Comment-On Competition
Now accepting applications for the Summer 2026 Comment-On Competition!
Submit an article. Join our journal.
The National Security Law Journal (“NSLJ”) invites current George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School students to apply for NSLJ membership via its Comment-On Competition!
NSLJ is the only journal at Scalia Law that offers an alternative path to journal membership outside of the typical “Write-On Competition” process. Comment-On applications open three times each year (spring, summer, fall), allowing upper-class students (2Ls, 2Es, and 3Es) to compete for journal membership by submitting a piece of publishable quality on a national security law topic.
Comment-On is unique compared to Write-On in that applicants who join NSLJ via Comment-On gain full membership status, bypassing the Candidate Member probationary period.
Student Eligibility
Comment-On is available to current 2L, 2E, or 3E students at George Mason Antonin Scalia Law School with at least one full semester remaining. Applicants must be in good academic standing, as verified by the Records Office.*
*Applicants must complete a Grade Release Form after submitting their application.
Students who have graduated are not eligible to join NSLJ as student members. However, alumni who have a timely, publishable article related to national security law are welcome and encouraged to submit their piece for consideration for publication!
Application Requirements
Interested applicants should direct the application materials listed below to NSLJ’s notes editors at CommentOn@nslj.org. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
1. Article related to national security law (word or pdf format);
2. Statement of interest in joining NSLJ (maximum 250 words);
3. Current resume; and
4. Current contact information, including name, class year, mailing address, e-mail address, and phone number.
NSLJ reserves the right to extend membership offers to those students whose articles meet NSLJ’s publication requirements. Note that there is often a significant difference between papers written for class credit (even if the article receives a very high grade) and student articles that are of publishable quality for an academic journal.
Article Requirements
An applicant’s submitted article may be on any topic of the applicant’s choosing, so long as it relates to national security law and is not preempted by an already-published piece. The student article must be solely written by the student submitting the piece for consideration. Student articles should be 20-30 double-spaced pages in length, in 12-point Times New Roman font, and in proper Bluebook format. Please see our past issues for examples of law journal articles of publishable quality.
Membership Rights
Full Membership Status. Members who join via Comment-On are considered full members of NSLJ. Accordingly, full members are expected to complete requirements asked of any other member to retain their member status (e.g., research, spading). NSLJ retains the option to revoke membership if requirements are not fulfilled.
Leadership Eligibility. Full members of NSLJ are eligible to apply for leadership positions, regardless of how that member joined NSLJ.
Consideration for Publication. While Candidate Members spend their first year on the journal writing and preparing their comments and notes for possible publication, members who joined through Comment-On already have a publishable piece ready for immediate consideration! Accordingly, articles used to apply to NSLJ via Comment-On will be considered for publication.
In the event there is no space available for publication, NSLJ will assist with publication elsewhere. NSLJ has the right of first refusal for all articles submitted through Comment-On.
If you have any questions, please contact our Editor-in-Chief at EIC@nslj.org or our Notes Editor Team at CommentOn@nslj.org.