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

The 2025 Competition

Students should choose one of the six questions below, and create a recorded video presentation of no more than five minutes: 

1. Pick an historical figure whose influence, story or achievements you feel have been either overvalued or undervalued. Argue why this should be redressed   
2. Aside from social media, what in your view is the most important positive – or negative – invention of the 21st century, and why?  
3. How much is too much wealth?   
4. Aside from English and Maths, which subject(s) should be compulsory at school and why?  
5. Which book should we all read and why? (can be fiction or non-fiction)  
6. How do you think the evolution of social media platforms has impacted (either negatively or positively) the way you communicate, build relationships, and express your identity?  

The main focus of the video presentation should be the student speaking, but we allow use of images, graphs, slides or other visual props that help explain reasoned points.  Below you will find some resources to help students create a clear, concise, logical and engaging presentation. 

Submitting the entry 

The student will need to fill out the form* and then upload the video file here: https://near.tl/sm/pVBjWr8VH . Please note that the file which is uploaded must have the student’s first name and surname in the title.   

*If we do not receive the form with the video file, the entry will not be accepted.  

More information: 
Competition Frequently Asked Questions 

Competition Terms & Conditions

If you have any other questions, please email: competition@gresham.ac.uk