“Thanksgiving” from Brigham Young University is nominated for Comedy Series at the College Television Awards. (photo courtesy of the Television Academy Foundation)

The Television Academy Foundation has announced the nominees for the 45th College Television Awards, which recognizes and rewards excellence in student-produced programs from colleges and universities nationwide. The foundation also revealed the recipients of the $10,000 Loreen Arbus Focus on Disability Award.

Open to undergraduate and graduate students, the annual College Television Awards are regarded as one of the most distinguished and high-profile steppingstones for careers in television and media.

Twenty-four student-produced programs have been nominated, selected from 186 entries representing 44 colleges nationwide. Emulating the Emmy Awards selection process, College Television Awards entries are judged by Television Academy members. Criteria for the awards reflect industry standards of excellence, imagination and innovation.

“The College Television Awards celebrate the extraordinary creativity and talent emerging from campuses across the country,” said Tina Perry, chair of the Television Academy Foundation. “With nominees selected by Television Academy members, these honors not only recognize excellence in student-produced content but also offer aspiring professionals invaluable exposure and connections within the Hollywood creative community and a meaningful step toward building lasting careers in entertainment.”

New for the 2026 awards program is the Chance Perdomo Legacy Scholarship, a $10,000 award to the winning college team in the Comedy Series category. Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studios created the scholarship as a tribute to the late Gen V actor Chance Perdomo who died in a motorcycle accident in 2024. In addition, a category solely for graduate students has been added to the competition with this year’s establishment of a Scripted Series award.

Trophies and more than $45,000 in cash prizes will be presented to the winning teams by television stars at the red carpet awards ceremony on March 28, 2026, in North Hollywood for Animation Series; Comedy Series; Commercial, PSA or Promo; Drama Series; News; Nonfiction Series; Scripted Series; Sports; and the Loreen Arbus Focus on Disability Award.

For information, visit televisionacademy.com/foundation/programs/cta.