The Gerald F. Berlin Prize is awarded for creative writing, prose, or poetry, authored by students, nursing students, graduate students, residents, and fellows based at UMass Chan Medical School, Berkshire Medical Center, Worcester Medical Center/St. Vincent's, or Baystate Medical Center, and this year we welcome UMass Chan Medical School’s newest regional medical campus, Lahey Hospital & Medical Center.
Submission Deadline: Midnight February 7, 2025
The Grand prize is $500, a reading at the Awards Ceremony, and publication in Worcester Medicine, on the Psychiatric Times website, and in The Interstitium*. Second prize is $300 and third prize is $100. Winners will also have their work published in The Interstitium.*
* The Interstitium is a student-managed site that serves as a multimedia, online home for the UMass Chan Medical School community members to reflect on their experiences. The Interstitium was started in 2019 by UMass Chan medical student Marya Pulaski as her Capstone project under the mentorship of Dr. Hugh Silk.
The event will be held on Zoom on March 26, 2025. (Details about the award ceremony will be forthcoming in early 2025)
A panel of three judges will review the submissions.
Guidelines for Authors
Please include a separate cover page for the author's name, address, phone number, e-mail address and title. This information should appear ONLY on a separate cover page.
Prose (short fiction or reflective essays):
- 12 pt., Double-spaced
- Judging will be "blind" to author information.
- Not to exceed 2,000 words; please number all pages.
Poetry:
- Up to 3 poems in any style
- Judging will be "blind" to author information.
- Not to exceed 6 pages for the entire submission; please number all pages.
~ Be sure to disguise any patient details to protect confidentiality ~
Submit entries in electronic format by Midnight, February 7, 2025 via e-mail to: Regina.Raboin@umassmed.edu
For more information about the Award, including the work of previous winners, please visit https://www.richardmberlin.com/poetry/gerald-f-berlin-creative-writing-award/guidelines/