OZY announces a celebration of young geniuses. This fall, 10 grants will be awarded to current college students anywhere in the United States, with the aim of backing genius ideas. What’s your big idea? #OZYGenius
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The OZY Genius Awards can help you launch your dream. Life's too short not to dream big. The competiton runs from September 8 through October 31, 2022, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Winners will be announced on November 15, 2022.
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The world did not believe a teenager could top the charts, but Billie did.

MEET SOME OF THE PAST WINNERS!

My genius idea is to wiki-edit legislation: People could write it together and propose it to Congress.
AIDAN MCCARTY
Stanford University
I used Virtual Reality to foster empathy.
Amanda Gorman
Harvard University
My genius idea is to help low-income Americans get a fresh start after financial shocks by automating personal bankruptcy.
ROHAN PAVULURI
Harvard University
Success, for me, would mean creating something that helps people live better lives. That’s my goal, and that’s what I’m most excited about with OZY’s Genius Awards.
Claudine Humure
Wheaton College
I was really interested in how, as a college student, I could make a difference … Refugees have been a huge inspiration for me.
Elise Shea
Vassar College
My genius idea is to wiki-edit legislation: People could write it together and propose it to Congress.
AIDAN MCCARTY
Stanford University
I used Virtual Reality to foster empathy.
Amanda Gorman
Harvard University
My genius idea is to help low-income Americans get a fresh start after financial shocks by automating personal bankruptcy.
ROHAN PAVULURI
Harvard University
Success, for me, would mean creating something that helps people live better lives. That’s my goal, and that’s what I’m most excited about with OZY’s Genius Awards.
Claudine Humure
Wheaton College
I was really interested in how, as a college student, I could make a difference … Refugees have been a huge inspiration for me..
Elise Shea
Vassar College
OZY’s mission is to identify talent long before anyone else. Before you witnessed Amanda Gorman’s genius onstage at the 2021 presidential inauguration, she was an OZY Genius Award winner.
NOW IT'S YOUR TURN!

MEET OUR PAST AND PRESENT JUDGES

Carmen Yulin Cruz
Former Mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico
Dr. Hakeem Oluseyi
Scientist, HBCU grad, Tougaloo
DR. MONIQUE UMPHREY
President, HCC
Jarl Mohn
President Emeritus, NPR
Laurene Powell Jobs
Founder and Chair of Emerson Collective
James Manyika
Senior Vice President of Technology & Society at Google
Kristin Lemkau
CEO, JP Morgan Chase
JOHN Osborn
CEO OMD

The world did not believe a foreign-language film could win Best Picture, but Bong did.

Rules
  1. The OGAs are open only to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia who are at least 18 years old.
  2. Applicants must be currently enrolled as full-time undergraduate students at an accredited U.S. college or university.
  3. The officers, directors, employees of OZY Media, Inc., AT&T, and their agents and persons engaged in the development, production or distribution of materials for this program and any of their parent and affiliate companies, as well as the immediate family (spouse, parents, siblings and children) and household members of each such employee, are not eligible to apply.
  4. OGAs are subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations and are void where prohibited.
  5. Please see all the OZY Genius Award Application Guidelines here.
FAQ's
  1. The program begins on September 8, 2022.
  2. Applications must be submitted by October 31, 2022, at 11:59pm PT.
  3. Winners will be notified on November 15, 2022.
  4. Winners receive grants of up to $10,000 to work on their proposed projects.
  5. Winners will receive mentoring support from May - Sept., 2023
  6. Winners must agree to focus on their projects from June 21 to Sept. 22, 2023.
  7. Winners will display their projects at an end-of-year showcase on or around Sept. 29, 2023.
  8. If you have any questions, please email the OZY EDU team at Genius@OZY.com.
  9. Students or parents with questions can reach out to the OZY OGA Team at Genius@OZY.com. We have mentors and staff on hand to help inspire you.
  10. If your calling is to help support our OZY Geniuses on their way to making a brighter tomorrow, please reach out to us and let us know you're interested in serving as a mentor by emailing us at Genius@OZY.com.
  11. Judges review submission on criteria, such as Impact, Originality, Clarity, and Budget.