Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest
Offered by Stuttgart Chamber of Commerce (Wings Over the Prairie Festival) · Free to apply
Winning this one takes a duck call, not an application: contestants ages 16 through 20 perform a live routine, traditionally the hail, feed, comeback, and mating calls, on the Main Street stage in Stuttgart, Arkansas. The top four finishers split $9,000, with $5,000 for first place and $750 for fourth, usable for college, trade school, or another training path. Photo ID and proof of age are checked at registration and enforced strictly, since anyone who has turned 21 by contest day is out. There is no online form: the contest runs during the Wings Over the Prairie Festival on Thanksgiving weekend, with the student event traditionally called around midday, so travel and lodging need booking well before the holiday. The Stuttgart Chamber of Commerce posts the exact schedule each fall.
How hard is the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest to win?
A large applicant pool chases this award. Apply if the student is a genuinely strong fit, but build the plan around better-odds awards first.
- Estimated odds
- roughly 1 in 2,000 applicants
- Modelled applicant field
- ~30,000 students
- Awards each cycle
- 4
- Payoff per hour of work
- $0 / hr
What drives the odds here
Odds on a scholarship are mostly a question of how many students can enter. Each rule below changes the size of that field.
- More rivalsOpen nationwide, so the field is large
How Solyo estimates this: We model the applicant field from how narrow the eligibility rules are, then divide the awards available by that field. Requirements such as essays and recommendation letters improve a serious applicant’s odds, because most browsers never complete them. These are estimates derived from each award's published structure, not reported acceptance rates, which almost no scholarship provider discloses. Treat them as a way to rank where the hours go, not as a guarantee.
Who can apply for the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest?
These are the eligibility rules Solyo verified against the official award page, translated into plain English. Your student must meet each one.
- Open to high school sophomores, high school juniors, high school seniors, and current college students
- Ages 16 to 20
- Must compete in person in Stuttgart, Arkansas during the Wings Over the Prairie Festival on Thanksgiving weekend
- Contestants perform a live duck calling routine, traditionally including hail, feed, comeback, and mating calls, judged on the Main Street stage
- Must be age 16 to 20 on contest day (must not yet have turned 21); photo ID and proof of age are required at registration and strictly enforced
- Open to students furthering their education through traditional school, trade school, or other educational and career paths
- Winning does not qualify the winner for the World's Championship Duck Calling Contest held at the same festival
- Prize money is awarded on a graduated scale across the top four finishers
What the application takes
No essay, recommendation letters, or transcript are required. This is one of the lighter applications in the directory.
Deadline and application cycle
The current deadline is November 27, 2026. This award runs on an annual cycle, with deadlines around November 27 each year. Nothing is due in advance, but you must be in Stuttgart on contest day, so book travel by early November.
- Registration on site
- Morning of the contest
- Contest day, Thanksgiving weekend
- November 27, 2026
- Winners named on stage
- Same day 2026
Does your student actually qualify?
See if your student qualifies in 30 seconds. Solyo checks 20+ criteria against their real profile: GPA, state, grade level, intended major, and more, across every award in this directory at once.
Common questions about the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest
How much is the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest worth?
The Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest awards $750-$5,000 (1st place $5,000). 4 awards are made each cycle.
When is the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest deadline?
The current deadline is November 27, 2026. This award runs on an annual cycle, with deadlines around November 27 each year. Nothing is due in advance, but you must be in Stuttgart on contest day, so book travel by early November.
Who is eligible for the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest?
Key requirements: Open to high school sophomores, high school juniors, high school seniors, and current college students; Ages 16 to 20.
Does the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest require an essay?
No essay is required. The application is light on requirements. Expect to spend about 12 hours on it.
How hard is it to win the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest?
Solyo estimates the odds at roughly 1 in 2,000 applicants, against a modelled field of ~30,000 students. At 12 hrs of work, that is about $0 of expected value per hour. This is an estimate from award structure, not a published acceptance rate.
Is the Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest free to apply?
Yes. The Chick and Sophie Major Memorial Duck Calling Contest is free to apply. Legitimate scholarships never charge an application fee, and Solyo verifies every listed award against its official page.
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Lists this award appears on
Award details are curated by Solyo and verified against the official scholarship page. Deadlines and requirements can change between cycles, so always confirm on the provider's site before applying.