Annual DNA Day Essay Contest

The rubric below is used by judges to evaluate every essay in the second and third rounds of judging.

Rules & Requirements

• No LLM (large-language model) tool will be accepted as a credited author on this essay. That is because any attribution of authorship carries with it accountability for the work, and AI tools cannot take such responsibility. Students using LLM tools should document this use in the citations section.
• Essays must be submitted by a teacher or administrator and written by high school students (grades 9-12) in the U.S. and internationally. Parents may submit essays if the student is home schooled.
• Essays must be written by one individual student; group submissions are not permitted.
• Essays must be in English and no more than 750 words. Word count includes in-text citations, but not reference lists.
• Submissions should not include the student’s name in the essay text. This helps with impartial judging.
• Essays must include at least one reference. References should be clearly documented with both in-text citations and in the references list. The reference list should be separately entered in the “References” section of the submission page.
• APA or MLA style can be used for citations. There is no limit on how many references students may use, but they should avoid too many references, as judges want to know the student’s opinion on the question and not the opinion of the resources.
• Quality of references will be considered by judges when scoring.
• Only classroom teachers are eligible for the equipment grant.
• Teachers of first-place winners from 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 are not eligible for equipment grants in 2024.

Please Note Text from essays may be used for research purposes to identify misconceptions, misunderstandings, and areas of student interest in genetics. Student text may be published on the ASHG website, newsletter, or in other ASHG publications.

Plagiarism will not be tolerated. The text of the student’s essay must be his or her own words unless quotations are explicitly noted. If plagiarism is suspected during any point of the contest, the essay in question will be examined. Essays found to contain the uncited work of others will be disqualified and the student’s teacher will be notified. Plagiarism.org gives a helpful explanation of what plagiarism is.

How many essays can one student submit?
Only one entry per student.

How many essays can one teacher submit on behalf of students?
Each teacher may submit up to six student essays per class, for up to three classes.

What are low-quality a high-quality sources?
A low-quality source is one that doesn’t guarantee accurate information, such as Wikipedia. High-quality sources include research journals, such as those accessible through PubMed.

What is included in the 750-word count, and what is not?

• All text in the essay, in-line citations/references, headings and titles, and image captions are included in the word count
• The reference list is the only text not included in the word count.

Should references have a separate page?
The reference list will be submitted separately in the “references” section of the submission site. Everything will be included on one page once the essay is submitted.

Is there a standard font or margin size preferred?
No. Once the essay is copied and pasted into the submission site, it will be formatted to fit our standard margins and fonts.

How do I submit my essay if my teacher cannot do it for me?
Try to find any other teacher or guidance counselor at your school who can submit for you. If this isn’t an option, please email us at dnaday@ashg.org.

Can my guidance counselor or another school administrator submit my essay for me?
Yes.

Can I submit for my student who is currently studying abroad?
Students must be studying at the same school as the teacher who submits their essays.

Can I change information after I have submitted?
No, please make sure all information is correct before submitting because it will be final.

How does the teacher vouch for the originality of the student’s work?
Your submission represents your authentication that the essays are the original work of your students.

I submitted late. Will my essay still be judged?
Late submissions will not be judged.

Where’s the confirmation email?
It may take some time for the email to get to you. If you haven’t received it by the end of the day, either check your junk mailbox or double check that the email address you provided is correct. If neither of those options work, email dnaday@ashg.org.

Summarized below are some of the most common issues judges note in reading submitted essays.

1. Too much focus on details. A focus on details to the detriment of demonstrating a clear understanding of the big picture. Judges are much more forgiving of errors in details than errors in fundamental concepts and larger ideas.
2. Overstating. Sweeping and grandiose overstatements of the current/future state and/or utility of biotechnology or biomedical science.
3. Inaccuracy in technical language. Judges know you do not know all the “science jargon,” so don’t feel obligated to use it.
4. Lack of in-text citations in, or lack of citations for information that is not considered common knowledge. If you got the information from somewhere else, cite the source.
5. Using out-of-date references. Scientific understanding changes very rapidly, and references that are more than five years old are likely to have outdated ideas.
6. Using too many quotes. Although occasional use is warranted, too many quotes lead judges to think the author doesn’t grasp the topic.
   

Check out the links below for excerpts from past winners’ essays!

Want to become a judge? If you are a current-year ASHG member, you will receive an email each February inviting you to volunteer. If you did not receive the email or cannot locate it, please contact dnaday@ashg.org. You can also volunteer by the visiting the ASHG involvement page. You may forward the judge recruiting email ONLY to fellow ASHG current members. The deadline to sign up as a judge is the usually the end of February for that year’s Contest. If you have questions about future years, please contact dnaday@ashg.org