Essay Competition

The Treasury Research Institute Essay Competition is a national essay contest for Australian university students to promote engagement with important economic concepts and policy issues.

About the essay competition

Entries for the 2018 competition closed Friday 27 July 2018.

Entrants were asked to write an essay of no more than 2,000 words (including references) that addresses the following topic:

How should we evaluate the economic contribution of professional and amateur sport?

Judging panel

A panel determined the winning entry and commendable entries in November 2018.

The panel consisted of:

• Panel Chair, Secretary to the Treasury
• Diane Brown, Division Head Financial System Division
• Dan Andrews, Chief Adviser Structural Reform Group

2018 winner

Matthew Trachevski, The University of Melbourne

• Winning at All Costs: The Hidden Price of Australian Sport’s Economic Success [PDF 133KB]

The winner receives a prize of $2,500 and a visit to Treasury to meet with Senior Officials on a range of important policy issues.

Commendable entries

Second place

Elizabeth Baldwin, The University of Queensland

• Substitute Player? The Economic Contribution of Sport [PDF 38KB]

Second place receives a prize of $1,000 and a visit to Treasury to meet with Senior Officials on a range of important policy issues.

Third place

Stephanie Parsons, University of New South Wales

• More than a Game: Evaluating the Economic Contribution of Sport to the Australian Economy [PDF 137KB]

Third place receives a prize of $500 and a visit to Treasury to meet with Senior Officials on a range of important policy issues.

Students from 12 universities across Australia competed in the essay competition for 2018, from a range of disciplines including economics, science, math, media, and business studies. We were impressed by the diverse range of critical thought demonstrated by everyone.

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