Undergraduate Writing Awards

The Writing Program administers four undergraduate writing awards: The Melissa Difatta Undergraduate Nonfiction Award, The Taube Award in Fiction, The Monty Culver Award in Fiction, and the Academy of American Poets Undergraduate Award. Scroll down for award guidelines. See the Award Winners page for previous prize recipients.

The Melissa Difatta Undergraduate Nonfiction Award 

Prizes totaling $200 will be awarded for a first, second, and third place nonfiction manuscript written by Pitt undergraduate writing major or minor.

The Taube Award in Fiction

Prizes totalling $1000 will be awarded for a first, second and third place fiction piece written by a Pitt undergraduate writing major or minor.

The Monty Culver Award in Fiction

A cash prize of $100 will be awarded to the best short story written by an undergraduate enrolled in a fiction class at the University of Pittsburgh during the Fall 2021 or Spring 2022 semester. Please note that while all other undergraduate awards are open to any undergraduate writing major or minor, this award is only open to students enrolled in a fiction class during the 2021-2022 academic year, who need not be writing majors or minors as long as they meet that requirement.

Academy of American Poets Undergraduate Award

A $100 prize, plus a $50 membership from the Academy of American Poets, will be awarded for a poem written by a Pitt undergraduate writing major or minor. Students may submit up to three poems. 

To submit your work, go to bit.ly/englishcontests and follow the prompts to join the Canvas course (this year, contest entries will be submitted through Canvas). Additional details and submission guidelines, including word limits and information on judges, are provided on this page. 

For more information, contact sachdeva@pitt.edu.