Ricky Ma, a grade 12 A-Level student at Sendelta, stood out among 63,328 global participants (with a 2025 shortlist rate of only ~18.65%) and won the John Locke Shortlisted  award.

Founded by the John Locke Institute (an independent educational organization affiliated with the University of Oxford), the John Locke Essay Competition is a highly influential writing contest for high school students in the humanities and social sciences. It is particularly valuable for students applying to top universities in the UK and US, especially Oxford and Cambridge. In recent years, Sendelta students have won awards in this competition every year.

John Locke属于英文议论文写作类国际项目，个人参与，要求参赛者从官方给出的多个主题当中选择自己感兴趣的问题，按照要求进行观点写作，需要用到对应的学科知识、写作技巧、批判性思维、英文写作能力、整理归纳和创新力。

As an international English argumentative writing contest for individuals, it requires participants to select an interesting topic from official options, write an essay with subject knowledge, writing skills, critical thinking, English proficiency, organization and innovation.

Ricky’s winning essay title: “What kinds of behaviour are engendered by the hope of profit? Is such behaviour better or worse, on balance, than the behaviour we should expect if all enterprises were owned by charities or governments?”

选择这一主题，既是因为题目与Ricky已学的A-Level经济学知识高度交叉，他对相关内容较为熟悉；也因当时备赛时间紧张，这类学科交叉型题目更适合短时间内开展深入研究，最终他凭借对知识的灵活运用，精准切入议题核心。

He chose this topic because it aligns closely with his existing A-Level Economics knowledge (making him familiar with the content) and, given the tight preparation time, interdisciplinary topics are more suitable for in-depth research in a short period. Finally, he accurately addressed the core of the topic through flexible application of knowledge.

Ricky joined the competition on the recommendation of school teachers. Considering that universities have high requirements for essay writing, participating in the John Locke Competition would help him accumulate experience for future university studies.

During the essay-writing process, Ricky was particularly impressed by brainstorming sessions with Teacher Luke. They connected classroom knowledge with real-world issues, generating new perspectives and ideas through discussions—enriching the essay’s argumentation depth.

Ricky enjoyed the exploration throughout. Without complex practical research, he supported each viewpoint in the essay with solid literature review and logical reasoning.

When talking about the award, Ricky first thanked Teacher Luke: “Thank you very much for Teacher Luke’s full guidance—I benefited a lot. Looking back in the end, I will probably thank my past self. Even though preparing for it was full of difficulties back then, it has undoubtedly benefited me a lot now and will continue to do so in the future.” 

Looking ahead, Ricky plans to continue deepening his academic pursuits with this achievement. He also encourages juniors and seniors: “Leverage interdisciplinary advantages, actively participate in academic competitions, and improve yourself through ideological exchanges.”

Currently, Ricky has achieved an IELTS score of 7.0 and 4 predicted A*s in A-Level exams. This shortlist experience will surely be a key boost for his university applications, and he is bound to shine on a broader academic stage in the future!