Democracy's Watchdogs - 2025 Student Awards Now Open

Student award for investigative journalism 2025

Entries are now open for Democracy’s Watchdogs’ 2025 award for student investigative journalism.

University assignments and stories produced outside of university studies can be submitted. Individual and group entries will be accepted.

All stories must have been published in 2025.

The award is open to undergraduate and postgraduate journalism students at Australian and New Zealand universities. The deadline for entries is midnight, December 12.

The winner will receive $1000 and an engraved trophy. Highly commended certificates will be presented to the finalists.

There are no categories, just an overall winner. Stories can be presented as text, video, multimedia, podcast, or photos.

The stories must be original, reveal information that is in the public interest, adhere to normal journalistic standards, including attribution and verification, and comply with the MEAA code of ethics. While generative AI can be used for research purposes, provide the judges with the links that have been sourced by AI and declare that the information has been verified. Do that in the Supporting Statement on the entry form. (AI generated summarisations should not be used). Stories written by AI tools will not be judged.

Students should enter the awards using the online application form below.

Key dates

Opening date for entries: Now

Deadline for entries: Midnight, December 12

Winner and highly commended entrants announced: December 22

Entry Details

How to enter: Entrants are required to complete the online application form. They should use this form to submit their entry. Students may provide URLs, file sharing and streaming platforms that link to their entry. Reminder: entries will not be accepted after midnight on December 14, 2025.

Stories: Written and multimedia entries can be any length. Videos and podcasts have no time limits.

Group entries: The entry should be submitted once only by one member on behalf of the group. The names of each member of the group should be listed on the online application form. Members of the group are not permitted to submit the same work as an individual entry.

Supporting Statement: Briefly state why you selected the story, how you did it and why it matters. Don’t forget to provide links sourced by AI and that their accuracy has been verified. Assignments or stories that build on assignments will be accepted, but any input or ibution by lecturers, classmates, journalists or others must be clearly detailed on the online form.

Declaration: Students must declare on the online application form that the story is their original work and that they have complied with copyright requirements, as well as the MEAA code of ethics. Students must confirm the story has not been written by generative AI.

Judging: The criteria for judging will include, but not be limited to, newsworthiness, originality, public interest, research, content, ethics, creativity, possible impact and the grit and determination demonstrated by the student.

Final judging will be by Jill Baker, a Walkley award-winning journalist, author and former editor of The Sunday Age and Sunday Herald Sun; Michael Smith OAM, president of Democracy’s Watchdogs and a former editor of The Age; *Monica Attard OAM, co-director of Centre for Media Transition and Dr Bill Birnbauer, founder and CEO of Democracy’s Watchdogs and a former award-winning journalist and academic. The judges’ decisions are final.

*Non-UTS entries only.

Please direct any questions to Bill Birnbauer, CEO

Honour Roll

Democracy’s Watchdogs has hosted an annual award for the best investigative stories by student journalists since 2020. We proudly foster journalism that enhances our democratic processes and promotes excellence in tomorrow’s journalists. Below are the winners of our award.