Earn Money and Accolades Through Community College Writing Competitions

Published August 13, 2009
Written by Grace Chen

If you have a passion for prose, you could earn money writing - even while you attend community college. Whether you enjoy composing essays or creative pieces, community college students can participate in writing competitions to not only be published, but earn accolades, gifts, and monetary prizes!


NISOD Writing Competition

The National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development, otherwise known as NISOD, is known for its community college leadership program. Thus, it comes as no surprise that this institute also holds rewarding competitions for community college writing.

This year, NISOD held a college essay contest to commemorate the former editor of the "Community College Week" publication, Scott Wright, who was an advocate for the unique missions and goals of community colleges. The essay competition celebrated Wright's passion for writing, learning, and education.

For the first NISOD writing contest, students were prompted to submit a piece of writing that revealed, "Your most rewarding learning experience with a faculty, staff, or administrator at your college" through a 400 - 500 word essay. The student winner was celebrated with honors that included:

  • $1,000 cash prize to the author of the winning essay
  • $1,000 cash prize to the faculty / staff / administrator featured in the winning essay
  • Free NISOD Membership to the student's community college ($1,000 value)
Related photos, biographies, and the essay may be published in "Community College Week," garnering the winner publication credits in addition to the monetary prize.

CCBA Annual Student Essay Contest

The Community College Baccalaureate Association, also known as CCBA, has been providing community college students with rewarding scholarships for the past six years. This year, for the CCBA's 7th annual competition, the winning author will be provided with a $1,000 scholarship to help fund their community college tuition. Furthermore, the winning author's community college will be rewarded with a $1,000 gift.

As the CCBA explains, this year's writing contest is focused on what students think regarding community colleges who grant four year degrees. To be eligible for this competition, students must write a minimum of 400 words (maximum 500) on the official topic: "Why obtaining a four year degree on my community college campus would be important to me." Due by February 5th, 2010, the winner of the competition will be notified by February 10th. If chosen as the winner, the student and his or her college will not only be gifted with $1,000 each, but the winner will also gain the privilege of an all expense paid trip to the 10th Annual CCBA Conference, hosted in Baltimore, Maryland.

Additional Writing Contests

NISOD and CCBA host only two of dozens of writing competitions available to community colleges. Depending upon your writing specialty and interests, you can inquire on your own campus to find even more opportunities. Your academic center will have additional information regarding campus-specific competitions hosted by your school or district.

Your local four-year university may also hold writing competitions for nearby community colleges. For example, Marylhurst University in Oregon holds a writing contest for students enrolled in Clackamas Community College, Clark Community College, Mt. Hood Community College, and Portland Community College in poetry, creative non-fiction, literary analysis, and short fiction genres.

Furthermore, an array of private companies also host writing competitions for community college students. For example, the following organizations have provided community college students with writing contests in recent years:

  • National Geographic
  • The Ayn Rand Institute
  • The Atlantic Monthly

Through on-campus, local, and national writing competitions, your opportunities for earning recognition and monetary prizes are literally endless!

Resources:

CCBA, Essay Rules, available at http://www.accbd.org/pdfs/rules_2010.pdf

NISOD, Essay Competition, available at http://www.nisod.org/student_essay/


The Ayn Rand Institute, Education Contests, available at http://www.aynrand.org/site/PageServer?pagename=education_contests_index

The Atlantic Monthly, available at http://www.theatlantic.com/a/contest.mhtml

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