1. Who may submit papers to The Concord Review?

You may submit a history research paper to The Concord Review if you completed the paper before finishing secondary school and you have not yet enrolled in a college or university. You must be the sole author. The paper must be in English and may not have been previously published except in a publication of a secondary school that you attended. Public school, private school, and home school students are all eligible.

2. Must papers submitted to The Concord Review be about United States History?

We welcome papers on any historical topic (ancient or modern, domestic or foreign. See our issues index or our online sample essays for examples of the types of essays that have been written in the past.

3. May I use MLA style endnotes for my paper?

Papers submitted to The Concord Review should use Turabian (University of Chicago) style endnotes, NOT MLA style. Information about Turabian endnotes can be found in A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses and Dissertations by Kate L. Turabian, or at this page on the website of the Memorial University of Newfoundland.  

5. May I submit more than one paper?

Absolutely! Our mission here at The Concord Review is to encourage secondary students to push themselves academically. We love to hear about students who write more papers than expected. On several occasions we have published more than one paper by an author.

Click this link to send us a request by email.  We'll adjust  your account and you can fill out the new essay data in your profile.  Each essay must be accompanied by a $70 submission fee. We can bill your existing account for the new submission. Allow 1-2 Business days for a reply. Do not update your account with the new information until you  have heard from us.

6. May I submit a paper that is less than 4,000 words?

You are certainly welcome to submit a paper that is less than 4,000 words in length. However, we would like to caution you that your paper will be competing with longer papers submitted.

7. May I submit a paper on a topic that TCR has already published?

We welcome papers on topics that we've already published. Every historian can add more insight to what has been published before.   

8. May I submit papers completed during an independent study?

Of course you may! We have published a number of great papers from students pursuing the study of history on their own, with guidance from someone else.   

9. May I submit the same paper to The Concord Review and the National Writing Board?

Yes. We would like you to note that the submission and evaluation processes for The Concord Review and for the National Writing Board are completely separate. It is necessary to complete the submissions process for each separately. Please see the submissions guidelines for The Concord Review and the submissions guidelines for the National Writing Board.  

10.  What is the deadline for submitting my paper?

For consideration for the Summer issue, your paper should be received by February 1, 11:59pm EST (UTC -5).

For the Fall issue, your paper should be received by May 1, 11:59pm EDT (UTC -4).

For the Winter issue, your paper should be received by August 1, 11:59pm EDT (UTC -4).

For the Spring issue, your paper  should be received by November 1, 11:59pm EST (UTC -5).

These deadlines are for consideration in a specific issue. Essays are eligible for at least the next four issues.

11. Will I hear if my paper is not used in the next issue?

We publish about 5% of the essays we receive. If your paper will not be in the next issue, you will not hear anything, but your paper is still eligible for future issues. If your paper is to be published, you will receive a letter the month before the issue comes out. Issues come out four times each year.  Fall (September), Winter (December), Spring (March), Summer (June).

Even if your work is not published in the next issue, we always suggest to students who are applying to college in the immediate future that they include on their college application that they submitted a paper to The Concord Review (include the title and the length of the paper) and that it is still being considered for publication. We have been around since 1987 so many college admissions officers are familiar with our work, and realize that any student submitting a paper to TCR is serious about their academic work and would do well in college. 

12. I'm a teacher/school who is paying submission fee(s) for student essay submissions.  What do I do?           

1. Students apply and click "Invoice me"

Have each student individually fill out the online application using their own email address at the tcr.org/submit page.  They should choose the Author - eBook option. Students will upload the essay file (only one per student, per application). Essays should follow the formatting and naming requirements on this page and the Submit page.

They should  click the "Invoice me" button at the end of the process.  The system will email each submitter with their user name and password as soon as their application is done. It will also email them an invoice. The student should forward the invoice to the payer (School Business office, Teacher, etc.).

2. Business office or Teacher pays invoices online (or sends a check)

Each invoice can be paid by clicking "View Invoice Online" in the email then "Pay online" on the website and paying with a credit card. Look for the "Pay with a debit or Credit Card" link on the lower right at the Paypal site.

Students will receive a confirmation email as soon as the payment is made.

            - or -

Send a check  with a list of names and the email addresses the students used when they applied.

Include the teacher's email address so that we can follow up with any questions.

Once we receive the check and list, we activate the memberships.  The authors will get an email confirming their completed application. (Students must have completed their online application for us to activate their account.)

13. I live in Singapore and am having trouble paying with Paypal.

Sadly, PayPal has a policy which limits our ability to receive electronic payments from Singapore. Check payment is the only option for persons in Singapore. We regret the inconvenience.

14. Can I pay by check?

Yes.  Complete the application at the membership page and check the box "Invoice me".  When you have completed the application, go to "My Profile" by clicking your name at the top of the page.  Then click the "Invoices and payments" tab.  Print your invoice and send it with your check to:

The Concord Review
Subscriptions
730 Boston Post Road, Suite 24
Sudbury, MA 01776

 Your subscription will begin when we have received and processed your check.

15. I don't live in Singapore, but I am having trouble paying.

Please check that your browser is up to date (click here).

16. I've paid for my Author membership, but I don't know how to submit my essay.

When you login to this website you should see the "Authors" page which is only visible to paid members. You'll see instructions on submission in red. Click here to jump to that page. (If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to enter your logon ID and password.)

17. How do I confirm that my paper was uploaded/received?

Login, then click your name at the top of any page. Scroll down to Essay File. It should say "1 file" and will include the file name of the document you submitted.

To check your account balance, click the "Invoices and payments” tab.

18. How do I change information in my profile (email address, name, mailing address, misspellings, etc.).

Login, then click your name at the top of any page, then you can edit your information the Profile tab.

19. Is it necessary to create an account to submit?

Yes, that is how we collect your fee and the information about you and your essay.

20. When I uploaded my essay, the system appended a number to the end of the file name [e.g. (2)], is this a problem?

No. Numbers added to the end of your filename by the system will not affect your submission and are perfectly fine.

21. Do I need to be a subscriber to TCR journal to submit a paper?

No. Just choose an Author membership from the choices on the submit page. Each Author membership includes a 1-year subscription to TCR, either eBook or Print, or both. Fees vary by type and your location (USA or international).

22. Is this an essay competition?

The Concord Review is not a contest. It is an international quarterly academic review for the history research papers
of secondary students.

23. How do I withdraw my paper from consideration?  

Please email us at membership@tcr.org and we will gladly do so.