The Annual Monetary Policy Competition
By the Institute of Economic Affairs, the Institute of International Monetary Research, and the Vinson Centre
‘Are the central banks to blame for the current inflation episode?’
How to Enter
All entries to the competition should be submitted and in the inbox by 23.59.59 on Friday 6th January 2023. They should be submitted in PDF form to MonetaryPolicyEssay@iea.org.uk.
Entrant name and contact details should be clear in the subject of the email but not on the essay attachment itself (it is important you do not include your name or contact details within the attachment).
The Submission and Style Requirements
Entries should be no longer than 2,500 words long. Entries should include a bibliography and Harvard style referencing. References will count towards the word total but the bibliography will not. The text should be double spaced, on A4 pages, in Arial size 12 font.
Logistics
The entries will be reviewed by a panel of judges, and the top sixteen entries will be invited to semi-finals at the Vinson Centre at the University of Buckingham in early February 2023. The top five participants from the semi-finals will then be invited to the final at the Institute of Economic Affairs in London in early March 2023.
We welcome international entries, but all entrants must be able to attend the final in person.
Prizes
The winning entry will receive a prize of £500. There is also a second prize of £300 and a third prize of £200.
The entries will be judged on the criteria of knowledge and understanding of the economic issues raised by the challenge, use of resources, the quality and clarity of the argument and analysis presented, and the degree of originality and insight displayed. They will not be judged on the basis of adherence to a particular perspective regardless of quality or the other considerations set out.
About IIMR
The purpose of the Institute of International Monetary Research is to demonstrate and bring to public attention the strong relationship between the quantity of money on the one hand, and the levels of national income and expenditure on the other. The Institute – which is associated with the University of Buckingham in England – was set up in 2014, in the aftermath of the Great Financial Crisis (a.k.a., “the Great Recession”) of 2007 – 2009. It is an educational charity.
About IEA
The IEA is the UK’s original free-market think-tank, founded in 1955. Our mission is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems. As part of this, the IEA runs an extensive student outreach programme including internships, summer schools, seminars and competitions. The IEA is an educational charity (No CC 235 351) and independent research institute limited by guarantee. Ideas and policies produced by the Institute are freely available from our website. The Institute is entirely independent of any political party or group, and is entirely funded by voluntary donations from individuals, companies and foundations.
About the Vinson Centre
The Vinson Centre for the public understanding of economics and entrepreneurship is a space for research and knowledge exchange at the University of Buckingham where individuals and teams come together to pursue exciting projects in novel ways.
Former winners
On 3rd March 2022 we ran the final for the fourth year of our Monetary Policy Essay Prize in conjunction with the Institute of International of Monetary Research and the Vinson Centre. The entries were judged on their presentation style, command of the theory, the relevance to the question, as well as overall persuasiveness.
The competition was won by Guillermo Sagnier of Warwick University, who won a prize of £500. Irakli Imnaishvili and Aislin Rees tied for second place.