The Betty and Edgar Sweren Student Book Collecting Contest recognizes the love of books and the delight in shaping a thoughtful and focused book collection. All undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in a degree program at Johns Hopkins are invited to enter the contest. Entries will be judged according to the coherency of the items in the collection and the extent to which the collection reflects the student’s stated goals and interests.
Students should submit a 2-3 page essay, detailing the purpose of the collection, how it was started, and how it was assembled over time. This description should also highlight the items of greatest interest within the collection, as well as any plans for the collection’s future development. Along with this written description, students should include a bibliography of 20 or more items (maximum of 50) and a “wish list” of up to ten items that they would like to add to their collection.
The contest will feature separate divisions for undergraduate and graduate students. In each division, the first place contestant will be awarded $1,000, while the second and third place entries will receive $500 and $250, respectively. In addition, the winning entries will be displayed on M-Level of the Eisenhower Library and will be eligible to enter the 2010 National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest.
Submissions must be received by February 12, 2010. See here for a more detailed description of the contest. Last year, sophomore undergraduate student Shrivats Iyer and fourth-year graduate student Sarah Richardson were awarded first place for their collections.