Ricky Ma, a grade 12 A-Level student at Sendelta, stood out among 63,328 global participants (with a 2025 shortlist rate of only ~18.65%) and won the John Locke Shortlisted award.
About the John Locke Essay Competition
Founded by the John Locke Institute (an independent educational organization affiliated with the University of Oxford), the John Locke Essay Competition is a highly influential writing contest for high school students in the humanities and social sciences. It is particularly valuable for students applying to top universities in the UK and US, especially Oxford and Cambridge. In recent years, Sendelta students have won awards in this competition every year.
As an international English argumentative writing contest for individuals, it requires participants to select an interesting topic from official options, write an essay with subject knowledge, writing skills, critical thinking, English proficiency, organization and innovation.
Essay: Leveraging Interdisciplinary Strengths
“What kinds of behaviour are engendered by the hope of profit? Is such behaviour better or worse, on balance, than the behaviour we should expect if all enterprises were owned by charities or governments?”
Ricky’s winning essay title: “What kinds of behaviour are engendered by the hope of profit? Is such behaviour better or worse, on balance, than the behaviour we should expect if all enterprises were owned by charities or governments?”
He chose this topic because it aligns closely with his existing A-Level Economics knowledge (making him familiar with the content) and, given the tight preparation time, interdisciplinary topics are more suitable for in-depth research in a short period. Finally, he accurately addressed the core of the topic through flexible application of knowledge.
Preparation Journey: Teacher-Student Collaboration
Ricky joined the competition on the recommendation of school teachers. Considering that universities have high requirements for essay writing, participating in the John Locke Competition would help him accumulate experience for future university studies.
During the essay-writing process, Ricky was particularly impressed by brainstorming sessions with Teacher Luke. They connected classroom knowledge with real-world issues, generating new perspectives and ideas through discussions—enriching the essay’s argumentation depth.
Ricky enjoyed the exploration throughout. Without complex practical research, he supported each viewpoint in the essay with solid literature review and logical reasoning.
Acceptance Speech & Future Outlook
When talking about the award, Ricky first thanked Teacher Luke: “Thank you very much for Teacher Luke’s full guidance—I benefited a lot. Looking back in the end, I will probably thank my past self. Even though preparing for it was full of difficulties back then, it has undoubtedly benefited me a lot now and will continue to do so in the future.”
He
also shared his insight: “Essay writing is not just ‘putting words on
paper’; it’s a process of constantly asking questions, finding evidence,
arguing and reflecting.”
Looking ahead, Ricky plans to continue deepening his academic pursuits with this achievement. He also encourages juniors and seniors: “Leverage interdisciplinary advantages, actively participate in academic competitions, and improve yourself through ideological exchanges.”
Currently, Ricky has achieved an IELTS score of 7.0 and 4 predicted A*s in A-Level exams. This shortlist experience will surely be a key boost for his university applications, and he is bound to shine on a broader academic stage in the future!