The HIR Academic Writing Contest gives you 800 to 1,200 words – not many for a real argument about world affairs. The essays that use that space well are not the ones with the most to say; they are the ones that decided, before drafting, what each paragraph is for.
Start from the rubric, not a blank page
The 55-point rubric scores “structure and transitions” as its own line, and four of the six Content dimensions are about argument rather than information. That tells you what your structure has to do: carry one clear claim forward, step by step, so a judge never has to ask where they are or why a paragraph exists.
Open with the thesis, not a warm-up
Skip the throat-clearing. In a short essay you cannot afford a paragraph of background before you say anything. State your claim in the first hundred words – specific, arguable, and narrow enough to defend in the space you have. A reader should know your position, and roughly how you will support it, by the end of the opening.
Build the body around a single line of argument
Give yourself two or three body paragraphs, each carrying one point that advances the thesis. The pattern that scores well is simple: make a claim, bring one piece of evidence, then spend most of the paragraph on what that evidence means. The rubric grades “use of evidence” and “analysis of evidence” separately – so a paragraph that only presents a fact has left half its points on the table.
Give the counterargument real space
An analytical essay weighs a question; it does not preach an answer. Name the strongest objection to your thesis and take it seriously for a few sentences before you answer it. Done well, this is the most persuasive part of the essay – it shows you reached your position by testing it, not by ignoring the alternatives.
A tight word count is not a limit on your argument. It is the test of it.
Close by raising the stakes
The conclusion is not a summary. Your reader just finished the essay; they remember it. Use the last paragraph to answer the question “so what?” – to show why the argument matters beyond the page. One or two sentences that widen the lens will linger longer than a restatement of your three points.
A word budget that actually fits
Before you draft, spend the words on paper: roughly 120 for the introduction, 600 to 800 across the body, 150 for the counterargument, and 120 to close. Numbers like these are not rules – they are a reality check. If a section will not fit its share, the problem is usually that the thesis is too broad. Narrow the claim and the structure falls into place.
Ready to enter? →
Turn this into an actual entry — the next steps:
- How to enter the HIR contest — deadlines, word limits and the step-by-step submission
- The contest at a glance — divisions, format and the 55-point rubric in one place
- Read past winning entries — see what a scoring paper actually looks like