Adam Smith

Adam Smith’s ‘The Wealth of Nation’ @ 250 Student Poster Competition (UofG Students Only)

The competition is open to undergraduate and postgraduate students studying at the University of Glasgow.

Brief:

Choose one idea from Adam Smith’s work and apply it to a major global challenge of the 21st century - such as sustainability, inequality or another issue. Then, redesign the front cover of The Wealth of Nations to reflect how Smith’s idea can help address that modern challenge.

The competition will run from 9th March until 15th May 2026.

Prizes:

A cash prize will be awarded to the winners:

  • £300 first prize
  • £150 second prize
  • £100 shopping voucher for ‘people’s choice’ winner

How to enter:

Redesign the front cover of Smith’s The Wealth of Nations– drawing upon a key insight from his work – and provide a short description/explanation of your cover and which Smith idea it addresses and in what way it is relevant to the 21st Century (no more than 500 words).

Entrants are welcome to choose the style of the front cover – ideas might include (but are not limited to) photographs, drawings, collages, cartoons. Portrait orientation should be used.

Your front cover should be uploaded in one of the following formats: jpeg, png, pdf or word.

Further information:

All shortlisted entries will be displayed at the Wealth of Nations @ 250 Student Day on 9th June at the University of Glasgow and at the WoN Conference 2026. Please refer to the competition terms & conditions below for further information.

Submit your entry (UofG Students Only)

If you require further information about the competition, contact: business-events@glasgow.ac.uk  

Terms and Conditions (please read all T&Cs before submitting an entry):

1 PARAMETERS 

  1. The competition will be open from 2.00pm on Monday 9 March 2026 and will close on Friday 15 May 2026 at 5.00pm (GMT).
  2. The competition is free to enter.
  3. After the competition closes, a minimum of three independent judges will collectively decide on 20 shortlisted finalists.
  4. The judges will have access to the anonymised entries.
  5. The shortlisted entries will then be judged by a panel that will include a senior official at the University of Glasgow, several other UofG staff and also member(s) of the organising committee of the WoN Student Day.

2 ENTRY 

  1. Students must be currently enrolled in an undergraduate or postgraduate degree at the University of Glasgow at the time of submission.
  2. Students can only enter the competition as an individual, no group entries are permitted.
  3. Students can only enter the competition once.
  4. UofG students should enter using the Microsoft Form The Wealth of Nations @ 250 Student Competition  – Fill out form. 
  5. All information asked for on the form must be provided for the entry to be considered.
  6. All entrants will be asked to indicate if they are happy for their entry to be shared on social media.
  7. Shortlisted entries will be asked to complete a GDPR form so their entry can be publicised on social media.
  8. The front cover and written description/explanation should be uploaded in one of the following formats: jpeg, png, pdf or word.
  9. Entrants may use AI tools for conceptual inspiration; however, the submitted design must be the entrant’s original creative work and must not be fully generated by AI image-generation tools.
  10. By entering the competition, entrants confirm that their submission is their own original work and does not infringe the intellectual property rights of any third party.
  11. Entrants will retain copyright of their submitted design. By entering the competition, entrants grant the University of Glasgow a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to reproduce, publish, and display the submitted design for promotional, educational, and publicity purposes relating to the competition and associated events.

3 PRIZES 

  1. Prizes will be provided within 30 days of the winners being contacted. Winners have 7 days to claim the prize and must provide details of where to send the prize. Winners will be contacted in June 2026.
  2. One x first prize of £300. The winner will be announced publicly at the Wealth of Nations @ 250 Student Day on Tuesday 9 June 2026. The prize will be issued by the University of Glasgow.
  3. One x second prize of £150. The winner will be announced publicly at the same event on Tuesday 9 June 2026. The prize will be issued by the University of Glasgow. Prize payments will be issued in GBP (£). Any currency conversion charges, bank fees, or local taxes associated with receiving the prize are the responsibility of the recipient.
  4. A ‘people’s choice’ prize will be awarded at the event on 9 June 2026, with a prize of £100 gift voucher provided by the University of Glasgow. The winner will receive the gift voucher electronically through email with a code.
  5. Judging will take the form of comparison against the established criteria (see below).

4 JUDGING 

  1. Judging will take the form of comparison against the established criteria (see below).
  2. No members of any judging panel are involved in the organisation of the competition or will have access to the deanonymised entries.
  3. Judges will be asked to declare any conflict of interests and will not be allowed to enter the competition themselves.
  4. Judging of the 1st prize and 2ndprize will take place in two stages.
    1. Stage one: After the closure of the competition, the team at the University of Glasgow will compile a shortlist
    2. Stage two: The shortlisted entries will then be judged by the previously mentioned panel of judges.
  5. Judging criteria will be as follows:
    • Interpretation of the Brief - assesses how effectively the design responds to the competition brief.
    • Concept & Strength of Idea - evaluates the clarity, depth, and relevance of the underlying concept and how it relates to the central themes in The Wealth of Nations.
    • Creativity & Innovation - measures originality and inventive approach.
    • Visual Communication & Impact - assesses how effectively the message is conveyed visually.
  6. Judging of the ‘people’s choice’ will take part as follows:
    • On the day of the 9 June 2026, the shortlisted entries will be displayed at the Glasgow University Union for the Wealth of Nations @ 250 Student Day. All attendees of of the event will be asked to vote via a QR code which will take them to an online platform. 
    • Voting will take place throughout the day and an announcement will be made for attendees to make their final vote by 3.00pm (GMT). Once this is done, two members of the shortlisting panel will check the vote on the online platform.
    • The entry with the most votes will be announced. In the unlikely event of a tie, the shortlisting panel will cast the final vote.
    • The ‘people's choice’ will be out of the shortlisted entries shown on the day.