The Vilis Vītols annual award of $500 is presented to the author of the best article in a given year of the Journal of Baltic Studies. The criteria for evaluating articles are:

1. Priority given to articles that encompass more than one Baltic country and thus expressly represent Baltic studies.
2. A signifiant scholarly topic or issue or question of public policy.
3. A thesis, a point, a good question.
4. Research marshalled to support and explain the theories in question.
5. The quality of writing regardless of the age or status of the author.
6. Preference to a junior scholar if the quality of the article so merits.