2021 Paper Prizes

AWMF seeks papers that:

• Are diagnostic rather than prescriptive;
• Are informed and speculative;
• Build upon a foundation of research; and
• Employ an interdisciplinary approach.

Submissions that incorporate perspectives from fields not traditionally associated with strategic studies, introduce new data sources, and/or draw on foreign language material are welcome.

Both paper prize competitions follow a three-round process:

• Round One
  Submission of Abstract
  Up to 10 Semi-Finalists Awarded $500
• Round Two
  Submission of Paper
  Up to 5 Finalists Awarded $2,500
• Round Three
  Submission of Final Paper
  Grand Prize Winner Awarded $10,000

Winners, as well as other authors whom the review committee believes deserve commendation, will have the opportunity to present their work to leading scholars and practitioners in the national security field and beyond, and have their submission published as a published as a paper or working paper by AWMF (author preference). (See “Awards” below for more details.) AWMF reserves the right to refrain from awarding prizes.

Read the Andrew W. Marshall Paper Prize prompts here:

Future Reconfigurations in Asia 2045

New Revolutions in Military Affairs

Submissions of abstracts for consideration for Round One prizes are due no later than 11:59 PM ET, Monday, 28 June 2021.

Papers written by Semi-Finalists selected for Round Two are due no later than 11:59 PM ET, Sunday, 13 February 2022. Finalists selected for Round Three will have approximately two months to refine their papers for final submission, with an anticipated deadline in May 2022.

These competitions are open to all. AWMF is eager to find new voices of any age, background, experience, or discipline, including practitioners and scholars from non-traditional backgrounds with knowledge and skills transferable to national security studies.

These competitions stipulate the following eligibility requirements and guidelines:

• Multi-author papers are welcome.
• You may author only one abstract or paper per prize.
• Abstracts and papers must be original work produced for this competition. They may contain minor similarities to previous work, but the majority of the content must be new work. Abstracts and papers may not be under review or submitted concurrently to another publication or competition in any format (e.g., written, audio).
• No one other than the named authors may conduct research, draft, edit, or conduct any other work on the submissions.
• AWMF will reject any submissions containing plagiarized work. This includes the use of uncredited ideas or arguments that are reasonably accessible to the authors or claims of original data generation taken from existing sources.
• If authors’ employers require pre-publication reviews, authors must manage this process themselves. AWMF is unable to grant deadline extensions.
• There is no citizenship requirement.

A full submission consists of:

• Name and contact information
• A title
• An abstract, not to exceed 500 words. Abstracts that exceed 500 words will not be considered.
• Not counted against the word limit:
  • A 1-3 sentence statement on your research approach: the methods you will use, the types of sources you will consult, and why you think these methods and sources will help you answer your question
  • A 1-3 sentence statement on how your approach is interdisciplinary

The abstract text must contain the following elements:

• The broad topic area your paper will explore and how it relates to the prize question
• The primary research question or questions your paper will investigate and any ancillary areas of investigation
• Briefly, the current state of thinking or scholarship on your question or related questions
• How your idea will contribute to further understanding of the strategic questions surrounding the long-term competitions facing the United States

Should you be selected as a Round Two Semi-Finalist or a Round Three Finalist, the papers these abstracts describe will need to be well-researched and intellectually bold. They must not exceed 10,000 words, including all citations, exhibits (no more than 10 figures/tables/maps per paper), captions, and any other supplementary information. Citations must be footnoted in the Chicago Style.

Abstract and paper submissions will be blind-judged by a panel of reviewers comprised of senior practitioners and scholars.

Reviewers will evaluate the submissions across the following criteria:

• Originality of the topic and contribution to the prize question
• Clarity of thought and expression about the direction of the research and proposed paper
• Soundness of the proposed research question(s) and methodology
• Credibility and quality of the research and analysis
• For abstracts, the feasibility of the paper (e.g., availability of source material/data/evidence)

Both Paper Prize competitions will award prizes as follows:

Round One

Up to 10 Authors Awarded:

1. Advancement to Round Two as a Semi-Finalist
2. $500
3. Access to reviewer feedback

Round Two

Up to 5 Authors Awarded:

1. Advancement to Round Three as a Finalist
2. $2,500
3. Access to reviewer feedback
4. Potential opportunity to present one’s research and/or paper at a public event to a wide audience of scholars and practitioners in the national security field

Round Three

Grand Prize Winner Awarded:

1. $10,000 Grand Prize
2. The opportunity to present one’s research and paper in a closed-door session
3. The opportunity to present one’s work at a public event to a wide audience of scholars and practitioners in the national security field
4. Publication of the submission as a paper or working paper by AWMF. Authors may tailor their papers and seek publication elsewhere once the competition is completed, as long as AWMF’s award is acknowledged in writing.

AWMF will announce publicly all Semi-Finalists, Finalists, and the Grand Prize Winner once the competition is completed.

If a submission is written by multiple authors, AWMF will divide the award equally unless otherwise instructed in writing signed by all of the authors.

AWMF reserves the right to refrain from awarding prizes.

Email us at info@andrewwmarshallfoundation.org.