You are eligible if you are a Commonwealth citizen or currently resident in a Commonwealth country.

Please check if your country is a Commonwealth member state here.

ESSAY COMPETITION: Please calculate your age on the 1st May 2010.

Class A - 16-18 years (Born 2 May 1991 – 1st May 1994)
Class B - 14-15 years (Born 2 May 1994 – 1st May 1996)
Class C - 12-13 years (Born 2 May 1996 – 1st May 1998)
Class D - Under 12 years (Born after 2nd May 1998)

PHOTOGRAPHIC AWARDS:
Please calculate your age on the 1st June 2010.
You MUST be under 30 on the 1st June 2010.
If you are under 18 on the 1st June 2010, please enter our Under 18 category.

VISION AWARDS:
Please calculate your age on the 1st July 2010.
You MUST be under 30 on the 1st July 2010.
If you are under 18 on the 1st July 2010, please enter our Under 18 category.

1. Entries are preferred online but also can be posted.

2. ALL entrants MUST complete an entry form, whether they are entering online or by post.

3. Entry forms will be available when the Competitions open to accept entries, from the 8th March, Commonwealth Day. See the "Enter Here" sections of each competition for each form.

4. If applying online, as soon as you have filled in the online form correctly, you will be asked to upload your essay, film or photograph. It is quick and easy!

5. If applying by post, all entries must complete an application form and the entries must reach us BY the deadlines (see below). Please post to: The Competitions Manager, The Royal Commonwealth Society, 25 Northumberland Avenue, London, WC2N 5AP, UK.

ESSAY COMPETITION: 1st May 2010

PHOTOGRAPHIC AWARDS: 1st June 2010

VISION AWARDS: 1st July 2010 (Story boards for seed grants are due by the 6th April)

ALL entrants under 18 must either enter via a school/youth organisation, OR a parent/guardian must fill in a form confirming your age. This is true of Essay, Film and Photography categories.

You can enter all three competitions. You must only enter one entry into each competition.

If you enter the Competitions, you can also take part in any other RCS Youth Programme (if you are eligible for that programme). If you are aged between 18 and 25, you may be interested in our Youth Leadership Programme, Nkabom.

Class A - Word count 1400-1750

Class B - Word count 1200-1500

Class C - Word count 500-700

Class D - Word count 300-600

If you are writing a poem or a script, the same word count applies to you as to an essay – see the above question for the exact word count for each age group.

Films entered for the Vision Awards must be less than 3 minutes long.

The Royal Commonwealth Society has a sum of money to award seed grants of up to £1,000 each for entrants to turn their proposals into actual films.

If you would like to submit an application for an RCS seed grant, the closing date for your storyboard is 6th April. You will be told by the 30th if you have received one. See Enter Here for the Seed Grant application form.

To enter the Photographic Awards, we would prefer that you provide us with a link to where your photo is saved (e.g. Flickr, Picasa, Facebook etc) as through this means, there is no size restriction on your photograph.

However, if you do not have access to any of these photo sharing websites, please upload your JPEG/JPG image through the online application form, up to a maximum of 250KB. If you are shortlisted for the final exhibition of winners around the Commonwealth, we will contact you and will need a high resolution copy of your image.

Alternatively, you can post your entry.

There are no colour restrictions - black and white photos are as welcome as colour ones!

For more details, click here.

Yes. On the application form there is a section asking for up to 500 words about your image. Enter online or download a postal application here.

ESSAY PRIZES:

• Best Senior Entry (Classes A and B) - £250 The Stephen Kemp Memorial Prize
• Best Junior Entry (Classes C and D) - £250 Kindly sponsored by Mrs Pat Kelsey
• A number of Special Awards – each of £100 - will recognise special ability and flair in categories such as humour, creative writing, science writing and use of language.
• A selection of certificates in GOLD, SILVER and BRONZE will be awarded to the top entries from each class.

The RCS is also planning to fly a selection of winners to London in October for a Gala Awards Ceremony. They will meet authors and visit the BBC, the Commonwealth Secretariat and maybe even Buckingham Palace!

See the Island Prizes and Local Prizes for even more that could be available to you in your local area.

FILM PRIZES:

Prizes for the Vision Awards will include a 1st Prize in the 18-30 year old category of £2,000. The RCS will also endeavour to fly a selection of winners to London for a series of workshops, meetings and a Gala Awards Ceremony in October.

PHOTOGRAPHY PRIZES:

Prizes for the Photographic Awards will include a top prize of £500 plus of photographic equipment and internship opportunities at newspapers around the Commonwealth. The RCS will also endeavour to fly a selection of winners to London for a series of workshops, meetings and a Gala Awards Ceremony in October.

The winning photographs will be exhibited in the RCS's art gallery in the Commonwealth Club and other exhibition spaces around the Commonwealth and will be distributed worldwide through print and electronic media houses.

It's absolutely free!

Entries will be judged in May, June and July, and winners will be posted on our website in August. Select winners will be flown to London in October and will be notified in August as to dates and plans. When filling in your entry form, please provide an email address and/or a phone number for us to contact you in case you are one of these lucky winners!

Apart from the possibility of great prizes and a trip to London?! This is a fabulous way to unleash your creative talent in an international context. It is a safe forum to discuss international issues of importance to you and your community, and whether you are experienced or a novice, you get to be part of a global awards scheme, sharing ideas with other young people all around the world.

The Royal Commonwealth Society has a special relationship with our branch in Hong Kong and the Commonwealth Essay Competition has a strong history there. We would love to invite young people in Hong Kong to take part in our Young Commonwealth Competitions. However, as this is a Commonwealth organisation we would ask that you hold either of the following:

- a British passport (conferring full British citizenship); or

- a British national (overseas) passport (commonly referred to as BN(O)).

Holding either of these passports means that you are a Commonwealth citizen and therefore eligible to enter.