Young Orator of the Year

What is the Young Orator of the Year Competition?

Gresham College runs an annual oracy competition for state school students in Year 12 (England and Wales), S5 (Scotland) and Year 13 (Northern Ireland) to promote the art of communicating complex information in a clear, concise and compelling way. Students are asked to submit a five-minute, recorded presentation on a given topic.

Why Enter?

The competition:

• supports the development of oracy skills
• helps students with UCAS applications and job interviews
• inspires students to study an EPQ (Extended Project Qualification)
• promotes a deeper understanding of their chosen topic
• introduces students to the inspiring research of world-class academics
• provides an opportunity to enhance their presenting skills

Finalists are invited to attend a half-day, confidence-building and presentation skills workshop, before presenting in person at the grand final a few weeks later. Both workshop and final are held in London with travel costs covered by the College.

Everyone who is a finalist receives a small prize. There are three further awards for the best presentations:

• Gold: £1000 for the winner, and £500 to their school
• Silver: £700 to the winner, £300 to their school 
• Bronze: £500 to the winner, £200 to their school

Deatils of the next Competition will be released in February 2026.