Red Dot: Junior Award

About the Program

The Red Dot: Junior Award is a track within the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design, one of the most prestigious international design competitions. It is aimed at apprentices, students, and young professionals who have completed their studies or training within the last two years. Participants submit communication design works across 18 categories and are evaluated by an international jury of approximately 30 experts. Junior Award participants receive a 10% discount on entry fees and a 20% discount on the Winner Package if awarded. The top participant each year receives the Red Dot: Junior Prize, which includes EUR 10,000 in prize money, as well as special recognition in Red Dot exhibitions and publications. Winners earn the right to use the internationally recognized Red Dot Label and receive high-profile presentation on the Red Dot website, in the yearbook, and at exhibitions.

Checked November 3, 2026: the official Brands & Communication Design dates page confirms the three 2026 registration phases, their fees, closure, and November 6 ceremony. The Junior Award page confirms the discounts and still describes the project-publication window ending July 1, 2026. These dates and cycle-specific requirements are historical; the next cycle's deadlines and project window have not been confirmed on these pages.

Eligibility

The Red Dot: Junior Award is part of the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design. Participants must upload a copy of their apprentice or student ID card or degree certificate as a PDF file (with an English translation if necessary). Entrants who have already completed their studies or training must have done so within the last two years. Trainees and students can enter communication design works created as part of their training or studies, regardless of when they were created or published. Young professionals who have been working for no longer than two years can enter commissioned projects published after 1 July 2023 or to be published before 1 July 2026 that have not previously been entered in the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design. The competition covers 18 categories spanning brand design, identity, packaging, spatial communication, websites, sound design, and more. Open to apprentices, students, and young professionals who have graduated within the last two years. No specific age limit.

Eligible Countries

How to Apply

The 2026 registration phase is closed. For that historical cycle, entrants registered and submitted entries online via the My Red Dot portal at myreddot.de. Entrants uploaded their communication design work along with a copy of their student ID, apprentice ID, or degree certificate (PDF, with English translation if necessary). Submissions are evaluated by an international jury of approximately 30 design and communications experts. The official schedule lists results in July 2026 and the Berlin ceremony on November 6, 2026. No 2027 Brands & Communication Design registration dates were found as of November 3, 2026.