King's Entrepreneurship Lab 2026 Entrepreneurship Essay Competition

King’s Entrepreneurship Lab’s Entrepreneurship Essay Competition is a UK-wide writing competition for school and college students in Years 11, 12 and 13, or the equivalent in Scotland and Northern Ireland. It is designed to encourage students to explore entrepreneurial thinking, business ideas and the realities of starting and growing an enterprise.

Entrants choose one of four essay questions focused on entrepreneurship, including themes such as how experience shapes entrepreneurial thinking, whether failure can be a strength, responsibilities beyond profit, and how constraints can drive creativity. Essays must be written independently, in British English, and structured as a clear business-style essay.

Submissions should be up to 1000 words and include a bibliography plus references or footnotes for factual claims. The competition is free to enter and students may submit only one essay. Generative AI is not allowed, although spell-checking, grammar tools and standard research tools are permitted.

Winners receive cash prizes, with the top prize awarded to the overall winner and further prizes for runners-up, alongside a prize-giving ceremony at King’s College, Cambridge for selected entrants.