Three LGBTQ College Students Will Win $1000 Each

in GALECA’s Crimson Honors Entertainment Criticism Contest

GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics has extended the deadline for The Crimson Honors, an inaugural college film & TV criticism scholarship program for LGBTQ students pursuing a career in journalism or entertainment criticism. GALECA will award $3000 in financial assistance to the top three contenders of the program. Students from all disciplines and majors are encouraged to apply.

The Crimson Honors scholarship program is open to qualifying undergraduate students, as well as 2025 graduates, in the United States and its territories. Recent graduates must have graduated no earlier than April 1, 2025. A select panel of GALECA members and advisory board members will review and consider all student submissions of film, TV and/or Broadway/Off-Broadway criticism and/or commentary starting on May 1, 2026. After deliberation, the panel will honor the three entrants who have best demonstrated excellence in criticism/commentary. The scholarship contest’s criteria and eligibility requirements are listed below.

The honorees will receive $1000 each, along with two years of free membership in GALECA. The victors will also have opportunities to meet members such as editors and advisors in the organization, which counts over 500 established journalists covering film, TV and/or Broadway/Off-Broadway. Each mentee will also be matched with a mentor from GALECA, who will work with them on pitching and publishing their work for a year, from June 1, 2026 to June 1, 2027.

Applicants may submit up to three reviews or commentaries relating to film, TV and/or the New York stage, either unpublished and/or published in official campus media (newspaper, magazine, website, radio station, podcast, TV program), self-run outlet, and/or an external outlet. In addition, applicants must also include a resume as well as a 300-word statement on why they hope for a career as a critic and entertainment journalist, and what they hope to achieve from GALECA mentorship.

Applicants can submit all materials https://www.galeca.org/aboutcrimson by the deadline of 11:59 p.m. PT on May 1, 2026. Winners will be announced in June 2026. Any questions may be forwarded to honors@galeca.org.

Eligibility Criteria

  • Current full-time undergraduate students or recent graduates at a two-year community or four-year higher education institution in the United States and its territories, who identify as gay, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary or queer. Recent graduates should have graduated within the past year of the scholarship deadline (no earlier than April 1, 2025).
  • Students currently paid or employed by an external media outlet are not eligible.
  • Non-print entries (radio, podcast, YouTube, etc.) will also be considered.
  • Entries from nonbinary persons, or women, of color are especially encouraged to apply.

Required Materials

  • Applicants may submit one (1) to three (3) reviews and/or features relating to film and/or TV, each originally written from March 20, 2025 to May 1, 2026.
  • Video or audio segments must be two (2) to five (5) minutes in length. Please submit a script along with a link to the posted piece. Please note the timestamp of the beginning of your piece.
  • Each review and/or feature submitted does NOT need to be published prior to the submission deadline of April 1, 2026.
  • For published pieces, only up to one (1) posted on external media outlets will be eligible. Otherwise, entries must be unpublished, posted in an official campus media offering (e.g., newspaper, magazine, website, radio station, etc.), or a personal blog/podcast/YouTube channel.
  • Applicants must also include a resume and 300-word statement on why they hope for a career as a critic and entertainment journalist, and what they hope to achieve from GALECA mentorship

Other Rules and Notes

  • Non-English submissions are also eligible, but please provide an English translation along with the original piece.
  • Please note that materials sent will not be returned.
  • For print entries, submit PDFs only. Word documents or cut-and-pasted copy in email will not be accepted. For audiovisual entries, please include relevant links in your application.

Submit all materials to https://www.galeca.org/aboutcrimson by May 1, 2026 11:59pm PT.