High School Essay Contest Resources

Students beginning their research for the 2024 National High School Essay Contest may wish to consider the following resources. Be sure to view past winners’ essays, rules and guidelines, and a helpful writer’s checklist.

Study Guide

  1. Coming soon

“Basics” of Diplomacy

  1. AFSA’s Foreign Service Journal: afsa.org/fsj-archives. Please refer to afsa.org/fsj-permissions for a guide on how to cite The Foreign Service Journal in your essay.
  2. What diplomats do, why it matters http://chqdaily.com/2018/08/what-diplomats-do-why-it-matters/
  3. Economic Diplomacy: What U.S. Diplomats Do and Why It Matters https://youtu.be/MTxlzaG7JVU
  4. AFSA’s book: Inside a U.S. Embassy: Diplomacy at Work.
    Note: Although you can purchase this publication online, it is also available in many libraries.
  5. Career Diplomacy: Life and Work in the Foreign Service by John K. Naland and Harry W. Kopp
  6. The Department of State’s website: www.state.gov
  7. The U.S. Agency for International Development’s website: www.usaid.gov
  8. Information about the Foreign Service: careers.state.gov/work/foreign-service
  9. Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training: adst.org/
  10. The Wilson Center publications: www.wilsoncenter.org/publications
  11. The Wilson Center research: www.wilsoncenter.org/research
  12. Brookings Institute research: www.brookings.edu/
  13. The Center for Strategic and International Studies publications: www.csis.org/top-programs
  14. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace publications: carnegieendowment.org/
  15. American Enterprise Institute: www.aei.org
  16. Writing, research, and bibliography guide: owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/
  17. Frontline Diplomacy: The Foreign Affairs Oral History Collection of the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training: www.loc.gov/collection/foreign-affairs-oral-history/?q