Scholars of St. Thomas Aquinas
Shire of Appledore
Application Process
Candidates for the Scholars of St. Thomas Aquinas persona develpment challenge follow a two-step process. First, a preliminary application is required by March 1 of the year in which you wish to attempt the challenge. If your application is accepted, you must submit the full formal application by April 15. The event itself is held in June.

The Preliminary Application
Candidates must submit a completed application form, or supply all of the information required on the form on a sheet of paper, and a general bibliography for your persona research. You will not be held to all of the details of the initial persona outline you submit at this time. Details can change, but the time period and culture of your persona must remain the same.

This application is only to allow us to see if your persona is suitable, to know what time period and culture your persona is from so that we can prepare ourselves as judges, and to make sure your research has been based on appropriate materials.

The purpose of the two-stage process is to try to get a handle on how well prepared you are to attempt the Scholars of St. Thomas Aquinas. We don't want anyone to do all the work involved only to see them fail. If we feel you're not ready, we'll stop you at this stage and make suggestions as to what aspects of your research need to be strengthened. We truly want to see every Candidate succeed once they pass the application process.

If you submit your preliminary application and get a response, but do not hear anything negative, your application has been accepted. Continue with your preparations.

The Full Application
By April 15, you should have submitted your full application. This consists of the introduction to your persona, your Calligraphy entry, and a copy of the documentation for all applicable categories. It is strongly recommended that you keep a copy of your documentation and bring it with you to study prior to and during breaks at the event.

The style, script and materials used for your Calligraphy entry must be appropriate to your persona or at least plausibly from your period. If your persona does not write or use the Latin alphabet, you might wish to consult with Sevrin to determine how to handle this. You may use a foreign language if you wish, and assume we will find a translator. You must provide your own translation as well.

The persona introduction usually comes in the form of a letter, usually a letter of introduction or a brief biography. This can be typed or in regular handwriting, and you may choose to combine the Calligraphy entry with this as the first page.

The letter should be addressed to Sevrin de Savage. It often includes some reason why you are traveling, but this is not necessary. The assumption is that you are traveling with a two day stopover with us.

You must also submit all of the documentation for any categories you wish to document. Several categories require documentation (see the categories page for more information). Others suggest it. Documentation can consist of photocopies with full citations of the books, articles or webpages they were taken from, bibliographies, or essays in which you synthesize all of the information into a form we can absorb. In the latter case, you must still provide the sources of information you include.

Some applicants may also include notes on issues they feel are worth commenting on.

Sevrin Lord de Savage
[mka: Aaron D. McClelland]
email; desavage@telus.net
10720 Ritchie Street
Summerland, BC. V0H 1Z5

Application Process
Application Form (PDF)
Application Form (HTML)
Competition Categories
Judging Criteria