The Student Voice Prize
Frequently asked questions
Who can enter the competition?
The competition is primarily aimed at medical students, but anyone studying medical and biological sciences (spanning courses such as medicine, nursing, pharmacy, biology, genetics, biomedical science, pharmacology, kinesiology etc.) will be able to answer the questions.
Entries may be submitted by those studying other courses, but it is recommended that such entries focus on a personal experience with a rare condition.
The competition is for undergraduate and masters students only.
Do I have to be paired with a patient group to enter an essay?
No.
You can submit an essay without taking part in the patient pairing scheme.
What can you win?
Who judges the competition?
The competition is judged by an independent panel of judges with life sciences, medical and patient advocacy backgrounds selected by the SVP team.
Can I enter if I'm outside of the UK?
Yes. The competition is international and we accept entries from all over the world, we even have a shortlist specifically for students whose second language is English! Check out our prizes page to find out more here.
All essays must be written in English.
Can I enter if I'm a PhD student?
You cannot enter an essay into the competition if you are a PhD student.
Can I enter more than one essay?
No, you can only enter one essay into the competition per year.
Can I enter if I've entered in the past?
Yes. You can enter the competition year after year, you may wish to explore a new subject and use different case studies with every entry.
Resubmissions will not be allowed.
If I don't win, can I publish my essay elsewhere?
Your essay is your own work and therefore if you do not win the competition or place on any of the shortlists, it is permissible for you to publish or share the essay in other places. The Student Voice Prize team cannot offer you any guidance or assistance in publishing your essay externally.
If you have been paired with a patient group advocate, it is permissible for the patient group to post the essay on their website or blog after the competition has finished and the winners have been announced, only if the paired student is not a winner, runner up or shortlisted and the patient group gets the permission of the author.
If the essay was written by a winner or runner up we ask that the patient group does not publish the essay in full but rather links to the published essay on the Orphanet or the Biomed Central website in order to drive traffic there.
What is the wordcount and what's included?
The essay must be 1,500 words or less. Essays over this limit will be disqualified. This word limit does not include the title, appendices or reference lists.
Where do I submit my essay?
Visit our ‘How to enter‘ page to submit your essay
The patient pairing scheme
Students
Patients and advocates
When can I apply for the patient pairing scheme?
Students can apply to be paired between the 2nd of October and the 30th of October. To increase your chances of being paired we would recomend applying as early as possible.
Do I get to choose who I'm paired with?
It’s important to us that participating students get as much out of the pairing process as possible. In the submission form for the scheme, students are asked if there are any particular body systems or specific rare diseases they are interested in. We endeavour to match students to patients according to these requirements, however, this is not always possible.
How do I prepare for the call?
To make the most out of your patient pairing interview, please follow the guidance in this document.
Am I guaranteed to be paired?
We endeavour to pair all students and patient/advocates who apply, however, depending on how many applications we receive and the preferences of the students we cannot guarantee everyone will be paired.
To increase your chances of being paired we would recommend applying as early as possible.
Am I guaranteed to be paired with a patient?
You may be paired with a patient, a patient advocate or a family member.
All individuals participating in the scheme will be able to provide personal and valuable experience of the rare condition they represent.
Can I be paired with a patient group and not submit an essay?
The patient pairing scheme is part of the Student Voice Prize, therefore, in order to respect the time and energy of the patient group advocate, it is expected that all paired students who have had a conversation with an advocate will subsequently write an essay. This should be taken into consideration when applying to be paired through the pairing scheme.
Can I be paired more than once?
We endeavour to pair every student that applies to be paired with one patient or advocate. In order to make sure everyone has access to a pairing, we cannot pair you more than once unless in exceptional circumstances.
When can I apply for the patient pairing scheme?
Patients and advocates can apply to for the scheme from the 4th of September to the 30th of October 2024.
You will not recive your pairing until after the 2nd of October once the scheme opens for students. You could recive your pairing anytime between the 2nd of October and the 30th of October.
Who can apply?
Anyone affected by a rare condition can apply to be a part of the scheme. That includes people living with a condition, a family memeber, carer, or someone who works for a rare disease patient group or charity.
Do I get to read the essay?
After the competition winners are announced the student you spoke with should send you their essay.
The Student Voice Team cannot send you a copy of the essay as it is the students intelectual property.
You will not be able to read the essay before it has been submited as it must be fully in the students own words.
Can I apply on behalf of someone else?
If you are part of a patient organisation and wish to apply on behalf of your community this is allowed. You will need to make it known in the application form that the call will be with a community memeber and provide their details if you have them at that stage.