TV Writing Fellowships: The 2027 Programs, Fees and Deadlines

TV writing fellowships are the closest thing television has to a front door, and most of them open for only a few weeks a year. As of September 2026, the 2027 windows for Disney and NBC have already closed, Humanitas's 2026 cycle has closed with no 2027 details posted, the Warner Bros. Discovery Access window closed on 12 July 2026, and the pilot contests that behave like fellowships are deep in their results phase. That sounds like bad timing. It isn't, if you use it. The next cycle rewards writers who spend the quiet months building the right samples, not writers who find a deadline three days out and polish a draft at 2 a.m.

This is a working map of the programs we could verify from their own pages: what each one actually offers, what it costs, who decides, and what none of them promise. Every date and dollar figure below is as of September 2026. Where a program doesn't publish something, we say so rather than guess.

What TV Writing Fellowships Actually Give You

The word "fellowship" covers at least four different deals, and treating them as interchangeable is the first mistake most applicants make.

Staffing programs put you inside a studio as an employee, with the explicit goal of getting you into a writers' room. Disney's program is the clearest example: Program Writers are contract employees of Disney for one year, or until they staff on a show, and if they staff during that period their compensation moves to WGA scale (as of September 2026). The whole design points at a room.

Development programs focus on your own material. The NBC TV Writers Program has participants develop an original pilot, and writers retain all rights to it. The value is executive mentorship and weekly workshops on pitching, branding and professional development, not a paycheck.

Mentorship fellowships pair you with working professionals for a set period. Paramount's program runs eight months with brand executives and creative teams; Humanitas New Voices runs roughly six months and pays a stipend.

Pilot contests with fellowship style prizes sit at the edge of the category. ISA's Fast Track Fellowship and the Shore Scripts TV Pilot Mentorship Program both charge entry fees and reward winners with meetings and mentorship rather than a job.

Each deal wants something different from you. A staffing program wants proof you can serve someone else's show, which is why Disney asks for a staffing pitch alongside your pilots. A development program wants a writer whose own series is worth an executive's weekly attention. A mentorship fellowship wants someone early enough that guidance changes their trajectory. A contest mostly wants the best pages in the pile. Send the same package to all four and at least three of them are reading something built for someone else.

The eligibility rules are where those differences get concrete, so the next section walks through the four big studio programs one at a time.

Network TV Writing Fellowships: Disney, NBC, Paramount, Warner Bros. Discovery

These are the network writing programs for TV writers that most people mean when they say "fellowship." They are also the ones that publish the least about outcomes, so read the fine print.

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Disney Entertainment Television Writing Program

Disney describes it as "a highly selective, annual TV staffing program" built to "staff emerging and diverse television writers on DET scripted series." The 2027 application window ran May 4, 2026 to June 1, 2026 (as of September 2026), and it is closed. There was no application fee.

Eligibility was simple on paper: at least 21 years old by December 1, 2026, legal US work authorization, and entertainment industry experience "not required but is strongly recommended." Disney employees could apply.

The materials are where the work is: two original live action pilot scripts, a resume of no more than two pages, a personal essay capped at 3,000 characters, and a staffing pitch capped at 1,500 characters. Two originals, not a spec and an original. If you only have one pilot you trust, you aren't ready for this program's next window, whenever it opens.

The 2027 timeline, as of September 2026: semifinalists contacted late summer 2026, finalists in fall 2026, and selected writers announced December 2026 or January 2027. Applicants who aren't accepted are not notified, so silence is the answer. The program runs twelve months, tentatively starting January 2027, full time in Los Angeles, and Disney is explicit that "staffing is not guaranteed."

The program page lists alumni including Saladin Patterson, Raamla Mohammed, Peter Saji, Zahir McGhee, Dailyn Rodriguez, Luvh Rakhe, Sierra Ornelas and Claudia Forestieri. It lists names only; it doesn't say what each went on to write or sell.

NBCUniversal Launch: NBC TV Writers Program

The 2027 window ran June 1, 2026 through 11

Eligibility, as of September 2026: legal US work authorization with no visa sponsorship, age 21 by January 1, 2027, no more than one scripted series staff writer credit, and residence in the Los Angeles area for the first 12 weeks. Writing teams are not eligible. The targeted launch is January 2027, with in person workshops running 12 weeks. Only selected applicants are notified, and the page names no alumni.

The rights clause is the part people skim past. You develop an original pilot with mentorship from development and current programming executives, and you keep all rights to it. For a writer with a strong series idea, that's executive notes on your own property with nothing signed away.

The real cost is hidden in the residency rule. Twelve unpaid weeks in the Los Angeles area is free to apply for and not free to accept.

Paramount Writers Mentoring Program

Paramount's release says applications ran Wednesday April 1 to Friday May 1, and that window is closed. The release doesn't say which cohort year those dates belong to, so treat the next window as unannounced. Per the release, it's an eight month program now in its 21st year. Participants work with brand executives and creative teams across CBS Network, CBS Studios, Paramount Television Studios and Nickelodeon, plus workshops with showrunners, producers, agents and development executives.

Paramount is the only studio program here that publishes aggregate results, as of September 2026: 154 alumni to date, over 100 of whom advanced to staffing, representation or additional programs, and 12 who reached showrunner or upper level writer roles. Named Paramount program alumni include Angela Kang, Lauren LeFranc, Rafe Judkins, Aaron Rahsaan Thomas, Gina Lucita Monreal, Miranda Kwok and Simran Baidwan. The same release credits Jessica Gao, Travis Braun and Jeff Trammell to the separate Nickelodeon Writing Program. The release doesn't state eligibility, cost or compensation, so check the application page itself when the next window opens.

Warner Bros. Discovery Access Writers Program

One change to watch: Paramount announced on October 6, 2026 that it had completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, with the combined company named Skydance (Paramount press release). As of October 2026, neither program page says whether the Paramount and WBD writing programs will merge, so check both pages before the 2027 windows.

WBD Access describes its program as "a pathway for writers seeking to enhance their skills in the episodic television writing space," with sessions on the business of TV and a storytelling master class. Eligibility, as of September 2026: staffed on zero or one season of US network or streaming TV, two original samples in the same genre (both drama or both comedy), 18 or older, and living in the US with work authorization.

Applications for the 2027 WBD Access Writers Program closed on 12 July 2026, per WBD Access's own announcement. As of September 2026 the Submittable portal reads "There are presently no open calls for submissions," and the official page publishes no fee, stipend or program length. The same genre rule is the actionable part: a drama pilot and a comedy pilot won't qualify together, so build a matched pair now.

The Paid Ones: Humanitas New Voices and What a Stipend Means

Free TV writing fellowships cost nothing to enter, and some, like NBC's, pay nothing to attend. Humanitas New Voices flips that.

For the 2026 cycle, the submission fee was $55, with limited waivers available (as of September 2026). Submissions opened February 18, 2026, and the final deadline was April 6, 2026 at 11

Five writers are selected each year for an approximately six month mentorship for early career television writers and screenwriters. Each fellow receives a $7,500 stipend paid in two installments, plus a trophy, professional headshots and inclusion in the Humanitas Talent Guide. The Program Advisor is Emmylou Diaz.

The eligibility rules are strict about being early, as of September 2026: 21 or older by August 1, 2026; based in the US; no manager or agent; no previous scripted TV staff writing; and no payment for produced writing. If you have a manager, you're out. That surprises writers who assume representation only ever helps.

The current cohort's timeline: semifinalists and finalists in June and July 2026, fellows announced August 2026, recognition at the Humanitas Prizes in autumn 2026, and the fellowship itself running September 2026 to March 2027. Alumni named on the page include Will Pascoe (Absentia), Jeanine Daniels (Snowfall) and Rashaad Ernesto Green (The Chi).

So what does a stipend actually mean? Not a salary. Spread over roughly six months, $7,500 won't replace a job, but it buys back hours you'd otherwise sell to a day job, and time is the scarce resource for an early career writer. It also signals that the program treats the fellowship as work, not a favor. Next to an unpaid residency, the $55 fee is the cheapest number on the page.

Pilot Contests That Work Like TV Writing Fellowships: ISA and Shore Scripts

Two paid competitions reward winners with access instead of employment. They aren't studio programs, but for a writer without a way in, a TV pilot mentorship program built around meetings can do similar work.

ISA Fast Track Fellowship, Fall 2026

ISA accepts original full length features and TV pilots only. Pilots must run 10 to 70 pages; features run 70 to 120. Entry fees by tier, standard and ISAConnect member, as of September 2026: Mega Early (April 16, 2026) $39 and $29; Early (May 21) $49 and $39; Regular (June 17) $59 and $49; Final (July 30) $79 and $69. Every tier has closed.

The remaining dates are results, not deadlines, as of September 2026: Second Round announced September 17, 2026; Top 50 on October 1, 2026; Fellow and Genre selections on October 22, 2026; Fellowship Week on November 16, 2026.

The prize structure is specific. Two fellows receive eight curated one on one meetings with agents, managers, producers and executives, plus yearlong development guidance and a twelve month ISAConnect membership. Category winners receive $500 in cash each. Keep those separate in your head: the $500 is cash, the meetings are access, and only one of them pays rent.

Shore Scripts TV Pilot Mentorship Program

Shore Scripts picks 6 winners, 3 half hour and 3 one hour per its TV writers page, for an eight week mentorship: sessions with showrunners, development executives, managers and agents, one on one meetings, table reads with actors, and script circulation. Ten additional finalists get an online mixer and networking access. No cash prize is stated; this is a mentorship prize, not a cash contest.

The 2026 dates, as of September 2026: opened February 2; Early deadline March 20; Regular May 15; Final June 29, 2026, now expired. Quarterfinalists were scheduled for August 26 and semifinalists for September 10. Winners were announced on October 7, 2026, and the page says the program reopens in 2027.

Named mentors and judges on the program page include Jess Brownell, Beth Schwartz, Glenise Mullins, Duane Luu (Director of Drama Development, Peacock) and Pete Swanson. Shore Scripts' own past winner claims include Mrs & Mr Thomas, whose The Assessment was produced, premiered at TIFF 2024 and sold to Amazon; Jacob Wehrman, who signed with Wonder Street Entertainment; Melody Cooper, signed by CAA; and Vincent Da Jani, whose pilot was optioned by an independent producer. Those are the contest's claims, not independently verified.

Both contests judge the pages in front of them, not your potential. If you want a reference point for what finished pages look like before you enter either one, read a complete sample and hold your draft against it.

What Each Program Costs to Enter

Here's the cost picture as of September 2026, laid out plainly.

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Free to apply: Disney and NBC charged no application fee for their 2027 programs. WBD Access publishes no fee on its official page, and Paramount's release doesn't state cost either way.

Paid: Humanitas New Voices charged $55 with limited waivers. ISA Fast Track Fall ran $39 to $79 standard, or $29 to $69 for ISAConnect members, depending on tier. Shore Scripts' tier fees didn't appear on the pages we fetched, so we won't quote one.

Costs that don't appear on the form: NBC requires you to live in the Los Angeles area for the first 12 weeks, unpaid. Disney is full time in Los Angeles for twelve months, though participants are paid contract employees. ISA sells optional notes: first 20 pages $39 ($29 member), full script $69 ($59), and a Deep Dive at $99 ($89). Shore Scripts lets scripts exceed its recommended limits by up to 15 pages at $1 per page, and sells coverage in 3, 5 or 8 page options with prices not shown on the pages we fetched.

Outside the free network programs, paid pilot contests and optional notes add up quickly across a season, which is why some writers start with free AI coverage and save paid notes for a pilot that's already close.

If you are going to spend, spend where it improves the pages you'll send to the free programs. A contest fee buys one reading. A rewrite that lands your pilot buys every application after it.

Who Reads and Who Decides

The programs vary widely in how much they tell you about their readers, and the ones that say least tend to be the ones with the biggest names.

Humanitas is the most open. As of September 2026, its selection runs in stages: paid readers first, then Humanitas staff, then semifinalist committees of writers and industry professionals, then a finalist committee of staff, the program advisor, managers and executives. That structure tells you something useful. Your pilot's first audience is a paid reader working through a stack, not an executive hunting for a voice. The opening pages have to earn the next ten, and the next ten have to earn the committee.

Disney and NBC don't publish who reads, but their structures leave clues. Disney moves applicants through semifinalists in late summer, finalists in fall and a final selection in December or January, and its package includes a personal essay and a staffing pitch alongside the pilots. The later rounds are judging you as a potential colleague, not just a script. NBC's mentors are development and current programming executives, so the people shaping your pilot once you're in are the same kind of people who buy pilots.

The contests put names forward. Shore Scripts lists its mentors and judges on the program page, and ISA's fellows meet agents, managers, producers and executives in curated meetings. In both cases the prize is the reader, which is why a win built on pages that don't hold up rarely goes far.

The common thread: nobody reads your bio first. Every one of these processes starts with pages, and most start with the first few. If you want an honest early signal before the next window opens, score your own logline or opening page for free.

Which TV Writing Fellowships Have Closed for the 2027 Cycle

As of September 2026, the short answer is: nearly all of them. Here's where each verified program stands.

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• Disney Entertainment Television Writing Program: 2027 window May 4 to June 1, 2026. Closed. Selected writers announced December 2026 or January 2027.
• NBC TV Writers Program: 2027 window June 1 to June 21, 2026. Closed. Targeted launch January 2027.
• Paramount Writers Mentoring Program: April 1 to May 1 window, closed; the release doesn't name the cohort year.
• WBD Access Writers Program: 2027 window closed 12 July 2026; no open calls as of September 2026.
• Humanitas New Voices: 2026 cycle closed April 6, 2026; fellowship runs September 2026 to March 2027. No 2027 cycle posted.
• ISA Fast Track Fall 2026: all entry tiers closed after July 30, 2026; results run through October 22, 2026.
• Shore Scripts TV Pilot Mentorship: final deadline June 29, 2026, expired; winners announced October 7, 2026.

If you also write features, note that the Academy Nicholl now works exclusively through partner programs, with the Black List and the Writers Guild Foundation serving as portals for public submissions; its page doesn't say whether TV scripts are accepted. For feature competitions and the wider field, see our roundup of screenwriting contests worth entering.

None of the studio programs had announced its next cycle on the pages we fetched. That's the gap to plan around. A strong TV writers program application takes months to assemble, and the requirements overlap more than they differ, so one well built package can serve several programs.

What a Fellowship Does Not Guarantee

Disney says it in plain words: "Staffing is not guaranteed." That's a program whose entire purpose is staffing, where participants are Disney contract employees. Everything else on this list is further from a job by design.

NBC's program is unpaid and built around workshops and pilot development. Humanitas pays a stipend and offers mentorship. ISA and Shore Scripts offer meetings, table reads and circulation. Those are real openings. None of them is an offer of employment.

Paramount's figures are the most useful reality check, because they're the only published outcome data in this group. As of September 2026: 154 alumni, over 100 advanced to staffing, representation or additional programs, and 12 reached showrunner or upper level writer roles. Read the middle number carefully. "Additional programs" counts toward that figure, and the release doesn't break it down, so it isn't a count of staff jobs.

No program here publishes applicant numbers or acceptance rates in a form you can cite. So don't plan around odds. Plan around readiness.

The writers who get the most from these programs arrive with more than the minimum: a second pilot in the same genre, a third idea they can pitch in a room, and pages that survive a cold read from a stranger. Use the months before the next windows open to get there. Before you submit anywhere, check that your script is genuinely contest ready, from the first page to the last, because every reader on this list starts at page one.