Entries must have been published between June 27, 2020, and June 25, 2021. The contest is open only to student media with a current NSPA membership as of the contest deadline. Any student on the staff of an NSPA-member media outlet is eligible to enter. The entry must be published in the NSPA-member student media.

In most cases, one or two entries per student media outlet are allowed and indicated in the contest rules. NSPA Individual Awards and MHSPA Gold Medallion Awards are included in membership. Staffs are encouraged to work together to select their highest quality work.

Entries may not be submitted to more than one category. For example, the same story can’t be entered to both the News Story and Social Justice Reporting contests. The submission format required for each contest is indicated. In most categories, a URL link to a website or a PDF file of the printed page is required. Not both.