Scholastic Art and Writing Awards: A Complete Guide

You spend hours sketching in your notebook or writing stories, and you’ve been complimented by people on your skills. As your confidence grows, you may now crave a bigger audience or be curious to see how your work stacks up beyond the classroom. If that sounds like you, the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is one of the biggest national stages for aspiring writers and artists.

In this article, we’ll talk more about what the competition is, how to enter, and what it takes to stand out.

• What Is the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards?
• Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Awards and Prizes
• How to Qualify for the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards
• How to Get into the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards
• How to Win the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards
• Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Previous Winners
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Takeaways

What Is the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards?

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is the nation’s longest-running and most prestigious competition for teenage artists and writers. It began in 1923 and has since grown into a huge annual program, with thousands of students in grades 7–12 participating by submitting their art or writing for a chance at recognition every year. It is run by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers.

The Awards cover 29 categories of creative work:

Every year in June, the organization invites the national medalists to the Scholastic Awards National Ceremony, where they are recognized in New York City.

Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Awards and Prizes

Winning in any of the categories of the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards can give you recognition, scholarships, and cash awards. We’ll explain these awards and prizes below.

Regional awards

When you enter the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, your work is first judged in your local region of the competition. Regional Scholastic Awards are given at three levels:

• Honorable Mention. This award means your work showed promise or talent.
• Silver Key. This award represents high honors in your region.
• Gold Key. This is the top prize in the region, awarded to stand-out pieces. If you earn a Gold Key, your work automatically advances to the national level for the next round of judging.

Regional programs also typically host ceremonies or exhibitions to showcase their winners’ work, so earning any regional award can get you local recognition and a chance to celebrate with your community.

Each region can also nominate up to five exceptional Gold Key works for the American Voices & Visions Award.

National awards

All Gold Key–winning works from around the country move on to national judging. At the national level, the highest honor for an individual piece is the Gold Medal, and the next-highest is a Silver Medal. These are basically the national Gold and Silver Key awards (though they’re called “Medals” at the national stage).

Becoming a national medalist means your work was one of the most outstanding in the entire nation. National Medalists are announced in the spring around March after national judging.

National winners are celebrated in a big way. Each year in June, the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers hosts a National Ceremony in New York City to honor the winners. Gold Medalists and many Silver Medalists are invited to attend.

On top of the recognition, achieving a national award also often comes with opportunities to have your work published or exhibited. The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards organizes national exhibitions for selected student works and publications (in print or online) to showcase student art and writing to a wider audience.

Scholarships and special awards

Beyond the standard awards, the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards also offers scholarships and special honors for high-achieving students:

How to Qualify for the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards

Before you start working on a piece to submit to the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, you should first understand what’s needed for a complete entry.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, you must:

• Be in grades 7–12, usually ages 13–18 (homeschoolers within this grade range can also join).
• Reside in the United States or its territories, or in Canada (includes attending a U.S. school abroad or being on a U.S. military base).
• Submit only original work that you created in the current Awards year.

Required documents

You’ll need to submit these when you join the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards:

• Entry form. All submissions are done through an online portal. You’ll need to create a Scholastic Awards account and complete an entry form for each work you submit.
• The creative work itself. You’ll need to have a digital file of your work to upload. For art, that means a high-quality photo (or video for certain categories) of your artwork. For writing, you will either upload the text or paste it into the entry field.
• Category-specific requirements. Some categories have extra requirements. For example, a Writing Portfolio entry requires two written statements: an artist statement about your work and a personal statement about you, each 100–500 words. An Art Portfolio entry requires an artist’s statement of 100–500 words about the portfolio’s themes or process.

Contest fees

The standard entry fee is $10 per individual submission and $30 per portfolio. So, if you’re submitting works in multiple categories, you’ll need to pay the fee the same number of times too.

However, if the cost poses any financial hardship, you can check a fee waiver box during the online submission process, and you won’t be required to pay.

Registration deadline

Deadlines for submitting your work typically range from early December to early January, but each region sets its own exact deadline, some being as early as December 1. Because of that, check your region to find specific deadlines.

Here’s a quick overview of the general Scholastic Art and Writing Awards timeline:

How to Get into the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards

Getting into the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is a straightforward process. But here’s a step-by-step process on how to enter so you’ll already know what to expect:

Step 1: Create your Scholastic Art and Writing Awards account.

Go to the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards website and sign up through their portal. You’ll need to provide basic information like your name, email, age, grade, and school when registering.

Make sure to link your account to your school during signup. If your school isn’t listed, the site allows you to add it or will assign you to a region based on your zip code.

Once your account is created, you can log in to the Awards portal anytime to manage your entries.

Step 2: Choose your category and work.

Next, decide what piece (or pieces) of art or writing you want to submit. Take a look at the list of categories and determine where your work fits best. There are 29 categories, so almost any type of creative work is eligible.

The organization is aware that a work can fit into more than one category. However, you’re only allowed to enter one work in one category. They recommend checking out descriptions at the Online Gallery to help you determine which category most closely matches your work.

You’re allowed to submit more than one entry if you have multiple pieces you’re proud of. You can even enter multiple categories. There isn’t an overall limit on how many entries you can submit, aside from a few category-specific caps (like a maximum of 16 photographs per student or up to 2 portfolios per senior).

Remember that it’s better to submit a few polished pieces than many rushed ones.

Step 3: Prepare your work for submission.

Before uploading anything, make sure your work is finalized and meets all the guidelines. Double-check any specific instructions for your category.

For example, Architecture & Industrial Design works require you to submit a sturdy model alongside hand-drawn or computer-generated plans. Meanwhile, Ceramics & Glass submissions have suggestions of specific angles for how to take pictures of your work.

Step 4: Upload your work and fill in entry details.

Once your work is ready, log in to your Scholastic Awards account and start a new entry. The online submission form will guide you through a series of sections.

First, you’ll select the category of your work from a drop-down menu. Then, you’ll enter the title of your work and upload the file/s.

Before finalizing, review the entry details you’ve entered. Check that your images are uploaded correctly and that your text isn’t cut off. Ensure you didn’t accidentally select the wrong category or leave any required field blank.

The portal saves your progress, so you can always come back to an entry draft if you’re not ready to submit yet.

Step 5: Pay the fee and submit your entry.

The Scholastic Awards portal will calculate your total fees based on how many entries you have in your cart. When you’re ready, proceed to the payment section. You can pay online using a credit/debit card or another accepted payment method.

If you requested a fee waiver, the system will skip the payment step for those entries. You might need to confirm your waiver request since some regions ask for a short statement or school counselor approval for the waiver, so follow any instructions given.

After handling the fee, click the final Submit button for each entry. You should receive a confirmation (on-screen and/or via email) that your submission was received. It’s a good idea to verify in your account that your entry status is marked as “submitted” and not just saved. Once submitted, your work will be in the running for the awards.

How to Win the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards

With thousands of entries, winning the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards can be really tough. However, there are some strategies you can try to help your work stand out. Here are some tips to increase your chances of success:

1. Emphasize originality and your personal voice.

Originality is part of the selection criteria that judges look for. The judges are looking for work that is fresh, inspired, and truly coming from you, not a copy of someone else’s ideas. This is why artworks that are initially classroom assignments focusing on recreating artworks like the Mona Lisa shouldn’t be entered.

Your personal voice and vision should shine through. This means you should write or create art about subjects that genuinely matter to you, in a style that feels natural to you.

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards have celebrated diverse voices for a century, so there’s no single “right” theme or style. The organization even allows work with subjects like profanity and violence if the artist feels it’s important to their submission.

2. Showcase your skills and craftsmanship.

Judges also evaluate the skill and craftsmanship demonstrated in your work. You don’t have to be a prodigy, but you should show that you have command of the basics of your medium and know how to use what you know to your advantage.

For writers, this means strong writing mechanics and effective use of literary techniques or imagery. For artists, this means attention to composition, technique, and detail. A well-crafted piece tells the judges that you put effort and skill into it, which can set your work apart.

Judges also consider soft skills like critical thinking and problem-solving. They’ll be able to evaluate these soft skills through the documentation of your process.

3. Follow the contest guidelines meticulously.

It sounds obvious, but not following the rules can doom an entry from the start. Make sure you’ve met all the contest guidelines for your submission. This includes length limits (if a category says max 3,000 words, don’t go over), file format (images must be JPEGs of a certain size), and content rules.

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards doesn’t disqualify work for controversial content, but they do require originality and have a strict plagiarism policy. Using large language models or image generators to create your entire piece is considered plagiarism/cheating and will lead to disqualification.

Remember to submit on time too.

4. Get feedback and revise your work.

Before you submit, consider seeking feedback on your work from someone you trust. This could be a teacher who knows your art/writing style, or a peer who can give an honest critique. Ask them what stands out about your piece and if anything is confusing or could be improved. Sometimes, a fresh pair of eyes can catch errors or suggest a new idea that you hadn’t thought of. Use that input to make thoughtful revisions.

However, be careful not to let feedback affect your personal vision since it’s your work, but do correct obvious issues and refine the parts that might be weak.

5. Study past winning entries.

A great way to understand what impresses the judges is to look at examples of what has won before. The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards website hosts galleries of past National Medalists’ works. Spend some time looking through high-scoring pieces in your category.

As you review them, ask yourself:

• What about this piece is effective or memorable?
• How did this poem convey emotion, or how did this photograph use composition?

This is not to say you should copy any past work (you absolutely should not). But you can draw inspiration and learn techniques. You might realize, for example, that many winning personal essays have a strong narrative voice, or that winning paintings often use bold contrast. Learning from examples can spark ideas on how to approach your own work with a winning mindset.

Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Previous Winners

Over its long history, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards has recognized many young people who later became notable artists, writers, and creators. Here are a few examples of famous alumni who won Scholastic Awards as teenagers:

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the Scholastic Awards?

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is a nationwide contest in which students in grades 7–12 submit original art or writing in any of 29 categories for judging and recognition. It’s the longest-running youth arts awards program in the US, offering teens opportunities for awards, exhibitions, publications, and scholarships.

2. How prestigious are Scholastic Art and Writing Awards?

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards are widely regarded as the nation’s most prestigious competition for high school artists and writers. The program has been running for over 100 years, and its legacy includes many famous alumni (like Andy Warhol and Sylvia Plath) who first gained recognition through Scholastic Awards.

3. What happens if you win the Scholastic Awards?

If you win a Gold Key at the regional level, your work advances to national judging. If you win a national award, you’ll receive a National Medal (Gold or Silver) and be honored at a ceremony in New York City. National winners may also earn scholarships or special awards as part of their recognition.

4. Can I re-enter a work that I entered to the Scholastic Awards in a previous year?

Yes, you can re-enter a work that you’ve entered in the Scholastic Awards in a previous year only if they’ve been edited significantly. Works that have been previously can’t be re-entered in individual categories, but can be re-entered if it’s part of a portfolio.

Takeaways

• The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards is a major national competition for creative students in grades 7–12, spanning 29 art and writing categories and a history of recognizing teen talent.
• Students first compete regionally, where they can earn Honorable Mentions, Silver Keys, or Gold Keys. Gold Key works can then win national Gold or Silver Medals. National award winners get to attend a ceremony in NYC and possibly earn scholarships.
• To improve your chances of winning, focus on originality, craftsmanship, and following all guidelines. Get feedback and revise your work, and get inspiration from past winning entries.
• Looking for other similar opportunities that let you test yourself against fellow artists nationally or improve your craft? Let us help you plan your extracurriculars so you can be part of activities that nurture your skills.