FAQs
- What are the Awards for?
- Can I use it to fund our next album?
- What are Partner Organisations?
- How should I choose my Partner Organisation?
- Can I apply to more than one Partner Organisation?
- I perform in many genres – can I apply for more than one category?
- Can I submit a paper application?
- I am in a band – can the band submit an application?
- My songs won't be mastered until after the deadline, can I provide updated tracks when they are available?
- Why do I need to provide Proof of ID?
- Why do I need to provide a Bio and Photo?
- Is my information secure online?
- I want to apply for Film|TV but don't have any audiovisual files as my music has not yet been put to Film|TV usage as yet?
1. What are the Awards for?
The APRA Professional Development Awards are run every two years with prize packages worth over $30,000 to provide the ability for emerging songwriters to attend songwriter workshops, music education courses, composer seminars, participate in co-writing opportunities and attend other relevant activities either domestically or internationally.
2. Can I use it to fund our next album?
The Awards are not intended for recording purposes – please consider the above before applying.
3. What are Partner Organisations?
Partner Organisations are associates of APRA who will be accepting all applications initially. They will review and judge each application before assigning it a score out of 100. These scores will rank individual applications, providing a shortlist per Partner Organisation. Shortlisted applications will then be judged by an elected judging panel comprised of composers, songwriters, broadcasters, producers and educators to provide winners for each category.
4. How should I choose my Partner Organisation?
Some Partner Organisations can only receive certain Award categories – additionally, some Award categories can only be sent to certain Partner Organisations. You should initially review the list here to crosscheck your Award category before making your decision. All Partner Organisations have been provided with the same scoring criteria so your final decision should be made on personal preference.
5. Can I apply to more than one Partner Organisation?
You can only apply once to the Professional Development Awards – and only your first application will be accepted, any further entries will be deemed a duplicate and removed from judging.
6. I perform in many genres – can I apply for more than one category?
You should choose one category that you feel best fits your musical career currently – you cannot apply to more than one category.
7. Can I submit a paper application?
Due to the amount of administration required to manually convert a paper application to an online application, APRA has ruled that no paper applications will be provided or accepted for the 2013 APRA Professional Development Awards. You can visit your local APRA Office to apply online should you not have sufficient internet access.
8. I am in a band – can the band submit an application?
Applications are only available for individual songwriters – although the band's music will be considered, the individual songwriter's application responses will be considered alone. Additionally, prizes will be provided to the individual alone.
9. My songs won't be mastered until after the deadline, can I provide updated tracks when they are available?
All applications will be considered final and complete when submitted – as we must adhere to strict deadlines in terms of judging, we cannot replace files within an application after the closing deadline. However, all Partner Organisations and external Judges will be provided with the same judging criterion, which places importance more on the content of the application than the recording quality of the submitted pieces.
10. Why do I need to provide Proof of ID?
To ensure that all applicants adhere to the Terms and Conditions – Proof of ID is required to ensure that applications are directly from the applicant in question.
11. Why do I need to provide a Bio and Photo?
This information may be published online and/or in print if your application is shortlisted and/or you are a winner.
12. Is my information secure online?
The PDA application form and all submitted materials are stored on a highly secure server that ensures privacy and security for all APRA data. Your application will only be viewed by select APRA staff and your Partner Organisation. Should you be shortlisted, your application will then be viewed by our Judging team for your respective category.
13. I want to apply for Film|TV but don't have any audiovisual files as my music has not yet been put to Film|TV usage as yet?
The Film|TV category is intended for applicants who have had previous experience scoring music specifically for Film and/or Television, not necessarily musicians who would wish their music to be synched to Film|TV. As such, it is expected these applicants will have existing examples of their music scored for Film|TV.