High School Applicants (15-18)

Student applicants for our High School Programs must be ages 15 to 18 as of June 2026.

The final application deadline is April 10th, 2026. We will not review an applicant’s packet for admission until it is 100% complete.

• Complete online application.

  • To do this, you will need to set up an account with CampDoc. You can do this by clicking the “Apply Today” link at the top of this page. Once this is done, you’ll be able to log back in to your account as you complete the application process.

  • If you already have an account with CampDoc, simply log in. Your personal information should all be saved from your last application.

  • The waiver can be found in the online application.

  • The financial aid application can be found in the online application.

• 2 page (5-7 paragraph) letter of interest from the student applicant.

  • You can find suggestions for writing your letter of interest here.

  • This must be submitted through the CampDoc application system.

  • While we recognize the utility of AI tools to aid in writing, it is crucial that students write their own letters about why they wish to attend. Writing is a crucial skill in the professional sciences, and we consider the cover letter an excellent opportuniy for student applicants to practice. If we suspect a letter was written by an AI text generator we will run it through an AI text-detector. Any letters scoring higher than 70% AI-sourced text will be returned to the applicant to rewrite and resubmit.

  • Applicants may not submit letters written by parents or otherwise outsourced.

  • Returning students may not resubmit a letter from a previous year. We keep letters year to year and will check if a letter looks familiar or if you leave the prior year and/or names of specific camps in your letter.

• Letter of recommendation from a teacher, coach, job supervisor, or other supervisor who does not have a conflict of interest with the student's parent(s) or is a member of the applicant's family.

  • This can be sent to us at SternbergCamps@FHSU.edu. We will upload it to your CampDoc profile once received. You can also upload it your profile yourself, using the document upload portion of the Health Profile. Either approach is fine, so long as the letter is uploaded on time. 

  • You can find instructions for recommendation letter-writers here.

  • Most returning* students in good standing** do not need to submit a recommendation letter.

    • *Students must have participated within the previous two summers. Students returning after two or more summers will need to submit a recommendation letter. 

    • **Standing is determined by staff. A student not in good standing based on staff feedback will be expressly notified by the Camps Director.

• Click here to learn more about our scholarship program.

The 2026 application review deadlines are:

• January 25th
• February 8th
• February 22nd
• March 22nd
• April 10th (Final application deadline.)

After each of these dates, we will review the 100% completed applications for admission. Notifications will go out to those applicants within a week of each respective deadline. We may accept late applications on a case by case basis, as some camps have their enrollment locked after that deadline. If you are applying after April 2nd, please contact us at the email below before starting your application.

Middle School Applicants (12-14)

Student applicants for our Middle School Programs must be ages 12 to 14 as of June 2026.

The final application deadline is April 10th. We will not review an applicant’s packet for admission until it is 100% complete.

• Complete online application.

  • To do this, you will need to set up an account with CampDoc. You can do this by clicking the “Apply Today” link at the top of this page. Once this is done, you’ll be able to log back into your account as you complete the application process.

  • If you already have an account with CampDoc, simply log in. Your personal information should all be saved from your last application.

  • The waiver can be found in the online application.

  • The financial aid application can be found in the online application.

• Include a one-page (2-3 paragraph) letter of interest written by the student. This letter should be uploaded to your online application on CampDoc. 
  • You can find suggestions for writing your letter of interest here.
    
    
•  Letter of recommendation from a teacher, coach, volunteering supervisor, or other supervisor who does not have a conflict of interest with the student's parent(s) or is a member of the applicant's family.
  • This can be sent to us at SternbergCamps@FHSU.edu. We will upload it to your CampDoc profile once recieved. You can also upload it your profile yourself, using the document upload portion of the Health Profile. Either approach is fine, so long as the letter is uploaded on time. 
  • You can find instructions for recommendation letter-writers here.

• Most returning* students in good standing** do not need to submit a recommendation letter.

  • *Students must have participated within the previous two summers. Students returning after two or more summers will need to submit a recommendation letter. 

  • **Standing is determined by staff. A student not in good standing based on staff feedback will be expressly notified by the Camps Director.

•  Click here to learn more about our scholarship program.

The 2026 application review deadlines are:

• January 25th
• February 8th
• February 22nd
• March 22nd
• April 10th (Final application deadline.)

After each of these dates, we will review the 100% completed applications for admission. Notifications will go out to those applicants within a week of each respective deadline. We may accept late applications on a case by case basis, as some camps have their enrollment locked after that deadline. If you are applying after April 2nd, please contact us at the email below before starting your application.

Elementary School Applicants (6-11)

The final application deadline is April 7th. We will not review an applicant’s packet for admission until it is 100% complete.

1st-2nd grade camps: Student applicants must be ages 6 to 8 years old as of June 2026.

3rd-5th grade camps: Student applicants must be ages 9 to 11 years old as of June 2026.

Complete online application.

• To do this, you will need to set up an account with CampDoc. You can do this by clicking the “Apply Today” link at the top of this page. Once this is done, you’ll be able to log back in to your account as you complete the application process.
• If you already have an account with CampDoc, simply log in. Your personal information should all be saved from your last application.
• The waiver can be found in the online application.
• The financial aid application can be found in the online application.

Learn more about our scholarship program here.

The 2026 application review deadlines are:

• January 25th
• February 8th
• February 22nd
• March 22nd
• April 10th (Final application deadline.)

After each of these dates, we will review the 100% completed applications for admission. Notifications will go out to those applicants within a week of each respective deadline. We may accept late applications on a case by case basis, as some camps have their enrollment locked after that deadline. If you are applying after April 2nd, please contact us at the email below before starting your application.

Cancellation Policy

A 10% deposit is paid at the time of registration. Students who are accepted into the camp must then have the remainder of the registration fee paid by the May 1st payment deadline.

Q: What if my student is not accepted into the camp they applied for? Do you refund tuition?
A: 100% of paid tuition is refunded to any students not accepted to a camp they applied for. This includes the initial deposit paid at the time of initial application.

Q: What is your cancellation and refund policy?
A:
Refund Policy:
Withdrawals must be submitted via email to the Camps Director (DALevering@FHSU.edu).  Deposit fees for camp(s) applications are fully refundable until the applicant is officially accepted for admission. Prior to admission, the deposit is fully refundable in the case of cancellation submitted in writing. . In the circumstance of an applicant being denied a camp(s), a full refund(s) of the deposit payment will be provided. Following application acceptance, the deposit is no longer fully refundable, and each camp registration is held to a minimum 10-percent cancellation fee. For withdrawals after May 1st, half of the total fee is refundable. For withdrawals made after June 1st, no amount of the fee is refundable. We recommend you look into the insurance plan offered through CampDoc to safeguard against any last-second need to withdrawal due to unforeseen circumstances. 

Registration fees are non-transferable between applicants or to accepted participants. Funds provided Sternberg Science Camps in the form of any financial scholarship to the participant will be withheld in any case where a scholarship awardee or their parent(s)/guardian(s) cancels an accepted application.

Cancellation Policy:
In the event of a camp being cancelled, either due to insufficient enrollment, or other unforeseeable impairments, the Sternberg Science Camps will provide a refund of all tuition and/or deposit fees paid up to the point of cancellation. Any scholarship funds awarded to the applicant to aid in attendance will be retained by the Sternberg Science Camps program. We are unable to reimburse the cost of any travel expenses paid to transport successful applicants to and/or from their camp(s). We strongly recommend attendees insure their travel to and from their respective camp(s) being attended.

For answers to more possible questions, see our Frequently Asked Questions page!

COVID-19 Mitigation Policy

Since returning to in-person programs in 2021, our programs have had a perfect record of 0 in-camp transmission COVID-19 cases. On top of this, we've had less than a half-dozen incidents of students or staff getting sick in any way while at camp over the last ten years. We attribute this to our stringent mitigation protocols as well as the diligence of our campers and their families. Please contact Camps Director David Levering at DALevering@FHSU.edu if you have questions about the Camps’ COVID19 mitigation policies outlined below. We strongly recommend you fully review these policies and protocols before proceeding with your application.  

• All staff are fully vaccinated for COVID-19.  
• Camp groups will follow all public health protocol requirements of the respective state's camps are taking place in, and requirements of locations visited. Example: If a state does not have a masking mandate, but a museum visited in that state does, then all students and staff will have to mask while visiting that museum.  
  • Example: If a public indoor space visited is in a state with no masking mandate, and no location-specific masking requirement, students will not be required to mask in that space, though they will not be discouraged from doing so.  
  • Staff will have masks on hand to provide to students as needed and/or desired.  
  • Field-based camps will not require masking during outdoor portions. Masking may be required on a case-by-case basis when visiting various indoor locations over the course of any given camp. 
• In spaces where masking is not explicitly required, students will not be required to wear masks. However, students who wish to wear a mask will be encouraged to take such steps to make them as comfortable as possible with their in-person camp experience. Harassment of students for choosing to/not to mask in spaces where it is optional will not be tolerated by staff.  
• A camper getting pulled from a camp will be very un-fun for everyone involved, and potentially expensive for anyone infected at camp due to quarantine protocols and travel plan changes. We are not able to give refunds due to cancellations happening right before camp due to illness (or other factors). To absolutely minimize the possibility of a COVID-19 infection in a camp group, we ask that all students take the following steps before camp:  
  • Two weeks before your camp begins, start taking extra caution in potential exposure to COVID-19 infection. This especially includes spending time unmasked in crowded indoor spaces. If you must spend time in such high-risk spaces, we ask you strongly consider wearing a well-fitting N95 respirator mask. 
  • Exercise your best judgement when attending smaller indoor functions or crowded outdoor functions. COVID-19 is extremely transmissible, and missing camp (and not being able to get a refund) because you get COVID right before camp would really awful. 
     
• All students are strongly encouraged to take a COVID-19 test the day before traveling to their camp starting location. This can be a home rapid test, or through an accessible lab facility that does such testing. We ask that this be done to mitigate any chance of arriving at your program only to unexpectedly test positive at the beginning of camp. Testing positive at the beginning of camp and documenting the positive results may be necessary for any travel insurance claims for cancelled plans if you choose to purchase a policy via CampDoc or elsewhere. 
  
  
• All students (and staff) are required to complete a COVID-19 rapid test upon arriving at the drop-off location for their camp. Staff will have rapid tests marked with the date and the student's name ready to hand out. Bringing your own test will not be permissible in place of this test. We consider this a very small inconvenience to maximize our chances for a camp free of major medical disruptions. 
  
  
• Any students who test positive on the arrival rapid test will not be allowed to continue with their participation, nor will they be able to get a refund for the program. We are strict on this policy in protection of other students as well as staff who may have immunity complications. We are also prioritizing preventing immensely disruptive outbreaks to our programs that ruin the experience for all involved. Once again, we strongly recommend taking strong precautionary measures in the weeks prior to camp and during travel, and taking a reputable diagnostic test for COVID19 with two days of travel to your program. We also strongly recommend families look into insurance policies to protect against the financial impacts of illness interfering with their child's ability to participate in camp at any stage.
  
  
• COVID-19 vaccination is not required to participate in our programs. However, we strongly recommend students who are vaccinated upload a readable photo/scan of their COVID-19 vaccination card to their CampDoc profile in the medical information section. This is simply another piece of relevant, useful healthcare documentation. Such status will only be used in relevant healthcare scenarios and is in no way used to determine program admission or disclosed to anyone outside of our staff or healthcare professionals. We collect this information to allow our on-site staff to make well-informed student management, care, and situation-response decisions and/or communicate said information to physicians if the need arises. This is true for all of the medical information we collect and will not be shared outside Sternberg Science Camps staff teams and relevant medical professionals as needed. 
  
  
• Each camp has 6+ COVID rapid tests on-hand in their materials kit. Staff are aware of their locations, and protocols on using them. If a student is showing typical signs of COVID infection, they will be asked to complete a rapid test so staff can make informed health and safety decisions for the student and broader camp group.
  
  
• In a situation with a positive test in the group, we will begin requiring masking and distancing protocols for all students and staff until we can test the entire group and confidently ascertain that everyone is COVID19 negative. Other mitigation steps may be taken depending on the situation of the camp group and whether they are camping, in dorms, and so forth. 
  
  
• As with any other concerning medical issue, a COVID-positive student (based on a positive rapid test result) will be transported to the nearest medical facility for evaluation as needed following communication with parents. All positive COVID rapid tests will result in that individual being removed from the group to quarantine. In each case, parents will be contacted about the situation to discuss options and will be kept up to date on developments.
  
  
• Students pulled for COVID19 infection will not be able to rejoin the group, as the standard wait time for no longer being infectious outlasts any sensible timeframe for returning. We strongly recommend exploring insurance plans offered via CampDoc or other travel insurance plans to cover unexpected expenses of having a student pulled from camp over COVID or other health issues. We expect parents/guardians to be expeditious in working with our staff to get the student secured so the staff who transported them to the hotel/hospital or airport earlier than otherwise expected can rejoin the main group. This is mostly borne of safety concerns as we need the full staff presence to properly and safely execute any of our in-person programs. 
  
  
• In the case of our field camps, pulling a student from the field can be quite arduous, which is one of many reasons why we are enacting strict applicant COVID19 precautionary requirements.