National Uehiro Oxford Essay Prize in Practical Ethics

The National Uehiro Oxford Essay Prize in Practical Ethics is an annual competition held in the Spring. It is open to all Undergraduate and Post Graduate Students enrolled in UK universities.

Students are invited to enter by submitting an essay of up to 2000 words on any topic relevant to practical ethics.

Practical ethics is concerned with what we should do in any given situation. It reflects on personal, professional, policy, and social choices and structures and holds them up to scrutiny. It may balance or prioritise different values and interests.

Two undergraduate papers and two graduate papers will be shortlisted from those submitted to go forward to a public presentation and discussion, where the winner of each category will be selected.

The winner from each category will receive a prize of £500, and the runner up £200. Revised versions of the two winning essays will be considered for publication in the Journal of Practical Ethics.

The competition is now closed for 2026 entries.

How to take part and T&Cs See past winners

Date and time

Tuesday 17 March, 17:30 – 19:45

We are pleased to announce the four finalists for the National Uehiro Oxford Essay Prize in Practical Ethics and to invite you to attend the Final where they will present their entries. Two finalists have been selected from each category to present their ideas to an audience and respond to a short Q&A.

Venue

The Final will be held in the HB Allen Centre, 25 Banbury Rd, Oxford OX2 6NN followed by a drinks reception until 19:45.

All are welcome to attend the final and are warmly invited to join the finalists for a drinks reception after the event.

Registration

Please sign up by the 17 March at: https://bookwhen.com/uehiro/e/ev-s24y8-20260317173000

If you are unable to join the event in person, the presentation section will be presented as a hybrid zoom webinar.

Book and select your ticket type here!

Undergraduate Finalists

Zineb Zbirou: Should the law punish failure to save a life?

Ethan Beri: Is prostitution just a job?

Graduate Finalists

Adam Hudson: What (if anything) is wrong with consumer boycotting?

Clodagh Commane: “It’s Not Your Fault, Doctor.” How should we think about the Ethics of NHS Failure?

The following essays have been awarded an Honourable Mention:

Undergraduate: Leela Kainth: Can pornography be feminist in a mass market economy?

Graduate: Justin Perry: What We Owe The Dispossessed

Graduate: James Forsdyke: 'It’s Physical, Not Intellectual.' The Ethics of Correcting Assumptions About Disability