Nominations for 2018 are now closed.

The Tinker-Muse Prize nomination package is designed in line with the prize selection criteria.  The nominees will be judged solely on the information provided in the nomination package (résumé with supporting documents, nomination letter, supporting letters) as given below.

The nominees should be less than 50 years on the closing date of nomination.  Only under exceptional circumstances (e.g. maternity/paternity leave, career break, etc.) will nominees over 50 years of age be considered – please contact the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you feel this to be the case.

A nominee should have an existing track record of sufficient depth and breadth to provide indications of future potential for success and leadership, allowing the selection committee to project, with reasonable assurance, that this person will remain in Antarctic science and/or policy as a career choice and become a leader in his or her field.

Nomination packages for highly competitive candidates not selected for the Tinker-Muse Prize in a given year will be held for three years for possible consideration in subsequent years.  If a nomination is carried forward, the selection committee will specifically request the nominator to submit a new cover letter and curriculum vitae and to update the nomination package with recent developments in the nominee’s career.  Nominees must still be under the age of 50 to be reconsidered.  If nominators are not asked to submit a new letter, the selection committee did not feel the nomination would be highly competitive in the future and will not be carried over for future years.

The information below summarizes what is required to submit a nomination package for the Tinker-Muse Prize.  The documents listed below need to be complete (preferably saved in PDF format) and ready to upload in advance of the online nomination process.  It is important that the nominator follows the given format and page limits for the nomination, which will facilitate the consideration of the nomination.

The minimum font size for all documents, including letters of nomination and support, is 10 point.

Nominations should be written so as to be accessible to non-specialists and, wherever possible, to indicate the publications and activities that have been initiated by the nominee themselves. Please make sure to check all links provided in the nomination are working. 

1. Nomination Form

The nomination form (one consolidated file – document download template (48 KB) ) consisting of:

• Two-page résumé that includes relevant details of the nominee’s career, beginning with a three-sentence summary of how the nominee fits the criteria and ideals of the Tinker-Muse Prize.  The details provided should include the nominee’s date of birth, education, professional experience, honours and distinctions, research support (grants and fellowships) and should highlight service related to Antarctic research and/or policy and other leadership positions.
• Two-page summary of up to ten publications/outputs, each with a two- to three-sentence explanation of their significance and impacts.  The nominator is asked to emphasize those from the past five years, and to provide other representative examples from the previous period.  A full list of publications may be provided separately as part the ‘further detailed information’ file described in (4) below.  Citation summaries from Web of Science or Google Scholar may be included.
• One-page explanation of outreach initiatives and capacity-building activities with emphasis on the last five years.  This should also include the total number of students supervised/mentored.  Internet links to any blogs, video interviews, or any other online media to which the nominee contributes should be provided separately as part the ‘further detailed information’ file described in (4) below.

2.  Letter of Nomination

A letter of nomination is required from an individual familiar with the candidate’s achievements and future potential (the nominator), both of which should be explained succinctly in the letter.  The purpose of the letter is to make a case for the candidate receiving the Tinker-Muse Prize based on the totality of the evidence presented, rather than a general commendation of the career of the candidate.  The nomination letter must not exceed three single-spaced pages and must be in English.  It should include a one-page overview of the nominee’s activities and approach to:

• Communication of Antarctic science and/or policy within the broad Antarctic community and beyond, and
• Leadership within Antarctic science and/or policy, with attention to the demonstration of commitment to advancing the international community.

3.  Further Letter(s) of Support

Up to three additional letters of support from other individuals familiar with the nominee’s qualifications may be included in the nomination package.  These letters should not exceed one page in length and must be in English.  These additional letters must be significantly different in content from the nomination letter, further informing the selection committee of the nominee’s qualifications for the prize, and must not simply repeat the content of the nomination letter.   It may therefore be useful for nominators to send copies of their own letter and nomination form to those providing additional letters of support, in order to avoid repetition.  Letters from early-career researchers are welcome.  Letters in support of the nomination are to be submitted as separate files.

4.  Further Detailed Information

If the nominator wishes, any further detailed information beyond that contained in the nomination form can be uploaded as one consolidated file with the nomination.

• Download an document MS Word template of the Nomination Form (48 KB) .

Once these files are ready, the nominator can proceed to the online nomination.  

Online Nomination

The nominator should complete the online nomination process on the Tinker-Muse Prize website as follows:

Enter Name of Nominator, their email, full postal address and phone number;
Enter Name of Nominee, their email, full postal address and phone number;
Upload the completed Nomination Form and Letter of Nomination;
Upload the letters of support, and further detailed information, if available.

In case of any doubts or queries, please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

These guidelines, along with the selection criteria used for evaluating nominations, a checklist of the documents needed for the nomination and a copy of the nomination form, are also available to download as the pdf 2018 Tinker-Muse Prize Nomination Package (146 KB) .