How are Nobel laureates selected?
The Nobel Prize is regarded as the highest international honour one can receive for academic contribution and achievement. This accolade has six categories, namely: Physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, peace, and economics. The recipients are academically distinguished individuals in certain fields where exceptional research has made an unprecedented contribution to the world.
Alfred Nobel, the Swedish chemist, engineer, inventor, businessman, and philanthropist who established the Nobel Prize, laid down in his will a specific procedure in regard to the selection of the winners for this distinguished honour since the first Nobel Prize was awarded in 1901. He ensured the clarification of how the candidates are to be nominated and selected. Since then, his methods have remained untouched.
Who can nominate and how?
According to the Nobel Foundation, there are specific criteria outlined on the Nobel Prize website for how a person or organisation is eligible to nominate someone. A nomination is considered valid only when these specific criteria are met. One cannot nominate oneself for this award- the nomination has to come from an eligible nominator. Every person (alive) and organisations or institutions (active) can be eligible nominees. The nominee submissions are made online on the official Nobel Prize website. There is also an interesting secrecy rule where the Nobel Committee does not announce the names of nominees and nominators for 50 years.
Who selects the winners for the prize?
The responsibility of the selection of the winners is divided between four committees. The Norwegian Nobel Committee selects the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, the Swedish Academy for literature, the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet for medicine while the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences selects the winners of the prize in physics, chemistry and economics.
What is the process for the selection of winners?
The process extends over several months. Once all the nominations are received by the end of January, the Committee screens them and selects tentative candidates. Through March, April and May, it seeks consultation from experts regarding the candidates. Then, from June-August, the Committee formally creates an official report in accordance with the expert recommendations.
After this comes the actual selection. In September, the final recommendations are submitted, for which a vote is called for in October. Whichever nominee wins the majority vote is chosen as the Nobel Laureate. This decision cannot be appealed or contested, and is binding on all. After this, the names of the winners are announced in the same month. The winners of the Nobel Prize receive their prizes at the end of the year, in December.