Harvard International Economics Essay Contest (HIEEC)

HIEEC provides students the opportunity to demonstrate an accomplished level of writing and understanding of economic theory. Through the contest, students hone their academic and professional skills and exhibit their knowledge.

​

The Harvard International Economics Essay Contest is sponsored by the Harvard Undergraduate Economics Association (HUEA) in conjunction with the Harvard College Economics Review (HCER). This essay competition is open to high school students of any year and is a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate an accomplished level of writing and understanding of economic theory.

​

The top three winning essays will be published (with the author’s permission) on our website. A finalists list of the top submissions will be published online and adjudicated by a real-world economist.

• Entrants must answer one of four prompts.
• The word limit is a strict 1500 (not including limit references, footnotes, titles, headers, and footers).
• Essays must be written only by the entrant. Outside assistance must be declared in the beginning or end of the essay.
• Only one first submission is accepted. 
• References must be included.
• References must be in Chicago or APA format. 
• The essay must be submitted as a PDF.
• No refunds are granted.
• Essays must not be entered in any other competition nor be published elsewhere.
• All winners agree to their names being published on the HUEA website.

• Essays will be accepted until January 5th, 2025 or until 200 submissions have been received, whichever comes first.

• Grades 9-12 are permitted.
• The word limit of 1500 must be strictly adhered to. Any words past the limit will be truncated. This limit excludes references, footnotes, titles, headers and footers.
• Essays must be written only by the entrant. Any outside assistance must be declared in the beginning or end of the essay.
• Only your first submission will be accepted. Any further submissions will not be read.
• References must be included, and any plagiarism will lead to disqualification.
• References must be in Chicago or APA format. The only accepted document formatting is PDF. Any other format will not be accepted, nor will refunds be given to those who do not follow this rule.
• No refunds are granted.
• The essay must not be entered in any other competition nor be published elsewhere.
• No individual feedback of essays will be granted.
• The decisions made by HUEA by the final round of adjudication are final.
• All winners agree to their names being published on the HUEA website.

• Late February: Highly Commended and Finalists notified
• Early March: Winners notified, and results published on the website.
• Time periods are subject to change, depending on the volume of submissions received. 

• If the application fee will impose a significant financial burden on your family, please email us at thehuea@gmail.com with a brief explanation for any circumstances that impede your ability to pay the reading submission fee. Please title the subject of the email "Firstname Lastname: HIEEC Financial Aid Request". The first and last name in the email should match the ones you provide in the below form.