12 months at a research institution in a developing country other than their own. The purpose of these fellowships is to enhance the research capacity of promising scientists, especially those at the beginning of their research careers, helping them to foster links for further collaboration.

ELIGIBILITY:

The fellowships are for research and advanced training. They are offered to young scientists holding at least an MSc or equivalent degree.

Eligible applicants for the fellowships are young scientists working in any area of natural sciences who are citizens of a developing country and are employed by a research institution in a developing country.

There is no age limit. However, preference is given to young scientists at the beginning of their research careers and those working in Least Developed Countries.

Host institutions need to be located in a developing country.

Institutes of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), China, are not eligible host institutions under this programme. Applicants interested in conducting a fellowship in China are required to check whether their chosen host is a CAS institute. For a complete list of CAS institutes, see: english.cas.cn/institutes/. Applicants wishing to attend a CAS institute should either apply to the CAS-TWAS President’s Postgraduate Fellowship Programme or consider the CAS Fellowships for Postdoctoral and Visiting Scholars from Developing Countries (http://english.cas.cn/cooperation/fellowships/201503/t20150313_145274.shtml).

Applicants must complete the online application form by clicking on the ‘Apply now’ button at the bottom of this page. While filling in the online application, applicants also need to upload the following documentation:

scanned copy of your passport, even if expired (page with your name and surname);

CV, maximum five pages including publications;

Supporting Statement from Head of Home Institution;

two reference letters from senior scientists familiar with your work. Please note that the Head of your Home Institution cannot be one of your referees.

MSc certificate and relevant university transcripts;

Official invitation letter from the  Head of the Host Institute;

BENEFIT:

The fellowships are offered for a minimum of three months and a maximum of twelve months.

TWAS covers international low-cost airfare plus a contribution towards subsistence amounting to a maximum of USD 300 per month. No other costs will be provided by TWAS.

The host institution is expected to provide accommodation and food as well as research facilities.

Fellowships are awarded by the TWAS Fellowships Committee on the basis of scientific merit.

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