KQED Youth Advisory Board Program EligibilityKQED Youth Advisory Board Program Eligibility

Applications for the 2025-26 Youth Advisory Board will open in late April 2025. 

Read more about our Youth Advisory Board.

Dear Future YAB Member,

We want to meet you, learn from you and build a deeper understanding of your youth experiences together. Are you a team player? Are you an untapped leader looking for your shot at directing and producing? Are you the social organizer of your friend group? Do you like discovering new talent and trends? Are you shy and full of ideas and want to learn to share your voice? Are you a people watcher who notices things that others don’t? Do you write poetry? Do you play music? Do you want people to hear what you have to say?

Previous YAB members have told their stories and been featured on KQED’s most popular podcasts and live events.

This yearlong program combines communication skill-building and career exposure and culminates in you helping to create and produce content that will air on KQED during the last week of April for Youth Takeover.

Program Requirements

  • Bay Area high school students from our 9 broadcast counties in grades 9th (freshman) to 12th (senior) are eligible to apply.
  • Seeking students with interests in writing, social media, art, poetry, directing and editing audio & video.  Previous experience is not required.
  • Applicants should be interested in advising and giving input on various KQED programs, products and initiatives, as well as on producing an array of digital content for potential broadcast.
  • Applicants should have the ability to attend a total of at least 15 after-school meetings on Zoom from October to May. Select meetings will take place in-person at KQED in San Francisco.
  • Previous YAB members are encouraged to reapply.
  • Immediate family members of KQED staff are ineligible.

Whether you’re outgoing or on the shy side, being comfortable working in a group and a willingness to share your opinion is essential — and we’ll provide the tools and support to do that!

We love creative thinkers; people who don’t necessarily fit in a box; those who seek to represent non-mainstream, underrepresented voices; and anyone who’s curious and excited about all kinds of media—social media, video, podcasts, blogs and more.

FAQ

  • What’s the application process? Interested students should complete the online application by stated deadline. Select students will be contacted to schedule a phone or video interview, and accepted candidates will be contacted with next steps.
  • When is it? The Youth Advisory Board meets twice a month from 4:30pm to 6:30pm on Tuesdays between October and May. Full meeting schedule will be shared with members upon acceptance.
  • Where is it?  YAB meetings will be held using a hybrid model of Zoom and in-person meetings. We want all students to have equal access to the program so we will do our best to accommodate those for whom accessing Zoom may be challenging. Any changes to meeting dates will be communicated in advance via email and within a 2 week time period.
  • Is there compensation? Yes! YAB members will receive an honorarium of $500 in the form of a gift card at the end of their term.
  • Are there internships at KQED for high school students? We currently offer paid internships for applicants age 18 and older.

Have any questions? Email the Youth Media team.  youthmedia@kqed.org