What is The Concord Review?

The Concord Review is widely regarded as the most prestigious academic journal for high school students in the world. Founded in 1987, it is the only quarterly publication dedicated exclusively to long-form historical research papers written by secondary students in English.

This is not a typical writing competition. The Concord Review publishes work that resembles undergraduate-level research: sustained arguments, extensive use of primary sources, and rigorous engagement with existing scholarship.

Acceptance is highly selective (often estimated at around 5%) and publication signals something rare at the high school level: the ability to carry out independent, original academic inquiry over thousands of words.

For students applying to top universities, this matters. Admissions officers are used to polished essays and strong grades. What they rarely see is a student who has already demonstrated the discipline to research and write at this level.

Why The Concord Review Matters

At a strategic level, The Concord Review sits in a different category from most extracurriculars.

It is not about participation. It is about proof of intellectual seriousness.

Students who publish here demonstrate:

• The ability to formulate a research question
• The discipline to work through complex primary sources
• The capacity to sustain a structured argument over 5,000+ words
• A genuine interest in historical inquiry beyond the classroom

This is exactly the kind of signal that differentiates applicants at the highest level — particularly for students interested in history, political science, international relations, or the humanities more broadly.

Choosing the Right Topic

This is where most students go wrong.

Weak topics are broad, predictable, and already overexplored:

“The causes of World War I” or “The Civil Rights Movement” will not get you far.

Strong topics are:

• Narrow (focused on a specific decision, event, or figure)
• Debatable (not just descriptive)
• Researchable (with accessible primary sources)

For example, instead of writing about World War II broadly, a stronger approach would be:

• a specific diplomatic failure
• a localized policy decision
• a lesser-known perspective or actor

The goal is not to summarize history. The goal is to contribute to an existing conversation.

Research Strategy: Primary Sources First

What distinguishes Concord Review–level work is not just writing; it’s evidence.

Primary Sources

The strongest papers are built on primary materials such as:

• letters and diaries
• government documents
• speeches
• archival records
• photographs or material artifacts

These allow you to develop your own interpretation, rather than relying entirely on what others have already said.

Secondary Sources

Secondary sources (books, journal articles) are still essential. They help you:

• understand the historiography
• position your argument within existing debates
• avoid reinventing arguments that already exist

Databases like JSTOR, Project MUSE, and Google Scholar are standard starting points.

A strong paper doesn’t just collect sources. It uses them to build a coherent argument.

Submission Process and Requirements (2026)

The Concord Review operates on a rolling admissions basis, meaning essays can be submitted at any time and are automatically considered for multiple upcoming issues of the journal.

Submission Process

Essay Requirements

To be eligible, submissions must meet the following criteria:

• The paper must be completed before finishing secondary school
• You must be the sole author
• The essay must be original, unpublished work (except for school publications)
• The paper must be written in English

Length and Academic Standards

• Typical length: 5,000–10,000+ words
• Average published essay: ~8,000–8,500 words
• Some published papers exceed 15,000–20,000 words

Important: The total word count must include endnotes and bibliography.

Formatting Requirements

The Concord Review has strict formatting expectations. These are not optional.

• Citation Style: Chicago (Turabian)
• Endnotes only (no footnotes)
• Bibliography required at the end
• Only include sources that are actually cited in your paper

Additional formatting rules:

• Use one consistent font family throughout
• Use Arabic numerals for endnotes (not Roman numerals)
• All endnotes must end with a period
• Do not insert unnecessary line breaks within paragraphs
• Place endnotes and bibliography at the end of the document

The Concord Review does not publish:

• charts
• graphs
• images
• tables

These must be removed before submission.

File Format and Naming Convention

• Accepted formats: Microsoft Word (.doc/.docx) or RTF only
• PDFs, Google Docs, and Apple Pages files are not accepted

File Naming Rules

Your filename must follow this exact structure:

FirstName LastName_First Three Words of Title

Example:

Marie Jones_The Founding Fathers.docx

Important constraints:

• Use spaces, not hyphens
• Replace any colon in the title with an underscore
• Do not include commas or other punctuation
• Submit one single file only (including endnotes and bibliography)

Submission Steps

1. Complete the online submission form
2. Upload your essay file
3. Pay the submission fee

Only after completing all three steps is your submission considered complete.

Entry Fees (2026)

• $70 — includes 1-year digital (eBook) subscription
• $110 (U.S.) / $150 (international) — includes print subscription

All submitting authors receive the next four issues of the journal in digital form.

Acceptance Process

The Concord Review publishes four issues per year:

• March
• June
• September
• December

What to Expect

• Essays are reviewed on a rolling basis
• Accepted authors are notified the month before publication
• The journal publishes approximately 5% of submitted essays

This is an extremely selective process, comparable, in many ways, to academic journal publication standards.

What Happens if You’re Rejected?

Rejection is common and not a sign that the effort was wasted.

In many cases, students receive detailed feedback, including:

• suggestions for improving clarity and structure
• recommendations for additional sources
• identification of gaps in argumentation

This is valuable. Very few high school opportunities offer this level of academic critique.

Strong students often revise and resubmit and significantly improve in the process.

The National Writing Board (Optional)

For students seeking formal evaluation, The Concord Review offers the National Writing Board (NWB).

This service provides:

• independent assessment by experienced educators
• a detailed written report
• optional sharing with college admissions offices
• Fee: ~$350
• Timeline: ~12 weeks

This can be a strong option for students who want external validation of their work, even if publication is not guaranteed.

How to Approach This Strategically

The biggest mistake students make is underestimating the timeline.

A strong Concord Review submission typically requires:

• weeks of topic refinement
• extensive research
• multiple drafts
• external feedback

This is not something you start a month before the deadline.

Students who succeed treat this as a long-term academic project, not a short-term extracurricular.

Final Takeaway

The Concord Review is one of the clearest signals of academic rigor available to high school students.

It is difficult. It is time-consuming. And that is exactly why it matters.

Students who complete a paper at this level, whether or not they are ultimately published, come away with something far more valuable than a line on a résumé: they learn how to think, research, and write like scholars.

How AtomicMind Can Help

Writing a Concord Review–level paper is not just about working harder. It’s about working strategically: choosing the right topic, building a strong research foundation, and developing an argument that can sustain 5,000+ words.

At AtomicMind, we work closely with students to:

• Identify high-potential research topics
• Build a structured research plan
• Develop a clear, defensible thesis
• Provide detailed feedback across multiple drafts
• Refine writing for clarity, rigor, and originality

If you’re serious about pursuing publication in The Concord Review or simply want to produce work at that level, we can help you get there.

Get in touch to learn more about how we support students through advanced research and writing projects.

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