FAQ's

The 2021 YoungArts competition application deadline is October 16, 2020 at 11:59 PM ET (Eastern Time). To be considered for the competition, you must complete, upload, and SUBMIT all of your materials according to the requirements for the discipline/category in which you are applying by the deadline (this also includes processing payment or submitting a fee waiver document if applicable). There will be NO grace period for completing an application.

Application to the YoungArts competition is made through the completion of an online application that includes the submission of an audition or portfolio and payment of an application fee or fee waiver documentation. Please refer to the discipline and category guidelines by visiting youngarts.org/apply.

Young artists in grades 10–12 or ages 15–18 on December 1, 2020 may apply. Applicants must be either a United States Citizen or have permanent resident status (copy of documentation is required to submit your application). Finalists who have previously attended National YoungArts Week may not apply, under any discipline or category. There are NO exceptions to these guidelines.

The application asks for basic information about how to contact you and about your artistic training. Each discipline and category has its own media submission requirements. Please visit the youngarts.org/apply for your particular discipline’s specific requirements (i.e. Classical Music, Dance, Design Arts, Film, Jazz, Photography, Theater, Visual Arts, Voice and Writing).

Yes, as long as you are between the ages of 15 and 18 on December 1, 2020. 

No, if you are a U.S permanent resident/green card recipient (copy of documentation is required to submit your application), you may also apply.

Honorable Mention and Merit award winners, as well as Finalists who were unable to attend National YoungArts Week are eligible to re-apply in any discipline and category provided they meet all other eligibility requirements. Finalists who previously attended National YoungArts Week may not reapply, under any discipline or category.  

The YoungArts competition includes ten disciplines across the visual, literary and performing arts. They are: Classical Music, Dance, Design Arts, Film, Jazz, Photography, Theater, Visual Arts, Voice and Writing. Some disciplines also have specific categories. Please visit ​youngarts.org/apply for more information. 

Yes, you may apply in as many disciplines and categories as you’d like. Please note that there is an application fee for each application you submit. If you qualify for a fee waiver, the documentation must be uploaded into each application in order for your fees to be waived.

The application fee for applying to YoungArts is $35. If you submit multiple applications across disciplines or categories, there is a $35 fee for each.  If you are unable to pay $35, fee waivers are available.  

Fee waivers are available to applicants, which will cover the entire cost of your application fee. To qualify, you will need to provide a letter from your parent, guardian, teacher or principal requesting to waive your fee within the declaration section of the application. If you are 18 years old and unable to obtain a qualifying letter, you may submit one yourself within the declaration section of the application.

You may pay your application fee online with a credit card. Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover cards are accepted.

No, the application fee is non-refundable.

Materials are uploaded as part of the online application process. Please Note: Even small files may take multiple hours to upload. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL DEADLINE DAY! Make sure you have ample time to complete the uploading process by the deadline.

Yes, you may begin an application and come back to it at a later time to complete. The information you have entered is automatically saved and available to you up until your application is submitted.

​Yes, if you opt into the YoungArts Student List Service in your application, YoungArts will share your contact information (name, address and email, and the name and address of your secondary educational institution) and your submission media materials with the selected colleges, conservatories and universities that participate in this program. YoungArts does not share phone numbers, parent/guardian contact information, educator contact information or citizenship status. You may get emails and/or postal mail from these institutions. Contact from colleges, conservatories and universities that participate in the YoungArts Student List Service does not guarantee your acceptance into an educational institution. 

​Yes, you may reapply for each application cycle that you are eligible for.

​You are allowed to resubmit materials, but it is highly recommended that you apply with current work that best represents the artist you are today.

​If you still have questions or specific inquiries about your specific discipline, please email us at ​[email protected].

Your submission is evaluated on its own merit in a blind adjudication process that includes multiple rounds of review.  In each round, a national pool of mentors within their respective specialties review and evaluate materials. Winners awarded at the finalist level have the opportunity to participate in an additional tier of evaluation in person.  

Last year, YoungArts received more than 7,000 completed applications from across the nation. There were nearly 700 winners, making being selected as a YoungArts winner a very prestigious honor. It is important to note that our focus is not on the total number of applications received, but the quality of each submission.

​Not exactly. YoungArts winners are eligible for cash awards. That money is unrestricted, meaning it can help pay for college, art school, a conservatory program, or anything else you wish. 

Winners are notified via the email address (only) provided in your application as well as via the official winners’ list posted to our website. Applicants who have not been awarded but who qualify for YoungArts’ feedback program (see next question regarding feedback) will also be notified of their status via email. Applicants who have not been awarded and are not eligible for feedback will not receive notification.

YoungArts has established a feedback program for select applications that reach the last round of the adjudication process, but are not awarded, and who are in grades 10–11 for the 2020–2021 school year. Applicants must meet both these criteria to be eligible for this program. If eligible, applicants will be notified via email by the end of November and provided with constructive suggestions from the judges who reviewed their materials by the end of February.

Winners are announced, with an official winners list posted to our website, by the end of November. Please refer to the full application timeline* below.

YoungArts recognizes hundreds of the country’s most promising artists with national awards each year. Beyond award designation, winners have the opportunity to participate in life-changing programs that consist of learning experiences with some of the most accomplished artists in each of our ten disciplines. They are able to connect with a rich network of peers and showcase work via performances and exhibitions. Joining a 20,000-strong alumni community, YoungArts award winners connect with peers who have attended many of the top universities and conservatories across the country and have become leading professionals in their fields. The following section highlights specifics related to each award level designation.

Recognition Levels Merit: The YoungArts Merit award level recognizes work that has been deemed as commendable by the panel, strong technically with a clear artistic point of view. Merits receive a monetary award of $100.

Honorable Mention: The YoungArts Honorable Mention award level recognizes work that demonstrates exceptional technique; a strong sense of artistry; and a depth of thinking/performance that exceeds the level of peers at this career stage. Honorable Mentions receive a monetary award of $250.

Finalist: The YoungArts Finalist award recognizes work that demonstrates exceptional technique; a strong, sophisticated, nuanced, and clear artistic point of view; and a depth of thinking/performance that far exceeds the level of peers at this career stage. Finalists are invited to participate in National YoungArts Week and will have their work further evaluated and recognized as one of the following: Level 3 $1,000; Level 2 $1,500; Level 1 $3,000; Silver $5,000; and Gold $10,000. Finalists who attend National YoungArts Week and meet the eligibility requirements are also considered for nomination to the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program.

In addition to monetary awards, all winners receive a medallion, a lifetime of creative and professional support, and access to YoungArts Post, a private, online portal for YoungArts artists to connect, share their work and discover new opportunities.

U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts (PSA) is the arts portion of the U.S. Presidential Scholars program.* Administered by the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Scholars program celebrates 161 outstanding high school seniors each June in Washington, DC during National Recognition Week, which includes a Medallion Ceremony and visit to the White House.

YoungArts is the exclusive pathway to the U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts, the nation’s highest honor for artistically talented high school seniors. Each year, up to 60 YoungArts Finalists who attend National YoungArts Week in January are nominated to the Presidential Scholars Commission, of which 20 are selected as Arts Scholars. The performing arts winners create a performance-based salute to all of the Scholars, and the visual and literary artists exhibit their work at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

If you are chosen to participate in National YoungArts Week before you meet the grade level requirement for Presidential Scholar nomination, you will have the opportunity for consideration in the year you become a graduating high school senior. At that time, you will submit updated portfolio/audition materials and answer essay questions to be considered by the current year’s National Selection Panel during the adjudication process. Additionally, finalists must meet the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program GPA and citizenship requirements.

*For further information on the U.S. Presidential Scholar Program including application guidelines, academic requirements, etc., please visit their website (http://www2.ed.gov/programs/psp).

Yes. Our panel may select winners to be awarded for multiple levels in multiple disciplines and categories. YoungArts will recognize you in all disciplines and categories for which you were selected.

If you were selected to attend National YoungArts Week in more than one discipline or category, you will be required to select the discipline or category in which you would like to participate; you will be honored in the other discipline or category with a “Finalist Award” and will receive a monetary award of $500.

Winners will receive instructions on completing their award forms at the end of February and all checks are mailed by the end of May.

Anyone receiving an award check from the National YoungArts Foundation must submit a W-9 to the YoungArts office. No check will be issued without this document. The W-9 form must be filled out with the winner’s information in order for the award(s) to be issued. 

Yes. High schools receive an engraved plaque for them to display that includes the names of all YoungArts winners from that school in a given year.

Yes, if you opt into the YoungArts Student List Service in your application, YoungArts will share your contact information (name, address and email, and the name and address of your secondary educational institution) and your submission media materials with the selected colleges, conservatories and universities that participate in this program. YoungArts does not share phone numbers, parent/guardian contact information, educator contact information or citizenship status. You may get emails and/or postal mail from these institutions.  Contact from colleges, conservatories and universities that participate in the YoungArts Student List Service does not guarantee your acceptance into an educational institution.

National YoungArts Week, our signature program where finalists across 10 artistic disciplines participate in master classes and workshops with internationally recognized leaders in their fields. 
In response to the ongoing pandemic, YoungArts has made the decision to adapt its programs, including National YoungArts Week, to be delivered virtually through online classes, lectures, and forums. Our goal is to provide this year’s artists with the same artistic and creative support even though we cannot gather in person. Our highest priority is the wellbeing of our participants, artists, mentors and staff.
Learn more

In response to the ongoing pandemic, YoungArts has made the decision to adapt its programs, including National YoungArts Week, to be delivered virtually through online classes, lectures, and forums. Our goal is to provide this year’s artists with the same artistic and creative support even though we cannot gather in person. Our highest priority is the wellbeing of our participants, artists, mentors and staff.
Online offerings will create opportunities for increased interdisciplinary and intergenerational classes. All 2021 YoungArts awards winners—Finalist, Honorable Mention and Merit—will receive a cash awards, the chance to work with renowned mentors and leading artists, and will become eligible for exclusive creative and professional development support throughout their careers. Detailed programming information will be announced at a later date.

A YoungArts alumnus/a is anyone who has been named a YoungArts winner since 1981. This includes all Finalist, Honorable Mention and Merit winners whether they have participated in a YoungArts program week or not.

Our alumni community is made up of over 20,000 gifted artists who have gone on to attend top colleges, universities and conservatories across the country and become leading professionals in their fields. From Juilliard to Harvard, New York City Ballet and Alvin Ailey Dance Company, exhibiting at the Venice Biennale, and making the New York Times Best Seller list, YoungArts alumni have a strong presence in their artistic communities and serve as leaders and creative thinkers that redefine the way that art is created, experienced and appreciated.

The alumni community is here to help provide individual support for each alumnus/a to reach their full potential in their artistic careers. We foster the community as a whole, bringing together alumni from different participation years and disciplines and encourage networking and collaboration. 

Created exclusively for YoungArts alumni, YoungArts Post is a free, private, online platform designed to encourage alumni to re-connect, share their work and discover new opportunities. Access to applications for residencies, grants, performance and exhibition opportunities, temporary work with core programs and targeted offerings from YoungArts’ cultural partners are all available on YoungArts Post.
YoungArts is always looking for new and different ways to maintain relationships with our alumni by integrating them into our national and regional programs, campus programming and events. We also provide new and interesting opportunities for alumni to collaborate through alumni open calls, by supporting their personal projects, and providing resources to advance their careers and promote their artistic ideas. 

Visit our Alumni page for more information about ways to connect with the YoungArts alumni community.