Bennington Young Writers Awards

Bennington Young Writers AwardsThe Bennington Young Writers Awards are offered annually by Bennington College—whose literary legacy includes seven Pulitzer Prize winners, three U.S. poet laureates, the youngest Man Booker Prize winner, a MacArthur “Genius,” countless New York Times bestsellers, and one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people.

WHO CAN SUBMIT: Students in the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades.

WHAT TO SUBMIT: Students may enter in ONE of the following categories: poetry (a group of three poems), fiction (a short story or one-act play), or nonfiction (a personal or academic essay). All entries must be original work and sponsored by a high school teacher. Short stories and nonfiction must be fewer than 1500 words.

JUDGES: Judges include Bennington College faculty and students.

AWARDS: First-place winners in each category are awarded a prize of $500; second-place winners receive $250. The annual competition runs from early September to November 1 with winning entries posted after April 15.

HOW TO SUBMIT: You may submit online or by mail (mailed entries must be accompanied by a submission form, available from your English teacher or by downloading here.) We welcome entries from international students—in order to submit online, please enter N/A in place of the CEEB code for your high school if it doesn’t have one.

DEADLINE: Submission deadline: November 1.

Last year, more than 2,300 students submitted poetry, fiction, and nonfiction to the Young Writers Awards competition. We congratulate all entrants on their extraordinary submissions, and are pleased to share past winning entries.

MORE INFORMATION: For more information about the Young Writers and other programs at Bennington College, please contact us by email at admissions@bennington.edu or phone at 800-833-6845. Visit the website to see past winners.