For Faculty and Translators

The award

The National Undergraduate Literary Translation Award recognizes literary translation into English by undergraduates enrolled at institutions in the United States. Entry is free, open to students in any discipline, and limited to 1,000 words per submission.

There are two awards: the NULTA Prose Award and the NULTA Poetry Award. Entrants choose which one their translation belongs to. Prize money is divided equally between the two awards, and readers may be assigned entries from either award.

The award is independent and is organized by a team of Brown University undergraduates. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by any institution.

What we are asking for

1–3 entries, each under 1,000 words. Judging would take 60–90 minutes total, scheduled at your convenience within the January–May 2027 reading period.

We would greatly appreciate your help in keeping this competition fair and running smoothly.

How scoring works

Each entry is read and scored by one judge. If two finalists in the same award finish on the same score, a second reader who has not seen either reads both and breaks the tie.

Judgement about a creative work is hard to evaluate with a standard rubric. We instead ask that each judge provides a mark along with a short (about 100 word) paragraph explaining it. Additionally, judges should flag any exceptional translation they believe should go through to the finalist round.

Who is eligible to serve

Faculty members, translators, graduate students, and other language professionals who read one of the award’s source languages are all welcome to help us judge. There is no requirement to hold a position in a translation or literature department, or to be attached to an institution at all.

Languages

Entries are accepted from 8 source languages. Readers are needed across each of them. If you would like to read for us in another language, please let us know through this form.

• Arabic
• Chinese (Mandarin)
• French
• German
• Hebrew
• Italian
• Russian
• Spanish

How evaluation works

1. Assignment. Shortly after the January 10, 2027 deadline, administrators begin reviewing entries for academic integrity, removing identifying information, and assigning them to judges.
2. Anonymous reading. You receive entries in your language with no information about the translator, their institution, or their year.
3. Evaluation. You return an assessment between January–May 2027.
4. Finalist interviews. Top-scoring translators are invited to an informal interview about their translation decisions, to help an additional judge and administrators determine winners.
5. Results. Finalists are contacted by May 20, 2027; winners are notified June 20, 2027, and the online ceremony is on June 26, 2027.

Academic integrity

Integrity review is an administrative responsibility, not one we pass to readers. If a question arises, an organizer contacts the entrant and gives them a chance to respond before any decision is taken.

If something in an entry concerns you as a reader, flag it to us and we will review the submission along with the translator.

Conflicts of interest

If you recognize an entry you’re reading, please tell us about it, so we can reassign that submission.

If you have advised any undergraduates who may be entering, please also let us know so we can avoid assigning them to you.

Confidentiality

Entries and source passages are provided solely for evaluation. Judges may not reproduce, distribute, publish, quote, upload, or otherwise repurpose the materials; access is revoked at the close of evaluation; and judges are asked to delete any locally retained copies.

These obligations are set out in full in the Rights and Permissions policy, which we ask you to review before judging.

Common questions

What are a judge’s obligations regarding submitted material? Entries and their source passages are provided solely for evaluation. You may not reproduce, distribute, publish, quote, upload, or otherwise repurpose them. Access is revoked at the close of evaluation, and we ask you to delete any locally retained copies. The full terms are in the Rights and Permissions policy.

Do I need to be at a particular kind of institution? No. Readers may come from any institution or organization, including academic institutions, translation associations, and cultural institutes. There is no requirement to hold a position in a translation or literature department.

What if I cannot finish in time? Tell us as early as you can and we will reassign the entries.

Volunteer

If you have any questions or comments and would like to speak with us first, write to us at info@nulta.org. See Contact page for more information.