Leaders from the following cities / regions are invited to apply to MYALP: 

• Greater Duluth
• Greater Fargo-Moorhead
• Greater Mankato
• Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul
• Greater Rochester
• Greater St. Cloud

Additionally, applicants from Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul will be able to select whether they would like to be considered for the Minnesota or national Young American Leaders Program, or both. At this time, the national Young American Leaders Program (YALP) is only accepting applicants from Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul. It is the same application for both Programs.

MYALP is hosted by the University of Minnesota's Center for Integrative Leadership while YALP is hosted by Harvard Business Schools' US Competitiveness Project.

The national Young American Leaders Program (YALP) is hosted by Harvard Business School's US Competitiveness Project. At this time, YALP is only accepting applications from Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul, along with 13 other US cities. 

Applicants from Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul will be able to select whether they would like to be considered for the Minnesota or national Young American Leaders Program, or both.  It is the same application for both Programs.

No. Unfortunately at this time, we are only accepting applications from the cities listed above.

No. All participants must travel to the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities campus in Minneapolis, MN for the Program in May. Please note, anyone traveling from Greater MN cohorts will have mileage costs reimbursed by the Program. 

Great question! You will be able to select whether they would like to be considered for the Minnesota or national Young American Leaders Program, or both. It is the same application for both Programs.

• The primary advantage of the national Program is an opportunity to become familiar with other metropolitan regions to learn from their examples and to network. The advantage of the Minnesota Program is the opportunity to strengthen connections within the region and to develop and implement innovative cross-sector initiatives.
• Thus, applicants who already have visibility into other regions (for example because they recently relocated to Minnesota or already do lots of national-level work) will gain more from the networking and implementation opportunities of the Minnesota Program. Conversely, applicants who have been very focused on their area of expertise within Minnesota will gain more from seeing examples from other regions through the national Program.
• For Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul applicants who apply to both programs, the selection committee will consider which Program they can grow more with thus have a greater incremental impact on the cross-sector leadership capacity of our region.

That’s a question we get a lot! The use of "Young" in the Minnesota Young American Leaders Program (MYALP) title is meant to be interpreted in the broad sense of a leader's career trajectory and future impact, not chronological age.

We are looking for leaders who have already established a significant professional presence and are still in the mid-point of their careers, with substantial "runway" for future impact in Minnesota. We are not seeking entry-level staff.

To ensure participants have the authority, credibility, and connections to launch post-program initiatives, all applicants must have a minimum of seven years of full-time professional experience with those selected often having more. We seek individuals who can bring their existing experience of leading within and across organizations—with either positional or reputational authority—to a new level of cross-sector collaboration for the public good.

In short: A MYALP "Young Leader" is an established, high-potential professional with a proven track record whose best years of service and leadership are still ahead of them.

Nominations are not required. Whether you are nominated or not, everyone will need to complete an application to be consisted for the Program. Nominations do not impact selection into the Program and instead serve as a way for individuals to encourage others to apply. 

There is no cost to attend the Program. All lodging accommodations, meals, along with travel expenses (for Greater MN participants) to and from the Program will be covered. 

No, there is no age limit to the Program. We do require that participants have a minimum of seven years full-time work experience (along with other qualifications). The Program is designed for individuals who have enough experience of leading within and across organizations, with reputational or positional authority, to bring this experience, credibility, and connections to the Program and to their post-Program leadership networks.

Full-time work experience is defined as 32+ hours / week or 1 FTE per role, and can include paid internships. Work experience may be non-consecutive as long as the total full-time experience is seven years or more. (All work experience must be clearly stated on your resume or your application to be considered for the Program.)

If you do not meet the minimum seven years full-time work experience requirement, we ask that you wait to apply until you meet the requirement. Applications that do not meet the requirement will not be considered for the Program and will not be forwarded to the selection committee for review.

You must have seven years full-work experience before the Program takes place in May.

Both the Nominations and Applications will close at 11:59 pm on the deadline date. The nomination deadline is October 30, 2025 at 11:59 pm, while the application deadline is November 20, 2025 at 11:59 pm.

These are held in each cohort city (Duluth, Fargo-Moorhead, Mankato, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Rochester, and St. Cloud) and are planned by the local selection partner. They will take place in April 2026 with the exact dates communicated to each selected cohort in March.

Yes, we encourage it! Additionally, all participants are required to attend a Program Orientation via Zoom in March (dates TBD) offered by the University of Minnesota's Center for Integrative Leadership. There will also be Cohort Gatherings & Alumni Receptions held in each city during the month of April to encourage the cohort and alumni to connect and build relationships prior to May's program. Participants will also be provided with the contact information for the full cohort. 

For questions about MYALP, contact [email protected]. For questions about YALP, contact [email protected].