Eligibility and Application for our 2026 Competition

(To be held January 17, 2026)

Become a Miss Candidate

**Applications will close at midnight on October 31, 2025.  Submissions received after that date will be put on our waitlist and you will be notified should space become available.**

The process of selecting Miss America begins at the local level. In the greater Tacoma area the Miss Pierce County Scholarship Program is the local competition. Once selected, Miss Pierce County will compete in July at the Miss Washington Scholarship Competition . Our program has been honored by having 10 Miss Washington’s come from Pierce County.

We would like to welcome and invite all young ladies who are between the ages of 18-28 (must be no OLDER than 28 on September 30, 2026 and no YOUNGER than 18 on September 1, 2026) and who are interested in earning scholarship money toward their education, making a difference in today’s society, and wanting to become the next Miss Washington to learn more about our program.

*Miss America allows the option for the 18-year-old contestant to have a “pivot” year to decide whether they would like to compete in the Miss or Teen divisions.  Once an 18-year-old decides on the division she may compete in, she may not change divisions until the next year.

Eligibility:

To become a participant for the next competition cycle for Miss Pierce County you must meet all criteria as shown below:  

  • For Miss Pierce County be between the ages of 18-28, must be no OLDER than 28 by September 30, 2026, and no YOUNGER than 18 on September 1, 2026
  • Be a United States citizen
  • Be a female
  • Single
  • No legal dependents
  • Meet residency requirements — must either live, work, attend school, or be a dependent of a parent of guardians who resides in Washington state.
  • Meet availability requirements for the position of Miss Pierce County.  Contestants working outside of the greater Pierce County area understand and commit to the time and travel requirements of the job of MPC.

*Further rules may apply per MAO national contract and the Miss Pierce County Scholarship Organization.

Registration for our 2026 Class is now OPEN.

You will be notified by email when your application is received If you do not receive an email confirming receipt of your application within one week of submitting, please call (253)229-9902 or send an email to director@misspiercecounty.org