If you are 18 years of age or younger, why not enter the Commonwealth Essay Competition and pit your writing skills against students of the same age around the world? There are lots of prizes - and you may even get your essay published. 

Every year, the Commonwealth Essay Competition inspires thousands of young writers from all over the world. Organised by the Royal Commonwealth Society, the Competition has been running for over 100 years and is firmly established as a highly regarded and popular international education project. With young people writing from all Commonwealth countries and territories, the Competition enjoys much esteem and support throughout the Commonwealth. 

The aims of the Competition are: 

• to provide a unique opportunity for schools throughout the Commonwealth to take part in a global education project 

• to raise awareness of the ethical and humanitarian values which lie at the heart of the Commonwealth's ethos 

• to highlight important local and global issues and encourage their discussion 

• to promote the use of English as a leading world language in a fun and attractive way 

• to enable young people to compete on equal terms with their peers from around the world, whatever their social or scholastic background  

• to encourage young people to aspire to high standards of academic scholarship and creative writing 

• to stimulate young people into good utilisation of modern information technology and communication skills

The Competition is organised in four age bands, which are called Classes. They are: 

• Class A - 16-18 years 

• Class B - 14-15 years 

• Class C - 12-13 years 

• Class D - under 12 years 

THE DEADLINE FOR ESSAYS TO REACH THE ROYAL COMMONWEALTH SOCIETY IS 1 MARCH 2009