84 students from 40 academies reach 2012 shortlist

We are delighted to announce 84 students from 40 academies have been successfully shortlisted for the 2012 Academy Excellence Awards!

Over 300 academies registered to take part in the 2012 awards. Panels of VIP subject specialists selected the shortlisted students' essays for the following categories: Art, Biology, Chemistry, Design & Technology, Economics, English, Geography, History, Mathematics, Music, Physics, Politics and Team Award.

Shortlisted students are invited to attend an interactive Inspiration Day at The University of Nottingham on 4 July 2012, which will be followed by an Awards Ceremony in the evening when the winners will be announced.

Chair of Judges, Richard Taylor, said: "We've had a terrific time reading all of the students' work and discussing and deliberating. However, the shortlist we have settled on was unanimous. Huge congratulations to the students, and to the academies who have made the shortlist. We hope that these awards will give the education community an opportunity to recognise the excellent efforts of academies across the country and celebrate students' success."

Commenting on the quality of the students' essays, the VIP judges said:

Sandy Nairne (Art): "There were many good responses to what I believe was a rather provocative question. With such a good standard selecting from the top five was a challenge. However, all five shortlisted students offered fascinating and different approaches."

Professor Alice Roberts (Biology): "I think this essay competition is a great challenge for young scientists, and it emphasises the importance of writing skills in science. I hope the students found it to be a worthwhile endeavour. They should all be very proud of themselves."

Dr Chris Smith (Chemistry) "I mark university students' exam papers, and I was delighted to see that some of the Academy Excellence Awards chemistry essays were better crafted than some I have marked! I'm not sure I could have produced something of this standard at the age of 16 / 17; I would have been very proud of myself if I had! The students have shown remarkable insight and this reflects the skilled teachers who have inspired them."

Emily Cummins (Design & Technology) "I was overwhelmed by the in-depth knowledge of such a young age group and I found it encouraging, and reassuring, to know there are so many bright, young and creative technologists."

Evan Davis (Economics): "It was a great pleasure to read these fact-packed essays. The most eye-catching established their argument at the beginning and clearly supported and blended their analysis with related theories."

Susie Dent (English): "This year's English category had a staggeringly high quality, and we were faced with some agonizing choices when it came to our shortlist. The entries have left me convinced that our language is in safe and confident hands!"

Kate Humble (Geography): "We didn't do anything like this when I was at school, so I was surprised at the elegance of the essays which on the whole were well-structured and thought through. The students did superbly!"

Dr Sam Willis (History): "I really enjoyed reading the 2012 Academy Excellence Awards History essays - I read through them all twice! Most essays demonstrated a variety of resources, with students using both primary sources and contemporary articles. It was really great to see students not just reading textbooks!"

Matt Parker (Mathematics): "The standard of the 2012 Academy Excellence Awards Maths essays was higher than last year, with students demonstrating excellent research skills."

Jamie Cullum (Music): "All of the students' essays were well-written, which made choosing the top five very tough. The really successful ones used their personal experiences to good effect whilst managing to balance their passion with intellectual rigour and backed up by great research. Congratulations to all!"

Dr Lucie Green (Physics) "There were some really lovely moments in all essays which made it difficult to assess and finally choose the top five. All essays were well developed with students clearly throwing themselves deep into research."

Jon Sopel (Politics) "I thoroughly enjoyed the creativity of the 2012 politics entries. Students expressed themselves clearly and had evidently thought through the challenging task at hand. There were some brilliant ideas which I had not thought of myself!"

Dr Sarah O'Hara (Team): "I was very impressed by the presentation of the team entries. They were all extremely well polished. The students kept to the brief and successfully presented their message to the reader/viewer."

Read the full shortlist here