2007 Engineering's Grand Challenges

Engineering's Grand Challenges

Essay Contest

Congratulations to our winners!  We had many great essays this year.  Thank you to all who participated.

Often the work of engineers can make a big difference in society, and sometimes their work can affect millions or even billions of people.  In the last 100 years engineers have changed the world with advances our great grandparents could only have imagined.  Technology has allowed us to explore the galaxy, provide safe drinking water and food to millions of people, and communicate across the globe.  But the work is not yet finished.  The most pressing world needs demand engineers who are creative and persistent.  Think about what life will be like on earth in the next 100 years.  What do you believe are the most critical human needs?  How might engineers contribute to meeting these needs?  These are Engineering’s Grand Challenges.  In 500 to 750 words write about the Grand Challenge that you believe will lead to the most important breakthrough of the 21st century and describe the role that engineers will play in meeting that challenge and building our future.

Who Can Enter?

The contest is open to individual girls and boys.
There are two age categories: grades 6-8 and grades 9-12.

How Do I Enter?
Write an essay of 500 -750 words describing the Grand Challenge that you believe will lead to the most important breakthrough of the 21st century and the role that engineers will play in meeting that challenge. Entries may be submitted in ONE of the following ways:

• Email attachment to webcontest@nae.edu
• By regular mail on an IBM formatted 3.5" disk sent to:

Grand Challenges Essay Contest
National Academy of Engineering
500 Fifth Street, NW, Room 1047
Washington, D.C. 20001

Unfortunately, we will be unable to return your disk to you.

Entries submitted as attachments or on disk should be in Rich Text Format (.rtf), but will be accepted in Word or WordPerfect format.

All entries should include the following required information:

1. Your full name*
2. Your school's name, and current grade*
3. Your mailing address*
4. Your email address*
5. Topic of your essay
6. Your essay
7. A statement that reads:  "This submitted essay is the original work of entrant's full name. I, entrant's full name, grant the NAE the right to publish the essay on the EngineerGirl website if it is declared a winner."
8. A statement from a parent or guardian that reads:  "I, parent or guardian's full name, am the parent or guardian of entrant's full name.  I certify that the submitted essay is the original work of the entrant, and I grant the NAE the right to publish this essay on the EngineerGirl website if it is declared a winner."

When Is the Deadline?
Entries must be received by May15, 2007.

What are the Awards?
First-place entries will be published on the EngineerGirl! website and will be awarded $200. Second-place entries will be awarded $100. Third-place entries will be awarded $50. The winners will be announced on July 15, 2007 on the EngineerGirl website.

What are the Contest Guidelines?

Essays will be judged on the basis of organization, depth of detail, and use of language by the author. You may wish to preview the scorecard for the selection criteria.
All essays must be the original work of the author submitting the entry and must not have been published anywhere else.
A contestant may enter only one essay.
All entries will be read by a panel of judges, whose selections will be final.
Entry in the contest grants the NAE non-exclusive rights to publish winning essays in full or in part on the EngineerGirl! website.
 

Check out last year's Engineering: Improving Our World essay contest winners!

* Personal information is requested from students entering the contest, so that the National Academy of Engineering can contact winners and recognize achievements. This information is not shared with other organizations.