Submission Guidelines

• Eligibility & Originality
  • Authorship: Your essay must be solely your own work.
  • Prior Publication: Your essay may not have been previously published outside your school.
  • Concurrent Submissions: Your essay may not be under consideration for publication elsewhere.
  • Personal Submission: You must submit your essay using your own account. Third-party submissions on your behalf are prohibited.
• Subject Matter
  • Essays must address topics within the humanities and social sciences. These fields include, but are not limited to, philosophy, history, art history, literature, public policy, and sociology. The most important factor is a strong, well-reasoned academic argument, not the disciplinary category. Further information on the relevant disciplines and topics is available in the FAQ.
• Submission Options
  • Submit: Accept the copyright transfer agreement, upload the essay, and pay the non-refundable submission fee.
  • Subscribe & Submit: This option includes all elements of Submit. Additionally, it allows you to email your essay anytime within a year of your subscription. To submit later, email your essay to editorial@theschola.org.
• Manuscript Formatting Requirements
  • Cover Page: Your essay must include a cover page formatted according to our official template.
  • Word Count: While we generally look for submissions in the 5,500 to 6,500-word range for the main body (excluding abstract, footnotes, and bibliography), the absolute maximum word count is 8,000 words. We understand that some rigorous research, such as in history, may require this additional space. For philosophy essays, we particularly encourage concise and focused arguments, aiming for approximately 5,500 words.
  • Abstract: Include an abstract of approximately 220 words.
  • Title: The essay title must be 100 characters or fewer (including spaces).
  • Content: Essays must be text-only. Do not include graphics (e.g., charts, graphs, tables).
  • Acknowledgments: Do not include acknowledgments for research assistance.
  • File Format: Submit your essay as a Microsoft Word document (.doc or .docx).
  • Font: Use a standard, legible font. Times New Roman, 12-point, is preferred.
  • File Naming: Name your essay file using your first and last name. Upon successful upload, the file will be automatically renamed with an encrypted code, but your original file name remains stored.
• Style and Format for Prose
  • We understand that stylistic preferences for elements such as number formatting (e.g., “20th century” vs. “twentieth century”), capitalization, hyphenation, or the use of discipline-specific terminology can vary across academic fields (e.g., public policy, art history, philosophy). For these elements within the main body of the essay, we prioritize internal consistency above all else. Authors should choose a clear and appropriate style for their chosen discipline and apply it uniformly throughout their work.
• Authorial Voice & Pronoun Usage
  • Use of “I” and Personal Reflection: The use of “I” is permissible exclusively in analytical philosophy essays. In this context, “I” should serve to articulate your specific arguments, interpretations, or engagement with philosophical concepts. This use should reflect intellectual engagement, not sharing personal anecdotes or experiences. For all other disciplines, please avoid using “I” or any form of first-person personal reflection about your own experiences, thoughts, or feelings. Essays should maintain a formal, objective tone, focusing on analysis, research, and scholarly argumentation rather than individual experience or viewpoint.
  • Use of “We” and “Us”: The pronouns “we” and “us” should be avoided because they can be unclear who they refer to and wrongly assume the reader agrees with you. A strong argument persuades with evidence, not by assuming a shared belief.
• Referencing Style: the Chicago Manual of Style, comprising:
  • Footnotes: Generate footnotes using Word’s built-in “Insert Footnote” feature (under the “References” tab), with superscript numbers in the text corresponding to detailed citations at the bottom of each page.
  • Bibliography: Provide a comprehensive list of all cited sources at the end of the essay, alphabetized by the author’s last name.
  • Critical Footnote Requirement: To ensure proper footnote functionality and automatic tracking (essential for our reference verification), manuscripts must be created directly in Microsoft Word using the “Insert Footnote” function (found under the “References” tab). Documents created in other word processors (e.g., Google Docs, Apple Pages) and then converted to Word often result in incompatible footnote formatting (e.g., static images instead of dynamic, trackable footnotes). Such formatting issues can hinder our evaluation and may lead to rejection.

Submission Portal Instructions

• Single Session: Be prepared to finalize your submission in a single, uninterrupted session. Do not initiate the checkout process until you are ready to complete it.
• Prohibited Actions: Actions such as adding items to the cart and returning later, exiting and re-entering the checkout page, or attempting test file uploads are strictly prohibited. Our system logs all submission attempts, including those via encrypted connections, and immediately flags abandoned checkouts. Any checkout abandonment associated with your submission will result in its rejection.
• Accepted Payment Methods: We accept a variety of global payment methods, including:
  • Major credit cards: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover
  • Debit cards
  • Express checkout options: Shop Pay, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay – Note: PayPal is limited in some Asian countries, such as China and South Korea.
  • Bank transfers and local payment options (region-dependent)
• After Payment: Do not revisit the submission to duplicate file upload or checkout. A confirmation email will follow successful payment.
• Post-Submission: Information on what to expect after submission is available here.

The FAQ provides additional guidance on manuscript preparation.