St. Gallen Symposium 2021 Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition

The St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award is a global student essay competition, offering students who study at graduate or postgraduate level around the world the opportunity to apply for participation at the St. Gallen Symposium.

Compete in the St. Gallen Symposium Leader of Tomorrow Global Essay Competition and be one of the top 100 contributors to qualify for an all-expenses covered participation as a Leader of Tomorrow in the world’s premier opportunity for cross-generational debates: The St. Gallen Symposium.

Meet 300 of society’s brightest young minds. Present and debate your ideas with 600 senior leaders. Be inspired by some of the world’s most impressive speakers. Gain a unique and new perspective on this year’s topic. Become a member of a unique global community.

Topic Question: A Matter of Trust: How Can Trust be Repaired When It’s Lost?

In recent years, we have seen many reports about “trust crises” in the realms of politics, health, business, technology, science, and media. Political and corporate scandals, mass protests, and deteriorating trust indicators in global perception surveys support this diagnosis. As a result, senior leaders in many of these sectors publicly aspire to « rebuild trust » in their decisions, products, or institutions. What would be your advice to them?

Choose an area in one of the above-mentioned sectors where you see evidence that citizens’, consumers’, regulators’, employees’ or other stakeholders’ trust has been lost. Describe your example of an apparent loss of trust; offer concrete and practical proposals on repairing damaged trust. Describe your idea’s impact for the future.

• Table of Content
• About University of St.Gallen
• St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition
• Aim and Benefits of St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition
• Requirements for St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition Qualification
• Interview date, Process and Venue for St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition
• Application Deadline
• How to Apply

About University of St.Gallen

Excellence Scholarships are granted to foreign students enrolled in Bachelor studies at the University of St.Gallen on the basis of merit. These grants are awarded yearly to students in the Assessment Year, which will be paid out over a period of three years. The scholarship amount is tantamount to the current tuition fees at the Bachelor's Level (which runs to six semesters). At present, a grantee receives an annual sum of CHF 6,252 (for all three years, this corresponds to a scholarship of CHF 18,756).... continue reading

St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition

Aim and Benefits of St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition

• The participation in the symposium is free for all Leaders of Tomorrow.
• Moreover, expenses for travel, board and lodging are covered by the ISC. However, it is recommended you bring a small amount of pocket money for your convenience.
• All Leaders of Tomorrow receive a free ticket for the public transport in St. Gallen during the week of the symposium.

Requirements for St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition Qualification

• Enrolled in a graduate or postgraduate programme (master level or higher) in any field of study at a regular university
• Born in 1991 or later

Interview date, Process and Venue for St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow Essay Competition

1. Copy of passport or other identification (in English for non-Roman languages)
2. Confirmation of matriculation/enrolment from your university which proves your enrollment in a graduate/postgraduate level programme as of 1 February 2021 (download sample document here)
3. Your contribution file with no indication of your name in the file name, the file metadata or the file itself

Application Deadline

How to Apply

St. Gallen Symposium expect a professional, creative and thought-provoking essay. Be bold, unconventional, and distinctive on the competition question.

For your contribution to be valid, the following criteria must be met:

1. Form: Essay (max. 2,100 words, excl. abstract, bibliography, and footnotes)
2. Anonymity: Your name, e-mail address, university, or any identifying details must not be mentioned anywhere in the contribution file.
3. Individuality: Individual work expected, no group work allowed. The essay must be written exclusively for this contest. The idea must be the author’s own.
4. Citation: All sources must be cited and referred to the respective part in the essay. All contributions will be tested for plagiarism.

For more details, visit St. Gallen Symposium