Level I: The Common Young Writers Program Application 2026
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Applications for The Common Young Writers Program are now open until midnight on May 18. You will be asked to supply a brief two-page writing sample, which may be a short story, poem, essay, or other piece of writing. No prior experience is required. Applications will be reviewed by The Common's editorial team and decisions will be sent out by June 1.
Tuition payment is due by mid-June. For those receiving tuition waivers, we will correspond with you directly about the amount and timing of any tuition payments. Partial and full tuition waivers are available for both Level I and Level II.
The program runs July 20-31, and you should be able to attend in its entirety.
If you have questions, please contact the Literary Editorial Fellow at info@thecommononline.org.
AI Policy
For applications to the program, we are not expecting perfect writing—the point of the program is to improve! Applications that sound like AI will not be strong candidates.
This Program aims to teach students how to write their own unique, creative work by closely analyzing literary texts and honing the skills required to construct a compelling narrative. The use of AI to complete TCYWP assignments circumvents these goals. Therefore, using AI at any point in the writing process is prohibited. This includes Chat-GPT, Claude, Grammarly, and Gemini, as well as any other program that generates ideas, writing, or edits. If our instructors detect writing that sounds like AI, they will not provide feedback on the assignment and will alert the student. If the student wishes to rewrite the assignment without AI, the instructors will provide feedback on the resubmitted piece.
If students or applicants have any questions about this policy, please reach out and we will be happy to clarify.