Lottery Registration, Explained:
While first come, first served registration served YTS well in its first few years, it became increasingly clear that that system wa not sustainable, particularly for our Young-at-Heart (age 50+) attendees. For YTS 2015, we had more Young-at-Heart attendees attempt to register in the first 10 minutes than there were available slots, making admission largely determined by technical difficulties (or lack thereof).
In addition to making the process fairer for Young-at-Heart attendees, we also wanted to give all our attendees — Youth and Young-at-Heart — more time to submit registration info, making it easier to register for those with limited Internet access or unusual schedules. Therefore, we as a Committee have concluded that instituting an admission lottery makes sense for us.
YTS 2016 was the first year we switched from first come, first served registration to the lottery system. In 2025, we moved to a larger venue with more housing capacity. As a result, we increased our total capacity to 205 (from 180). In 2025 we were able to admit everyone who registered and did not need to have a lottery or waitlist. For 2026, we will follow the process below to determine whether to run a lottery or not. We’ve given this policy a lot of thought, and we’ve tried to anticipate some common questions below. As always, if you have questions and concerns, please email [email protected].
Wait, how does the lottery work, exactly?
Priority registration opens December 1st and closes at 11:59pm on Monday, January 5th. We’ll accept registrations at any point during that window. At the close of priority registration, if we have more registered attendees in the Youth or Young-at-Heart category than we have space to admit, we will hold a lottery for that category and return results in mid-January. Those who get in during the lottery will be sent an email with instruction to finalize their registration, while those who did not get in will be transferred to the waitlist, in the order that their name was drawn during the lottery.
What if I miss the lottery period?
If you register after the lottery closes, and your age bracket is full, we’ll add you to the waitlist on a first come, first serve basis. Waitlist registration will close February 15th.
Is there a deposit to enter the lottery? When do I need to pay?
There’s no cost to enter the lottery. If you are admitted, we’ll ask you to pay within a week to hold your spot. (As the event nears, we may give waitlisted attendees a shorter timeframe.) As always, you can contact [email protected] if you need to arrange an alternate payment plan. But if we haven’t received payment or heard from you by the deadline, we’ll give away your space and move you to the end of the waitlist.
Can I register with my significant other, friend, family, carpool buddies, etc?
Yes. You can register by yourself, or with others in a party of up to 4 people. If you’re registering with a party, each person will need to complete their own registration. Please make sure the names of everyone in your party are listed on each person’s registration.
If you register in a party with others, you’ll either all be admitted together, or all be waitlisted together. Your chances of getting in are the same, and we would love to have you at the weekend just the same, whether you register by yourself or with a party.
What if I want to register with people in a different age bracket?
If a party contains both Youth and Young-at-Heart attendees, that party enters the Young-at-Heart lottery (but the Youth members of the party still occupy Youth slots in our ratio). Because we expect the Young-at-Heart lottery to be more competitive than the Youth lottery, if the Youth would still want to attend without the Young-at-Heart person, you may wish to enter the lottery separately.
What if I am a chaperone for someone under 18?
If you’re chaperoning a minor, please register in a party with them. If the minor plans to take part in YTS programming, your party may enter the Youth lottery even if the chaperone is in the Young-at-Heart category. If the minor will have a parent/guardian at the weekend, we expect that the parent will chaperone. If the parent/guardian will not be at the weekend, they may designate another adult as chaperone for their child.
Are you still age-balancing the weekend?
Yes. In accordance with our mission, our age-balancing policy hasn’t changed. We’re still admitting 80% attendees under age 50, and 20% attendees age 50 and older. We maintain a waitlist for each category and admit attendees as we receive cancellations in order to maintain our 80/20 ratio.
Are you giving priority to any specific groups, like newcomers or people who have been waitlisted before?
In past years we have given priority to youth under age 18 who planned to take part in YTS programming. This year we are not planning to prioritize any groups, but we hope to be able to admit most, if not all, registrants right away. Giving priority to other groups is something that's definitely on our radar as we evaluate how our registration policies are helping us fulfill our mission — we'd love to hear your thoughts!
How will scholarships and travel grants work?
Our registration form will ask if you’d like to apply for a scholarship or travel grant, and if you say yes, it’ll ask you a few extra questions about yourself and your financial need. We’ll send scholarship decisions along with the lottery results in mid-January — and if your award isn’t enough to allow you to attend, just let us know within a week and we’ll (regretfully) give away your spot.
If you register after the lottery period, you can still apply for a scholarship or travel grant. If you’re admitted to the weekend, we’ll review your application and make an award based on your application and the funds we have available.
What is your cancellation policy?
Until March 1, you may cancel your registration and receive a full refund minus a $25 administrative fee. From March 1 to March 15 you may cancel your registration, but you will only receive a refund if we are able to fill your spot from the waitlist. After March 15 no refunds will be given. In case of last-minute extenuating circumstances (severe illness or weather-related travel issues), contact [email protected] to discuss options for a partial refund.
In addition to making the process fairer for Young-at-Heart attendees, we also wanted to give all our attendees — Youth and Young-at-Heart — more time to submit registration info, making it easier to register for those with limited Internet access or unusual schedules. Therefore, we as a Committee have concluded that instituting an admission lottery makes sense for us.
YTS 2016 was the first year we switched from first come, first served registration to the lottery system. In 2025, we moved to a larger venue with more housing capacity. As a result, we increased our total capacity to 205 (from 180). In 2025 we were able to admit everyone who registered and did not need to have a lottery or waitlist. For 2026, we will follow the process below to determine whether to run a lottery or not. We’ve given this policy a lot of thought, and we’ve tried to anticipate some common questions below. As always, if you have questions and concerns, please email [email protected].
Wait, how does the lottery work, exactly?
Priority registration opens December 1st and closes at 11:59pm on Monday, January 5th. We’ll accept registrations at any point during that window. At the close of priority registration, if we have more registered attendees in the Youth or Young-at-Heart category than we have space to admit, we will hold a lottery for that category and return results in mid-January. Those who get in during the lottery will be sent an email with instruction to finalize their registration, while those who did not get in will be transferred to the waitlist, in the order that their name was drawn during the lottery.
What if I miss the lottery period?
If you register after the lottery closes, and your age bracket is full, we’ll add you to the waitlist on a first come, first serve basis. Waitlist registration will close February 15th.
Is there a deposit to enter the lottery? When do I need to pay?
There’s no cost to enter the lottery. If you are admitted, we’ll ask you to pay within a week to hold your spot. (As the event nears, we may give waitlisted attendees a shorter timeframe.) As always, you can contact [email protected] if you need to arrange an alternate payment plan. But if we haven’t received payment or heard from you by the deadline, we’ll give away your space and move you to the end of the waitlist.
Can I register with my significant other, friend, family, carpool buddies, etc?
Yes. You can register by yourself, or with others in a party of up to 4 people. If you’re registering with a party, each person will need to complete their own registration. Please make sure the names of everyone in your party are listed on each person’s registration.
If you register in a party with others, you’ll either all be admitted together, or all be waitlisted together. Your chances of getting in are the same, and we would love to have you at the weekend just the same, whether you register by yourself or with a party.
What if I want to register with people in a different age bracket?
If a party contains both Youth and Young-at-Heart attendees, that party enters the Young-at-Heart lottery (but the Youth members of the party still occupy Youth slots in our ratio). Because we expect the Young-at-Heart lottery to be more competitive than the Youth lottery, if the Youth would still want to attend without the Young-at-Heart person, you may wish to enter the lottery separately.
What if I am a chaperone for someone under 18?
If you’re chaperoning a minor, please register in a party with them. If the minor plans to take part in YTS programming, your party may enter the Youth lottery even if the chaperone is in the Young-at-Heart category. If the minor will have a parent/guardian at the weekend, we expect that the parent will chaperone. If the parent/guardian will not be at the weekend, they may designate another adult as chaperone for their child.
Are you still age-balancing the weekend?
Yes. In accordance with our mission, our age-balancing policy hasn’t changed. We’re still admitting 80% attendees under age 50, and 20% attendees age 50 and older. We maintain a waitlist for each category and admit attendees as we receive cancellations in order to maintain our 80/20 ratio.
Are you giving priority to any specific groups, like newcomers or people who have been waitlisted before?
In past years we have given priority to youth under age 18 who planned to take part in YTS programming. This year we are not planning to prioritize any groups, but we hope to be able to admit most, if not all, registrants right away. Giving priority to other groups is something that's definitely on our radar as we evaluate how our registration policies are helping us fulfill our mission — we'd love to hear your thoughts!
How will scholarships and travel grants work?
Our registration form will ask if you’d like to apply for a scholarship or travel grant, and if you say yes, it’ll ask you a few extra questions about yourself and your financial need. We’ll send scholarship decisions along with the lottery results in mid-January — and if your award isn’t enough to allow you to attend, just let us know within a week and we’ll (regretfully) give away your spot.
If you register after the lottery period, you can still apply for a scholarship or travel grant. If you’re admitted to the weekend, we’ll review your application and make an award based on your application and the funds we have available.
What is your cancellation policy?
Until March 1, you may cancel your registration and receive a full refund minus a $25 administrative fee. From March 1 to March 15 you may cancel your registration, but you will only receive a refund if we are able to fill your spot from the waitlist. After March 15 no refunds will be given. In case of last-minute extenuating circumstances (severe illness or weather-related travel issues), contact [email protected] to discuss options for a partial refund.