YNEF Scholarship 2026 Application Form

Application & supporting information must be uploaded prior to Sunday, April 5, 2026 by 5pm

Please read the Youth Nautical Education Foundation (YNEF) application information and instructions prior to filling out this form and uploading the required information. All information required for this application is requested to be submitted at the same time to the YNEF by hitting submit.

You can download the instructions before filling out the form by clicking on the link:

https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/668939f91b3a6c3f7fe3dd95/683f15aa72c9456dcb1942f1_ynef_scholarship_instr_26.pdf

A. Essay Section

Two essays personally written by the applicant are to be submitted on separate pages with the applicant’s name on each page. Each essay should be a maximum of 250 words and uploaded below in a pdf format. Essays may be tested to determine if any artificial intelligence ( AI ) writing tools are used. Any essay submitted with AI writing tools will not be scored.

An essay for each of the following topics is to be submitted:

• “Now that you will be moving out of the junior sailing program, what is the best way, in your view, for those graduating to ‘give back’ to improve the junior sailing programs.”

• “What are the most important issues facing junior sailing today and what would you recommend to upcoming juniors to be ready for them.”

B. Student Leadership and Sailing Experience Section

The information submitted for this section should outline the participation and leadership of the applicant in sailing and sailing events. Leadership in other areas of Student Activities should also be submitted. While all experiences are solicited, the most weight will be given to participation and leadership of the applicant in the high school years. To make the assessment on equal grounds, since some college students may apply for this scholarship, only experiences up to February of the applicant’s senior year in high school will be scored. Due to policies of the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) that exclude sailors from college competition if they receive scholarship monies for “sailing ability”, no race results of the applicant should be submitted or will be considered. Information should be submitted with the name of the applicant on each page and uploaded below as a pdf. Be concise, but complete, in providing information for this section.

C. Scholastic Section

The applicant should submit a copy (jpg or pdf uploaded below) of an official transcript that includes their Grade Point Average (GPA) that includes the high school grades through the midterm of grade 12. A full listing of grades and courses is not required and applicants that have graduated from high school should submit a midterm grade 12 GPA to allow an equal assessment.

 

I believe all of the above and submitted information to be true and complete. I have personally written the essays and I hereby apply for the 2026 YNEF Scholarship.

By signing below, I agree to hold the YNEF harmless from any liability for damage, injury or loss sustained by me in connection with this application.

If selected as one of the YNEF Scholarship recipients, I also agree that my name, essays and likeness can be used in publications, websites and other media to promote the scholarship.

We also ask that scholarship recipients make every effort to attend the YNEF Award ceremony in May, 2026 at the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club where you can meet the patrons who make these scholarships possible.