A-level student's essay leads to Oxford University invitation

An A-level student from Newlands Girls’ School was invited to Oxford University after her essay was shortlisted as part of a global essay competition.

The John Locke Institute’s Essay Competition invites students to explore a range of interesting and challenging questions beyond the boundaries of the school curriculum.

It has connections with Oxford University and Princeton and hosts annual global essay competitions which are judged by Oxford professors.

A-level psychology student Alice Roberts entered the competition’s psychology category answering the question ‘Are we becoming nastier?’.

She said: “My essay discussed the role of social media, the increasing use of ego-defence mechanisms and emphasised, the importance of cross-cultural comparisons when defining a social attitude.

“Due to my essay being shortlisted, out of 945 submissions, I was lucky enough to be invited for a weekend at Oxford University (Wadham and St Anne’s college) to attend seminars and lectures hosted by professors where I discussed my essay with students from myriad different countries.

“The topics of discussion ranged from defining mental illness to debating psychological differences between men and women.

“All participants were invited to a gala dinner to Wadham college where I was awarded my certificate of commendation, a prize awarded to a small select group of students for ‘an outstanding submission presented to the John Locke Essay Competition’.

“This was an experience I will never forget and will be forever grateful for all the friends I made during the weekend.”

Nizhet Hannah-Ghose, psychology lead at Newlands Girls school, said: “Congratulations to Alice who has clearly demonstrated her passion for psychology by consulting over 30 journals/articles and websites to produce an essay on ‘Are we becoming nastier?’ from an evolutionary, socio-cultural, political, biological and psychological perspective.

“We hope that this will inspire others.

“We are so very proud of Alice’s achievement and her impressive essay is on display in the psychology department at Newlands Girls’ School.”

The school has also launched its alumnae association, The Newlanders in a bid to build a community which goes beyond the walls of the school.

The initiative looks to build a network between former students and the school community that is ‘connected and committed to mutual support’.

Former students who want to become Newlanders will receive a weekly newsletter and have opportunities to come to school events such as the Christmas concert.

To come a Newlander, visit: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=cRBqp8eb30OQ9sG4lloJNc6OvrG47XVOunqCH2tEmGZUQzJHQTJFM1BXVVJQQUFCVjVCUllIS0ZDNy4u