Take the online test
The process starts with registering to take an online test. Kids between ages 13 and 17 can sign up for the test for the Teen Tournament and college students can take the test for the College Championship. There is also a Teachers Tournament.
The test is given once or twice a year. This year it was given in April, but there isn’t a set time, so it’s wise to register now and they’ll email you when a test is scheduled.
The online test consists of 50 questions in 50 different categories. It goes really quickly, with a mere 15 seconds to respond to each clue, and feels like a bit of a sprint. Thankfully, misspelled and partially typed responses will be considered as long as it is phonetically correct.
It’s not unusual to hear “No!” or “Argh!” from people taking the test. Answers have a way of springing to mind after 16 seconds, just as the screen advances to the next question.
It’s hard to gauge how you did, and you’ll never know. Do not presume that you have to get them all correct. You don’t, although scores are not revealed at any other point in the process.
In Person Audition
As many as 70,000 people take the online test, and, based on scores, between 2,500 and 3,000 people receive audition invitations in their email in box.
I received an email that I had been selected for an in-person audition a few months after taking the online test. Held at a hotel ballroom in Chicago, the audition drew people from around the Midwest.
The in-person audition takes around two hours. It begins with introduction by the contestant coordinators who will be running the show (both for that day and at the show itself) and a brief warm up. 
Than, hopefuls take another written test. This test also consists of 50 questions and 8 seconds to scribble down each question on your answer sheet using a snazzy Jeopardy! pen they give you. Again, scores are not ever disclosed.
Next, they have the mock game portion of the audition. It is video taped, so keep that in mind when selecting an outfit.
On the show itself, they urge you not to wear white or olive tops and to avoid busy prints. A solid top that’s a flattering color and not too bright is going to be a good choice. Think business casual.
Throughout the audition, they encourage all the Jeopardy! hopefuls to have high energy levels, lots of enthusiasm, and voices that are both loud and clear.
The show’s website says speaking up and the ability to keep the game moving are “two critical elements in your being considered for the show.”
Keep this in mind throughout. When they ask for volunteers or ask questions to the group that you know the answer to, don’t be afraid to shoot your hand up and, if called upon, shout out your answer with confidence and volume.
The mock game uses a video screen that is like a Jeopardy! board, but smaller, with maybe four categories and three questions on each. (That’s what I remember, but it’s been a year and a half, so please don’t hold me to that. For that matter, it’s possible that they would change things, too, over time.)
Alex is not at the audition, although one person did tell me he made a surprise appearance. Instead, senior contestant coordinator Glenn Kagan stood in for the veteran host at the Chicago audition and ran the show. 
The clues in the mock game are easy to moderately difficult. I remember there was at least one that no one in my group knew and I was worried that would be an issue, but I still got the call to be on the show, so apparently it is not a deal breaker. You play the game for only a few moments. A good way to practice would be reviewing the Infinite Final Jeopardy! clues on the show’s website here.
Then, it’s on to the personal information portion. Would-be contestant are asked to come with five interesting facts about them that could be items you would discuss with Alex, and they ask each person about one or two of their items, and remember, this happens while they film you.
Our audition group consisted of twenty people spanning a wide variety of ages, interests and careers. They told stories ranging from exotic travels to celebrity encounters to the interesting ways their pets react to the Jeopardy! theme music.
“What would you do with your winnings?” is a question that they ask everyone.
Be prepared to answer how you’d spend your windfall. Try to make your answer a tad more interesting than paying off bills, but don’t be weird, either. The person in my first audition announced plans to build a dungeon and shared some creepy details about it that made everyone a little uncomfortable. I never saw him on the show.
You want to be memorable, but in a good way and for positive reasons.
Now what?
Once everyone has played the mock game and had a quick chat, the audition ends with the news that you can keep the Jeopardy! pen you used for your written test. The coordinators then send on your way with instructions that are a kind version of “Don’t call us, we’ll call you.”
Those auditioning go into the contestant pool and can be called to be on the show at any time in the next 18 months. If you haven’t heard from them after that period of time, you are welcome and even encouraged to start the process over by taking the online test again, as many contestants are not picked the first time around.
For most people, that’s the end of the road. From the tens of thousands take the online test, approximately four hundred appear on the show each year.
If you don’t get the call on your first try, do not give up!
Start the process again by taking the online test and go through it again. Remember that many people audition in person more than once. One woman in my contestant group on the show said she auditioned five times.
Good luck!
You May Also Like: Ways that being on Jeopardy! is similar to talking with kids about alcohol
]]>
First, host Alex Trebek does not attend the auditions, though he does tape a video shown to those auditioning. Jimmy from the Clue Crew was there and it was great to meet him. He couldn’t have been more gracious. He’s been on the Clue Crew for 14 years, and he shared the scoop on the show and his experience on it.
How Jeopardy is Taped
– Jeopardy! tapes 5 shows in one day. They film three episodes in the morning, take a lunch break, and then do two more matches. That’s a week’s worth of shows in a day.
– Jeopardy! tapes just 46 days per year. Yes, Alex works just 46 days. As if hosting Jeopardy! didn’t already seem like an awesome job, right?
– When they tape, there are approximately 200 people in the audience, including friends and family of the contestants.
– There are approximately 15 writers and researchers on the Jeopardy! who come up with the clues.
– Jeopardy! is filmed on the Sony lot and Jimmy shared stories of walking to lunch and seeing Spiderman in a golf cart or a hundred actors dressed as cardinals while filming the movie Angels and Demons.
Clue Crew
– The Clue Crew has literally been all over the world. Jimmy said that collectively they have been to all 50 states, 300 cities and 40 countries.
– When I asked Jimmy what his favorite destination was, he said Rome would be at the top of his list. He also said a trip to Israel was particularly memorable. Alex usually doesn’t accompany them but he did meet up with Jimmy and Sarah in Israel.
Auditions
– The audition process starts with an online test. It is typically administered once per year, usually at the start of the year. You can register to take the online test here.
– As many as 100,000 people take the online test. That was the record number a few years ago. In 2015, approximately 70,000 people took the online test.
– The show invites the 2,500 – 3,000 people who scored highest on the online test to move on to the next step in the process, which is an in person audition. I was in that group of people.
– 400 contestants ultimately appear on the show.
Only about 15% of those who audition in person will make it on to the show.
Those are some slim odds and sadly, it isn’t likely that you’ll see me chatting with Alex in the near future. I realize my chances aren’t good, but if you keep some good thoughts for me, I’d be most grateful! (And on the slim chance that Maggie or another contest coordinator is reading, and as Carly Rae Jepsen asked, call me, maybe?)
– Auditions are held in several different cities around the country, and those cities vary from year to year. Kansas City was closest to Chicago this year.
– This was my first audition, but many people in the room had auditioned before, and the coordinators encouraged people to keep trying, noting that several of the shows best contestants were not chosen the first time around.
– The audition consists of taking another 50-question test, playing a mock game and a brief interview. All together, it took around two and a half hours.
Contestants
– Contestants are told to bring a few different outfits should they win. And if you’re taping three shows in the morning, you know there isn’t a lot of time for changing and certainly not time to go shopping, although there is a mall nearby that some contestants have had to visit during the lunch break before filming the two shows in the afternoon.
– Ken Jennings needed a lot of clothes, because he holds the record for the longest run on the show, winning 74 times in a row. He lost on his 75th appearance.
– Brad Rutter has won more than $4 million on Jeopardy! He appeared when contestants could appear only a maximum of 5 times on the regular tapings, but he’s done ridiculously well in numerous tournaments following his initial appearance, amassing the most winnings of all who have appeared. Though the computer Watson beat him, he’s never lost to a human.
– One former contestant, Bob Harris, shared his experiences and advice in the book Prisoner of Trebekistan.
You may also like: 11 fun facts about the 4th of July
Prior post: 8 reasons to love tea in the winter
Don’t miss a post! Please subscribe to Mom Factually’s completely safe, spam-free email list in the box in the top right corner of the page!
Please like this page on Facebook. You can also find Mom Factually on Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram.