2025 Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards entries ARE NOW open!!
About the Awards
The Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards seek to capture the imaginations of school students across Australia, inspiring them to express their thoughts and feelings through the medium of poetry in their pursuit of literary excellence. The standard of entries year after year is consistently high, yet the winning poems never cease to impress the judges. From reading the entries of both the primary and secondary students, one can get an idea of the current events and issues that have had a great impact on young Australians over the decades.
The awards are held every year between the 1 March and the 30 June with the winners announced on the first Friday in September.
For more information on the competition and how to enter CLICK HERE.
Conditions of entries:
- Only students enrolled in an Australian education facility (Kindergarten to Year 12) are eligible to enter.
- Poems must be no more than 80 lines with no illustrations, graphics or decorations included.
- Entries are limited to up to 3 poems per student.
- Poems on any subject are accepted, the annual theme is optional.
- Poems that have been previously entered in the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards are NOT ELIGIBLE to be entered.
- Poems entered in other competitions are eligible to be entered.
Our poets are encouraged to take inspiration from wherever they may find it, however if they are looking for some direction, they are invited to use this year’s optional theme to inspire their entries.
“All the beautiful things” has been selected as the 2025 optional theme. Students are encouraged to write about topics and experiences that spark their poetic genius (in whatever form they choose.)
Please join the mailing list to receive ongoing information about the awards.
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