
Become a candidate
Each year, thousands of young women participate at the local level culminating in the selection of finalists who compete for the title of Miss California. One of them could be you!
To become Miss America, a contestant must first enter and win a local competition, and then compete to represent her state—a process requiring hard work, talent and personal commitment. As a state titleholder, a contestant may only compete once at the national Miss America Competition.
Why enter? Because you can…
- Gain valuable experience and develop life skills (e.g. interview skills, public speaking, interpersonal communication, social interaction, etc.)
- Earn quality scholarship funds for college and graduate school, regardless of whether a title is won
- Find new interests and discover new opportunities
- Make lifelong friendships and relationships
- Learn to set goals, follow them through and exceed your expectations
- Develop a sense of responsibility for helping others
- Foster a positive, self-motivated mindset to achieve your goals
- Receive recognition for your efforts in bettering yourself and your community

Currently there are no local competitions available leading to Miss California 2021.
Check back for possible updates after January 1, 2021.
Where to start? To become a candidate, you must:
- Be between the ages of 17 and 25
- Be a United States citizen
- Meet the requirements for residency or school attendance or employment for competing in a certain city or state
- Meet character criteria as set forth by the Miss America Organization
- Be in reasonably good health to meet the job requirements
- Be able to meet the time commitment and job responsibilities as set forth by the local, state and national competition(s) in which you compete
