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Sponsored by the American Students’ Fund, the Speak New Words Internet Video Contest is a unique opportunity that allows interested students to win money for college. 

There are two categories students can enter. Category 1 is open to all students who are at least 13 years of age but no greater than 21 years of age by the time the contest begins. 

Category 2 is for students who are 22 years old or greater at the time of the contest. 

In order to compete in the video contest, students must have access to the Internet and have a YouTube account to participate. If you do not currently have an account, go to YouTube and sign up for a free one. 

The contest guidelines are quite simple, but must be followed to the letter in order to remain eligible for the award. 

First and foremost, the contest allows students to compose original lyrics for an audio-visual presentation of pop, rock, reggae, hip-hop, spoken word, poetry or R&B. The lyrics should be composed with the theme of the contest in mind, which is to “inspire the rising generation to greatness.” 

The words can be sung or spoken, and contest entries must be at least 1 minute long but cannot exceed 4 minutes. The lyrics MUST be original (created by you and only you) and should keep the theme in mind. 

The following guidelines are very important and must be followed. Failure to comply with the listed guidelines can result in disqualification of your entry. 

First of all, all interested entrants MUST be registered members of YouTube with an active account. YouTube is the website all entries will be submitted. 

Additionally, after uploading your contest entry to YouTube you must also register your video and lyrics at the official contest website, linked above. If you do not upload your entry to YouTube AND register your video and lyrics at the official contest website, you will be disqualified. 

Your entries can contain musical accompaniment to your lyrics, but they must be copyright free or created entirely by you. 

Entrants under the age of 18 must have a parental release form signed by their parents before they can submit their entry into the contest. For more about this, please visit the website. 

There are additional rules and guidelines, including file format, size restrictions and other eligibility requirements. For specific details, view the Speak New Words contest website linked above. 

Prizes will be awarded to six applicants. Two applicants will win first prize, two will win second prize and two will also win third prize. 

Awards are $5,000 for first place, $1,000 for second place and $500 for third place. The deadline for this contest is September 9^th, 2007. 12 semi-finalists will be chosen, and will be narrowed down to the six winning applicants. 

Winners should be announced on or around September 30^th, 2007. 

If you are interested in entering this unique opportunity to win money for college, visit their official contest website now!