BGA Masters Dissertation Prize

The Masters Dissertation Prize is a prize of £500 awarded annually by the BGA for the best Masters’ degree dissertation on a geotechnical topic. The competition is open to student members of the BGA who will be completing a dissertation in 2023, either as part of a taught course MEng or a coursework-based MSc at a British University.

Eligibility and Judging Criteria

1. The competition is open to student members of the BGA who have completed a dissertation in the year prior to the submission deadline in January.
2. The dissertation can be either as part of a taught course MEng or a coursework-based MSc at a British University. The dissertation should be completed in the field of soil mechanics, geotechnical engineering, geoenvironmental engineering, engineering geology or an allied subject.
3. It is intended that the dissertation should represent the student’s own work completed as part of the penultimate or final year assessment for an MEng graduate degree or as part of coursework completed in satisfaction of an MSc postgraduate degree. Dissertations produced as part of MRes or similar postgraduate research based degrees/diplomas etc are not eligible for the award.
4. Entries will be judged by a panel of members of the BGA Executive Committee. The panel will contain both practising geotechnical engineers and academics.
5. Entries will be assessed using a range of criteria, including: scientific quality; originality; depth and breadth of understanding; standard of presentation; practical significance.
6. The BGA reserves the right to make no award.
7. Procedure:
   There is a limit of one entry per course from each university, the expectation being that this would be the top-ranking dissertation(s) emerging from the university’s own assessment process for each MSc or MEng course.
   The entry should be submitted by the MEng/MSc course leader or the dissertation supervisor on behalf of the student.
   The student should be a BGA member (Student Membership is free).
   The submission should comprise: a) a the student’s masters dissertation, as submitted for assessment, in pdf format b). A citation letter from the course leader or dissertation supervisor, briefly outlining why the dissertation is considered prize-worthy, in pdf format.
   The outcome will be notified during spring/early summer in the year following the dissertation
   The winner may be invited to prepare a technical paper, based on the dissertation, for publication in Ground Engineering magazine and to present at the next BGA AGM

The call for submissions for the BGA Masters Dissertation Prize is now CLOSED

Closing Deadline is Midnight on 31 January 2024

Submissions must be made before the deadline via the on-line submission portal on the Prizes Page

Submission Document 1 should be the application form.

Submission Document 2 should be the supporting letter.

Submission Document 3 should be the dissertation being nominated.

Maximum file size for uploads is 32 MB. If the dissertation is larger than this please submit a PDF file containing the cover sheet, prelims and abstract via the portal, and the BGA will provide details of how to transfer the complete dissertation.

Download the application form HERE.

List of winners of BGA Masters Dissertation Prize