7 episodes
The Competition Wondery
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- Society & Culture
Every summer for the past seven decades, 50 high school seniors—one from every state—descend on Mobile, Alabama to take part in one of the country’s most lucrative scholarship competitions for teen girls.
The Competition takes you behind the scenes of the Distinguished Young Women (DYW) program, and follows seven girls as they experience the highs and lows of competing for two weeks, away from home and under the most high-stress circumstances. Some girls enter for the money, some for prestige. All of them are used to being the best and the brightest. But only one will walk away with the top prize.
Host Shima Oliaee (Dolly Parton’s America, Pink Card) was Nevada’s contestant in 2001. More than 20 years later, she returns to Alabama as a judge. What can two weeks with 50 of the country’s most ambitious teens tell us about girlhood in America?
Follow The Competition on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Competition early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts.
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49 Girls is a Lot
At the start of the competition, 50 teenage girls, one from each state, gather in Mobile, Alabama, to embark on two of the most intense weeks of their lives. Everybody wants the same thing: to walk away with a $40,000 cash prize and the title of Distinguished Young Woman of America. First impressions are everything and it feels like the first day of school. How will the reps from Tennessee, California, Montana and Colorado handle their new world?
Follow The Competition on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Competition early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts.
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What am I Doing Here?
It’s fitness time, baby! Through hours of rehearsals with very few breaks, some girls struggle to keep up with the comically difficult fitness routine. It raises the question, why would accomplished teens—like those from New Mexico, Arizona and Maryland—sign up for this? And, despite their behind-the-scenes aches, do it all with a smile?
Follow The Competition on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Listen everywhere on April 29th or you can binge early and ad-free on Wondery+ starting April 15th. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. -
I Wanted to Do Something Provocative
This episode comes out for free on 05/06 and is available early and ad-free for Wondery+ subscribers.
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The pressure mounts as the girls enter talent rehearsals. For the first time, all 50 competitors will practice their solo talents on the big stage for each other. There are no judges yet— it’s just a jury of their peers. But the pressure is crushing. Star singers from California and Colorado are expected to be standouts, while Arizona is worried about just making it through. Who will come out on top? -
Pick Me, Love Me, Choose Me
This episode comes out for free on 05/13 and is available early and ad-free for Wondery+ subscribers.
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The girls get ready for the most intense job interview they’ve ever had: the 10-minute, rapid-fire judges’ interview. It’s the first and only chance for the judges to get to know the girls on a deeper level, but Shima finds it challenging to break through their professional facades. How will the judges pick a winner? Unexpectedly, the DYW beach party reveals a side of the girls they’ve kept hidden since arrival. -
I Think It's Going to Get Ugly
This episode comes out for free on 05/20 and is available early and ad-free for Wondery+ subscribers.
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It's time for the semifinals! Spirits are high, and it seems like nothing can break the girls’ cheerful mood. That is, until a controversial ruling from the outside world pops the Mobile bubble. Dividing lines are drawn between the girls, and some find it difficult to proceed as if nothing has happened. The show must go on…but everything has changed. -
It Could Be You
This episode comes out for free on 05/27 and is available early and ad-free for Wondery+ subscribers.
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The top eight compete on stage one last time for the title of Distinguished Young Woman. How will the runners-up react to the judges’ decision? After the competition, Shima travels across the country to visit the girls in their first year of college, and discovers how their lives are unfolding after their fateful summer in Mobile.