Viva Voce
Once the Top 20 submissions have been shortlisted for the final awards, they will be assessed on both the essay and an in-person viva voce on the 31st of August 2025.
The viva voce is not meant to be a test of interview or public speaking skills wholly independent of the essay. Judges should use the viva voce to adjust their scoring of the essay, particularly on the Substance components. Thus, there is no separate viva voce scoring.
Participants should not write their essays in anticipation of the opportunity to present more information during the viva voce. They should write their essays to be sufficiently clear, convincing and engaging standalone pieces.