Miss Southwest Michigan is a CLOSED pageant. Only residents from Berrien, Van Buren, and Cass counties are eligible to compete for the title of Miss Southwest. Miss Southwest Michigan is for young women between the ages of 17-24 years old.
Miss Sunset Coast is an OPEN pageant and contestants must be residents of the state of Michigan. Miss Sunset Coast is for young women between the ages of 17-24 years old.
Please email us for an application or more information: southwestmichiganpageant@gmail.com
All contestants must be registered with the Children’s Miracle Network. Click HERE to register.
Click HERE for the Miss Southwest Michigan/Miss Sunset Coast contract (you can fill in the blanks electronically in this version).
Click HERE for a Miss Southwest Michigan/Miss Sunset Coast resume sample.
Click HERE for the Miss Southwest Michigan/Miss Sunset Coast platform instructions.
Eligibility for Competition:
Requirements To Qualify:
To compete in the Miss Southwest Michigan Scholarship Pageant, a contestant must:
- Be at least 17 years old and entering your senior year of high school.
- Be no older than 24 on December 31st of the year you could be chosen to represent Michigan in the National Finals.
- Be single, never been married.
- Live, work full time, or attend school full time in Michigan.
- Be a high school graduate by the time you compete for Miss Michigan.
- Be a U.S. Citizen.
- Meet character criteria as set forth by the Miss America Organization.
- Be able to meet the time commitment and responsibilities as set forth by the local program in which you compete.
- Be able to meet the time commitment and responsibilities as set forth by the Miss Michigan pageant should you win the title of Miss Michigan.
Age Eligibility Requirements
The Miss America Organization’s contestant age eligibility requirements are based on a calendar year, not a pageant cycle. In order to be eligible to compete in a local or state competition, a contestant cannot be older than twenty-four (24) years of age on December 31st the year she could be chosen to represent her state in the National Finals.
In order to meet age eligibility requirements to compete in local competitions for the 2016 State Competition, a contestant must be at least 17 years of age and her birth year can be no earlier than 1992.
Areas of Competition
35%: Talent Competition
25%: Interview Competition
20%: Evening Wear Competition
15%: Lifestyle and Fitness in Swimsuit Competition
5%: On-Stage Question
Interview Competition
Each contestant participates in an individual 10-minute press conference-style interview with our panel of judges. There are typically 5 judges on a panel. Contestants are questioned on their background as presented on their fact sheet, their educational and career goals, their opinions on current events and social issues, and their interests, hobbies and extracurricular activities. Scoring is based on overall communication skills, including personality, intelligence, validated opinions, emotional control, overall first impression and personal appearance, and whether the contestant possesses the overall qualities and attributes of a Miss America. Each interview ends with the opportunity to make a final statement to the judges. This is optional; a contestant need not take this opportunity. They may end the interview at that time.
Talent Competition
Contestants perform a 90 second routine of their own choosing. Some possible talents include all types of singing, dancing, gymnastics, instrumental music, dramatic or comedy monologues, baton twirling and ventriloquism. Other talents that can be performed solo on a stage are also possible. Phone or e-mail us if you have a question about your talent presentation. Scoring is based on contestant’s skill and personality, interpretive ability, technical skill level, stage presence and the totality of all elements, including costume, props, voice, use of body and choreography.
Evening Wear Competition
Each contestant appears on stage in an outfit of her own choosing, representative of what she would wear to a formal, black tie social event. Pantsuits, cocktail dresses and evening gowns are all appropriate for this phase of the competition. Scoring is based on overall first impression, sense of confidence, personality and stage presence, walk and posture, appropriateness of attire and sense of attractiveness.
Lifestyle and Fitness in Swimsuit Competition
Each contestant briefly appears on stage in a one or two piece swimsuit and footwear of her own choosing. Scoring is based on overall first impression, statement of physical fitness and health, overall physique and proportion, walk, posture and grace, sense of confidence and presence on stage.
On-Stage Interview
Each contestant will be asked one or two on-stage questions during or after the evening wear competition, with the score factoring on how well she answers the extemporaneous question(s).
