The following is intended as guidance.

General Points

1. Above all else, your article should be suitable for publication in The Daily Telegraph's weekly science page and be around 700 words in length. Articles over 800 words will be disqualified.

2. Your article should discuss science in an entertaining, informative and original way while being clear, concise and accessible to the non-specialist newspaper reader.

3. Journalistic methods will be favoured, such as seeking an interview with a scientist, rather than simply rewriting his or her published research. Evaluate each source of information in terms of its relevance, worth and veracity.

4. If you feel diagrams or illustrations would be helpful, include them or a description in your entry. It doesn't matter how sketchy they are.

5. Scientific jargon should either be avoided or explained.

6. Make sure you keep a copy of your entry for yourself.

7. Feel free to draw on other published articles for inspiration but don't copy them wholesale. Include your list of sources (bibliography).

8. There is no limit to the number of entries per person. However, it is much better to focus all your efforts on one.

16-19 Age Group Entrants

1. You are asked to write about any scientific discovery that appeals to you. For example, you could find out about a project being pursued in a local research laboratory or hospital, or draw on recent issues of scientific publications such as New Scientist and Nature.

2. Whatever you choose, you must identify your source, either the publication and the author's name and date, or the establishment where research is being carried out.

20-28 Age Group Entrants

1. If you are engaged in your own research, you do not necessarily have to write about it: entrants may write about any recent scientific discovery or research.

2. Researchers may wish to write in human terms about their method, rather than pure science, to convey the frustrations and rewards of scientific experimentation.

3. If you do describe your own research, it does not matter if it is complete or not - ideas in progress can be just as fascinating to the reader. (We don't demand your specific results: we have no intention of scooping your eventual paper in a scientific journal).

4. Entrants not engaged in original research are expected to demonstrate journalistic skills at a higher standard.

5. Professional journalists must identify themselves as such.

Your article could be published in The Daily Telegraph

All prize-winning articles and a selection of the best runners-up will be published in The Daily Telegraph's weekly science page. Entrants who reach the final round will be awarded The Daily Telegraph BASF Highly Commended Certificate.