Rules

Eligibility

  • Only rising high school sophomores, juniors, or seniors may apply.
    • In other words, students graduating between 2023 and 2025.
  • You must be enrolled in a high school or equivalent within Long Island.
  • You must obtain parental consent.
  • You must read and agree to the Terms and Conditions.
  • You may select one prompt, and only your first submitted entry will be considered.
  • You must submit your entry by July 15th, 2022.

Guidelines:

  • Your work should fall into the 750-1000 word range, excluding citations.  
  • You must include a citation section. This section does not contribute to the word count. 
  • We encourage that you avoid the first-person point of view. 
  • Use of diagrams is permitted, but all diagrams that you use should be cited properly or original.
  • You may use anecdotal information/examples of events in your piece.
  • Make sure to use trusted sources. This includes academic journal articles, government resources, or trusted newspapers.
    • If you do use newspaper articles, make sure that they are accurate. This can mean cross-checking the information that they have against other resources.

Citations:

  • Plagiarism in any way, shape, or form is not acceptable. We will be evaluating all pieces using plagiarism tracking software to compare them against other entries as well as internet sources.
    • You can refer to this guide to help with citations and avoid plagiarism.
  • If you have any diagrams/pictures, please cite them in-text as below.
    • Reducing carbon dioxide emissions can impact landscapes (Figure 1). 
    • Please make sure that your citation section includes the URL for these figures. For original images, a Google Drive or Imgur link is fine.
  • Refer to our citation guide to see how to format in-text citations and the citation section. The Abbreviated SBYIR citation formatting is preferred.

How to Apply: 

  1. Head to the Apply Page.
  2. Begin your application by filling out the Applicant Information Page. We will only use this information for the competition itself. Your submission remains anonymous during the judging period.
  3. For the Submission Entry Page, paste your written submission into the text box provided.
  4. Read and agree to the Terms and Conditions.
  5. Submit! You will receive a confirmation email acknowledging your application.