We The Future College Scholarship

Rules & Deadlines

$2,000 - $5,000 Scholarships Available!

Teachers: Earn a $50 Amazon gift card when at least 10 students from your class submit contest entries!

Bonus for Teachers: The teacher with the most student contest entries wins $1,000! (See the teacher category for details.)

We The Future Contest

College Category

(ages 17-24; 12 hours or more)

Contest Rules Summary 2026

Sign up for the contest online.

IMPORTANT: AI tools may be used for technical purposes such as editing, design, and transitions, but all original ideas, writing, and creative content must be the student’s own work. Entries will be analyzed by third-party software.

College Students may submit: Essay, Song, STEM, Short Film, Social Media Video, or PSA. All entries that utilize copyrighted music, film clips, or photos MUST obtain the proper licensing permissions IN ADVANCE of submitting the entry, in order to be considered.

The winner will also be invited to attend the Winner Mentor Trip, tentatively scheduled for September 2026 (all costs fully covered).

Submissions due no later than 11:59 p.m. ET May 31, 2026 submitted electronically through the online portal on this site.  See Official Rules Section III for complete submission instructions.

• Essay:

Write a 500-700 word essay expressing the relationship between the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution. Why are they both important? How different would our nation be without both documents?

Thought starter: Explore Checks and Balances in the U.S. Constitution and how they were inspired by the Declaration as well the groundbreaking concepts in the Declaration such as inalienable rights (among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness) and the concept of “consent of the governed.”

Essay entry may be mailed or submitted electronically, but MUST include student’s name, age, and grade on every page of the essay. If mailing, the essay and entry form must be included. See Official Rules Section III for details.

• Song:

Create an original song with the theme of our Country’s 250th birthday, and what it means to be celebrating this milestone birthday of the Declaration of Independence, with special focus on the Declaration’s words, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and/or “the consent of the governed.”

The song must be an original pop, country, rock, or other popular genre song composition with lyrics and music written by the student, no longer than 3:20. Song submissions should be uploaded to YouTube (640 x 360 minimum, HD preferred) or Vimeo (download enabled) and must include a video recording of the live performance. The song title must be in the title of the uploaded video and the song lyrics must be in the description of the video. See Official Rules Section III for details.

• STEM:

Get a pulse on what your peers know about the Declaration of Independence! Conduct a survey or focus group, create an online quiz or website, or design a smartphone app highlighting the celebration of America’s birthday on July 4, 2026.

Thought starter: As part of your project, explain the significance of this sentence using STEM/technology: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed” with special emphasis on consent of the governed.

See Official Rules Section III for details about STEM.

• Short Film:

Option 1: Please create a 5-10 minute short film that represents how the Constitution’s checks and balances and federalism have protected our republic

Option 2: Please create a 5-10 minute short film that represents how the Declaration of Independence and its radical ideas of self-government, consent of the governed and individual rights have prevented tyranny and preserved life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Must be an original film written and directed by the student. Up to two students may collaborate on and submit the short film. It must be no shorter than 5 minutes and no longer than 10 minutes in length. See Official Rules Section III for details.

Social Media Video (60-second maximum): Please create a 60-second maximum video (Instagram reel, YouTube short, etc) using the following prompt:

How the Declaration of Independence and the concepts embedded (inalienable rights, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and “consent of the governed”) prevent tyranny and preserve our rights?

Thought starter: How do townhalls reflect these principles? What is consent of the governed” as stated in this sentence from the Declaration: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”

It must be no longer than 60 seconds in length, originally written and directed by the student and recorded. Up to two students may collaborate on and submit the Social Media Video. Social Media Video submissions should be uploaded as 1080×1920 (9:16 aspect ratio) with the highest resolution possible to YouTube or Vimeo (download enabled). See Official Rules Section III for details.

• PSA:

Create a commercial suitable for airing on radio or TV that is no longer than 25 seconds, choosing one of the following prompts:

Option 1: Why citizens should know their Constitution.

Option 2: Why are civil civic conversations important in our society today?

Option 3: How does the Declaration of Independence represent American ingenuity?

Submissions should be uploaded to YouTube (640 x 360 minimum, HD preferred) or Vimeo (download enabled). The first line of the video description in the online submission must read: Submitted to Constituting America’s We The Future 2026 Contest www.constitutingamerica.org. The following must be submitted electronically through the online portal on this site: Entry permission form; YouTube or Vimeo link; script. Please include your name, age, and grade on all pages of the entry package.