A Writing Competition for University Students, Judged Blind, Scored Out of 100
Quick answer: Writing competitions for university students tend to be campus-only or once a year. Writory's short story contest is international and monthly, open to anyone 13 or over, so undergraduates and postgraduates enter on equal terms. Entry is $8 for 100 to 3,000 words in any language, judged blind, and every entrant receives a certificate and a score out of 100.
Open to undergraduates and postgraduates in any country and any discipline, $8 a story of 100 to 3,000 words, entries closing on 25 November 2026 at 11:59 PM IST. Every entrant receives a certificate and a score out of 100 with all five marks on 30 November 2026.
Eligibility for students anywhere, and how entry and payment work
There is no student category and no enrolment check; the only rule is age 13 or over, so an undergraduate, a doctoral candidate and a part-time mature student all enter the same blind pool. You do not need to be studying English or creative writing. Stories of 100 to 3,000 words qualify in any genre and any language, read in that language. Entry is online at /submit-story, and judges receive no name, university or bio.
Entry is $8 for one story, $14 for two, $25 for five, paid in US dollars through PayPal outside India. That covers judging against the published rubric and the certificate and scorecard that follow, whether or not the story places in the round. The deadline is 11:59 PM Indian Standard Time on the closing date; the first round closes on 25 November 2026 at 11:59 PM IST, with results and certificates on 30 November 2026.
The first contest runs from 1 September to 25 November 2026 at 11:59 PM IST, with results and certificates on 30 November 2026. From December the contest is monthly: entries close on the 25th, results on the 30th, and the next round opens the moment they land. A story a month is a habit a term can hold, and every one comes back with numbers attached. You keep all rights throughout, and Writory does not publish entries, so a story entered here can still be sent to a campus journal or to a magazine that asks for unpublished work.
What the certificate and the score mean on a student CV
The certificate carries your name and the contest month and arrives whether you win or not. On a CV it belongs under activities, not awards, unless you won the round; describe it as entry to a blind-judged international short story contest, which is exactly what it is. Recruiters and admissions tutors can check the dated results pages. Overclaiming a participation certificate is the fastest way to make a genuine one look worse.
The score is the part with academic value. Five marks add to 100: Storytelling and Structure 25, Character and Emotional Impact 25, Language and Craft 20, Originality and Voice 20, Impact and Resonance 10. Creative writing MA and MFA programmes admit on a writing sample, not on certificates; five marks per story across several rounds tell you which sample to send. Non-winners' scores are never published and the certificate does not show them.
Winners take $100 and a free entry to the next round. Entering three rounds running earns the Seasoned Quill badge and a free entry with it; there is no other free entry. An optional written feedback report from the editorial team is available with any entry, for students who want written notes quoting their own lines back rather than numbers alone.
Craft notes for a student writer
Academic prose trains you to summarise and hedge; a story needs scenes and commitment. If a paragraph reports what happened rather than showing it happening, rewrite it as a scene or cut it. The 25 marks for Storytelling and Structure ask whether each scene causes the next, so an essay-shaped story with a thesis and supporting incidents scores low however well it is written.
Workshop stories often end on an image and hope. Land the ending; the last line should pay for the first. Give a character a concrete want early, since 25 marks ride on whether a reader wants it too. Treat 3,000 words as the ceiling and 1,500 as a fine length. Write in your first language if that is where the voice lives. The Story Craft course at /academy/story-craft is free and short enough to read between lectures.
The published rubric, 100 points
- Storytelling & Structure (25 points): Does every scene cause the next, and does the ending pay off the opening?
- Character & Emotional Impact (25 points): Do we want something with your character, and does the story make us feel it?
- Language & Craft (20 points): Clean, deliberate prose: rhythm, precision, and nothing wasted.
- Originality & Voice (20 points): The angle only you could write, told in a voice that sounds like nobody else.
- Impact & Resonance (10 points): What the story leaves behind after the last line.
How it works
Submit an original story of 100 to 3,000 words by 25 November 2026 at 11:59 PM IST. Every story is judged blind against the rubric above, and results arrive on 30 November 2026: every entrant receives a certificate with their name and a score out of 100. Writers keep all rights. Monthly winners earn free entry to the next round. Enter at https://writoryofficial.com/submit-story.
Common questions
Can I put this on my CV?
Yes, honestly. Under activities, as entry to a blind-judged international short story contest with a scored certificate, dated to the month. Move it to awards only if you won; the dated results pages are public and anyone can check. A run of entries across a year says more about discipline than a single line.
Does entering count as publication?
No. Writory does not publish entries, and you keep all rights, so a story entered here remains unpublished for any journal that asks for first rights. If you win, any wider use of the story happens only with your permission. Non-winners' scores and stories are never made public.
Can I enter a piece from a creative writing workshop?
If it is your own original work and runs 100 to 3,000 words, yes. Check your programme's rules on submitting coursework elsewhere; Writory has no previously-unpublished requirement. Workshop pieces often carry an open ending that the structure criterion will not reward, so give it a landing first.
I am an international student. Which country's rules apply?
None in particular. The contest is international and the only eligibility rule is age 13 or over, wherever you study. Entry is in US dollars through PayPal outside India, and the deadline is 11:59 PM Indian Standard Time on the closing date, so convert once and submit the day before.
Can I write in my first language?
Yes. Stories in any language are accepted and read in that language, in the same pool. If you study in English but think in Arabic, Mandarin or Yoruba, the story in your first language is usually the one with the voice the Originality and Voice mark is looking for. There is no separate category.
Do postgraduates compete with undergraduates?
Everyone competes with everyone, blind, aged 13 upward. No degree, year of study or institution reaches the judges. The pool is what makes the five marks worth having: a 74 was scored against the same rubric as every adult entry, not against a student division.
More story contest pages
About Writory
Writory (writoryofficial.com) is an international monthly poetry contest founded in 2025 by Shivay Mehra. Poets from 31 countries have entered, readers come from over 150 countries, and every submitted poem is judged and scored out of 100 across five criteria: creativity, emotion, structure, language and impact and resonance. Every entrant receives a certificate; winners receive cash prizes and are published by name. Entries close on the 25th of each month and results are announced on the 30th. Writory is listed by Duotrope, Poetry Kit, Christopher Fielden's competition list and Creative Writing NZ, among other organisations. Past results are public at past winners and the leaderboard.