The description below reflects prior catalog information that could not be reverified from the official source during this check. Current eligibility, geographic restrictions, fees, and submission requirements remain unknown.
The Harvard International Review Academic Writing Contest is a short-form academic writing competition for students in grades 7–12, organized by Harvard's undergraduate journal of international affairs. Students write 800–1,200 word articles on international affairs topics and compete in two divisions — Junior (grades 7–8) and Senior (grades 9–12).
Senior division prompts for 2026 offer three choices: "Global Culture in the Digital Era," "Security in a Multipolar World," or "Technology, Innovation, and Power." The Junior division prompt is "Inventions that Changed How We Live." Finalists are invited to a virtual Defense Day where they present and orally defend their articles in a 15-minute session. Awards are given at Bronze, Silver, and Gold medal levels, with certificates and recognition on the HIR website.
The competition runs three cycles per year. The prior catalog recorded a historical Summer 2026 deadline of August 24 with Defense Day October 5, and Fall/Winter 2026–27 dates of January 2, 2027 for submission and February 5, 2027 for Defense Day. These dates could not be reconfirmed from an authenticated official source during the current check and are retained only as unverified catalog history, not as confirmed application dates.
Deadline check (2026-11-03): The official contest URL and its homepage returned only a single-character response, so they did not provide usable date or current-rule evidence. Searches found matching dates on a different domain, but its authority could not be authenticated from an official link or redirect. The unsupported structured dates have therefore been removed; current deadlines, registration availability, and next-cycle requirements remain unresolved. The 2026 prompts and process above are prior catalog information and must not be assumed to govern a newly announced cycle.