Student Reporter Submissions

Each year, the Jimmy Awards invites select Student Reporters from participating Regional Awards Programs to cover Jimmy Awards events through social media. This provides a chance to expand connections into local schools’ journalism, film, and other related departments. Student Reporters work directly with the Jimmy Awards Digital team which allows them to receive an insider look at the digital marketing strategy of Jimmy Awards coverage while gaining insight into the field as a whole. 

Sign in to Instagram and click here for a glimpse into the 2025 Student Reporters’ experience covering the 2025 Jimmy Awards, from rehearsal to the red carpet to the ceremony at Broadway’s Minskoff Theatre!

This form is for RAP use only.

The Jimmy Awards seeks two Student Reporters from around the country to travel to New York and cover the Jimmy Awards on Monday, June 22, 2026, on the official Jimmy Awards social media channels. Applicants must be currently enrolled in a high school producing a Qualifying Show adjudicated by an official Regional Awards Program (RAP) of the Jimmy Awards during the 2025-26 school year. Applicants must be submitted by a participating RAP with a maximum of two (2) submissions per RAP. Applicants must not be students who are competing to participate as a nominee in the Jimmy Awards.

The Jimmy Awards will provide the following for the two selected students plus one chaperone each:

• Round-trip airfare
• Overnight lodging for Saturday, June 20; Sunday, June 21; and Monday, June 22
• Breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Sunday, June 21, and Monday, June 22
• Tickets to the ceremony at Broadway’s Minskoff Theatre
• After-Party passes

2026 Submission Guidelines

PROJECT DEFINITION: Make a video in the style of an Instagram Reel/TikTok video showcasing your ideas for how to share nominee experiences on the day of the ceremony and encourage the Jimmy Awards’ social media followers to tune in to the ceremony livestream. Then, write a sample caption to accompany your Reel/TikTok video.

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS: Please ensure your video submission meets the following guidelines:

• The video should include at least one unedited segment of at least 20 seconds in length with the applicant speaking directly to camera.
• The video must not include any performance footage; the content of the videos is otherwise up to the applicant.
• Any pre-recorded music used must be royalty-free.
• Submissions must meet the requirements for an Instagram Reel/TikTok video with an aspect ratio between 1.91:1 and 9:16 and minimum resolution of 720 pixels.

CONTENT PROMPT: Imagine you are covering the day of the Jimmy Awards ceremony in NYC on social media. Create an up to 60-second video in the style of an Instagram Reel or TikTok video that showcases your creative approach to content creation and includes at least one of the following scenarios as part of your video:

• You are on the bus with the nominees heading to the Minskoff Theatre, where they will rehearse and perform on a Broadway stage later that day.
• You are at lunch with the nominees after their first technical and staging rehearsal on a Broadway stage. In about six hours, they will be performing in front of a sold-out audience and worldwide livestream.
• You are interviewing Broadway talent and/or Jimmy Awards Judges on the red carpet before they take their seats in the audience for the ceremony.

We want to see your personality shine in this video! Show us how you would use your unique perspective to build interest in and awareness of the Jimmy Awards. This is an opportunity to showcase your creativity and skills in event coverage, visual storytelling, video editing, videography, photography, and/or social media. Sign in to Instagram and click here for a glimpse into the 2025 Student Reporters’ experience covering the 2025 Jimmy Awards.

Applicant submissions are due to The Jimmy Awards by 5pm ET on Monday, April 13. Regional Awards Programs may post application videos to their social media channels and tag the Jimmy Awards if they so choose. Any application videos in which the Jimmy Awards are tagged will be shared to the Jimmy Awards Instagram Stories, provided said videos are posted on the platform between Monday, April 13, and Friday, May 1. Application videos will not be individually posted on Jimmy Awards channels. The two Student Reporters will be selected and notified on or around May 11.

If you are a student interested in applying, please contact your Regional Awards Program. Further details are provided below.

Process of Choosing Jimmy Awards Reporters

There is no cost to enter the Jimmy Awards Student Reporter Search and no purchase necessary to enter. There will be a maximum of one hundred and sixteen (116) applicants. Up to ten (10) candidates will be chosen as finalists based on their submission, and two (2) will ultimately be chosen as Jimmy Awards Student Reporters based on qualitative assessments explained further below.

A panel of 5-7 individuals (the “Submissions Board”) from the Jimmy Awards will review every application video and choose up to ten (10) finalists to be included in a montage video created by the Jimmy Awards, which will be uploaded to the Jimmy Awards’ Facebook page, Instagram account, YouTube channel, TikTok account, and/or similar online social media platform on or about May 4, 2026. The Jimmy Awards will choose up to ten (10) finalists based on the skills of the creator. The skill will be assessed by the panel by reviewing the applicant’s camera presence, creativity, adherence to the stated guidelines, and other relevant criteria. The Submissions Board has the absolute discretion to determine who will be selected as a finalist. The Submissions Board’s determination will not be subject to review.  Finalists will be informed by May 4. Any finalist videos posted by Regional Awards Programs in which the Jimmy Awards are tagged on the platform will be re-shared to the Jimmy Awards Instagram Stories alongside the announcement of the finalists.

The two (2) applicants determined by the Submissions Board to have the best camera presence, creativity, adherence to the stated guidelines, and other relevant criteria will be chosen as the two (2) Jimmy Awards Student Reporters. The Submission Board’s determination will not be subject to review. Student Reporters will be notified on or around May 11.

Student Reporters will be required to sign a Code of Conduct and media release.

The estimated retail value of each prize is: $4,000

Void where prohibited.