Apple to Accept WWDC Scholarship Applications March 27, Lodging Now Included

Each year, Apple offers free WWDC scholarships to students and STEM organization members who don't have the funds to attend the company's developer conference.

For 2017, Apple will begin accepting scholarship submissions on March 27, as is outlined on an updated scholarship website Apple shared today. Submissions will be accepted from March 27 at 10:00 a.m. until April 2 at 5:00 p.m. Winning applicants will be notified of their status on Friday, April 21.

Scholarships traditionally offer free tickets to WWDC, a huge benefit as a ticket is normally priced at $1,599. Flights and accommodations are not typically included, but starting this year, Apple is providing free lodging.

WWDC scholarship applicants must be at least 13 years old, registered as an Apple developer, and enrolled in a part-time or full-time course of study. Members and alumni of a STEM organization are also eligible.

Apple instructs prospective scholarship attendees to share a visually interactive scene created in Swift Playgrounds that can be experienced in three minutes. Swift Playgrounds for iPad or Xcode on macOS must be used, and Apple will judge applications on technical accomplishment, creativity of ideas, and the content of written responses.

Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference will take place from June 5 to June 9 at the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California. It is the first WWDC that hasn't been held in San Francisco since 2003.

While the conference is designed to allow developers to interact with Apple engineers and employees, Apple will hold a keynote event on June 5 to announce new software updates, including iOS 11 and macOS 10.13.