| Application deadline | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Cost | Last year's cycle (2026): $5,518; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): $3,975; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): $1,270; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Financial aid | Last year's cycle (2026): 2026 need-based application and program assistance: Up to $5,564. Could assist with the $46 application fee and $5,518 program cost based on family income, family size and available funds; actual award not guaranteed.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): ASC 2026 financial-aid funds: Up to $3,975. General fund up to half, Sydney Stark Jr. Memorial fund up to full tuition, and Military Family fund at least half; historical terms only.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): Berkeley Summer Sessions financial aid for non-matriculated students: $0. Summer Sessions states that financial aid is not available to non-matriculated students. External funding is not addressed.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Expenses and aid conditions | Last year's cycle (2026): 2026 COSMOS application fee: $46. Nonrefundable; pending fee-waiver review could change when or whether payment was required.; Credit-card transaction fee on program payments: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Approximately 2.5% when paying program costs by credit card; application fee exempt.; 2026 need-based application and program assistance: Up to $5,564. Could assist with the $46 application fee and $5,518 program cost based on family income, family size and available funds; actual award not guaranteed.; Full-financial-aid attendance deposit: $200. Required only for admitted students offered full aid and refunded to the legal guardian after successful completion.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): Nonrefundable tuition deposit upon registration: $150. Part of tuition, not an additional $150 program price.; ASC 2026 financial-aid funds: Up to $3,975. General fund up to half, Sydney Stark Jr. Memorial fund up to full tuition, and Military Family fund at least half; historical terms only.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): Summer 2026 high-school registration fee: $585. Applied to high-school Summer Sessions students, including online enrollment. Historical completed-cycle amount.; First-time document-management fee: $73. One-time by student status and degree level; may not apply if previously paid in the same applicable status.; Summer 2026 application fee: $25. Nonrefundable historical completed-cycle fee.; Berkeley Summer Sessions financial aid for non-matriculated students: $0. Summer Sessions states that financial aid is not available to non-matriculated students. External funding is not addressed.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Stipend or pay | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Eligibility | Grades 9–12 (provider uses rising grades) | Grades 8–12; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site | Up to grade 12; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Additional eligibility | Residency: Attend high school in person in California; Requirement: Be rising into grade 9, 10, 11 or 12 for the program fall year; Requirement: Attend high school in person in California; Requirement: Demonstrate academic excellence and preparation for the selected STEM cluster; Requirement: Complete cluster-specific course prerequisites; Requirement: Live on the host UC campus for the full program; Requirement: Be a first-time COSMOS participant; Exclusion: Students not attending a California high school in person; Exclusion: Students who previously attended any COSMOS program; Exclusion: Applicants outside the rising-grade 9-12 range; Exclusion: Applicants unable to live on campus for the full program; Exclusion: Late application, supporting, payment or admission materials; Exclusion: Assuming a 3.5 GPA is an absolute statewide minimum rather than the published typical profile | Ages 13–19; Requirement: Be a rising 8th grader through a graduated 12th grader, or homeschool equivalent; Requirement: Be age 13-19 at the applicable start-date checkpoint; Requirement: Apply and receive an acceptance decision; Requirement: Complete accepted-camper registration and deposit before capacity fills; Requirement: Be prepared for a full residential schedule, auditions, rehearsals, classes, performance, and shared living; Exclusion: A rising 7th grader is ineligible even if already 13; Exclusion: A rising 8th grader is ineligible if still 12 at camp; Exclusion: A student who has completed a college freshman year is ineligible even if 18; Exclusion: Acceptance does not reserve a seat until registration is complete; Exclusion: No prior performance experience was required, and admission did not guarantee a particular play, role, solo, college credit, or professional outcome | Minimum age 16; Residency: Summer public/pre-college access can include domestic and international students who meet UC Berkeley Summer Sessions rules; Requirement: Be a high-school student age 16 or older by the applicable Summer Sessions date, or qualify through another visiting/non-matriculated student category; Requirement: Students ages 16-17 must use the Pre-College Scholars application; high-school students age 18+ use the Visiting Student process; Requirement: Meet any English-language, identity-verification, technology, payment, privacy, and international-student requirements; Requirement: Select the correct lower-division section and complete enrollment before capacity and add deadlines; Requirement: Be prepared for a two-unit UC Berkeley academic workload, asynchronous online study, readings, video lectures, peer engagement, assignments, and optional live events; Exclusion: This is not a grades 10-11-only Jacobs Institute Design Lab; Exclusion: The summer public-access rule does not make Fall or Spring Berkeley courses open to high-school students; Exclusion: Students younger than 16 did not qualify for the 2026 Pre-College Scholars pathway; Exclusion: Enrollment does not guarantee the separate Berkeley Changemaker certificate, a portfolio, prototyping, mentorship, recommendation, internship, admission, or transfer-credit acceptance |
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| Session dates or duration | Catalog terms: 4 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 3 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 6 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Format | In person | In person | Online |
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| Housing and supervision | Residential. Supervision and housing details: Unconfirmed — check official site | Residential. Supervision and housing details: Unconfirmed — check official site | Non-residential. Supervision and housing details: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Location | Davis, California, Irvine, California, Los Angeles, California, Merced, California, San Diego, California, Santa Cruz, California, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UCLA, UC Merced, UC San Diego, UC Santa Cruz | Staunton, Virginia; Mary Baldwin University and Blackfriars Playhouse | Fully online and asynchronous summer course, with optional live sessions scheduled at varied times |
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| Selection and application | Selection: Each of six campuses accommodates roughly 160-200 students, and clusters typically enroll 20-25 with a commonly reported 5:1 student-to-faculty ratio. Admissions are competitive and based on academic merit relative to the selected topic, but applicant count and statewide acceptance rate were not published. Application materials: One personal statement; One required teacher recommendation, with two recommended | Selection: Attendance was by acceptance, applications were reviewed monthly, and accepted-student registration was first-come, first-served. ASC did not publish applicant count, acceptance rate, or detailed judging rubric. | Selection: Course enrollment depends on Summer Sessions eligibility, application completion, section availability, and enrollment capacity. The official pages do not publish an admissions rubric, applicant count, acceptance rate, cohort size, GPA threshold, recommendation, or interview. |
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| Official sources | Source 1 · checked 2026-08-22Source 2 · checked 2026-08-22Source 3 · checked 2026-08-22Source 4 · checked 2026-08-22Source 5 · checked 2026-08-22Source 6 · checked 2026-08-22Source 7 · checked 2026-08-20 | Source 1 · checked 2026-08-20Source 2 · checked 2026-08-20Source 3 · checked 2026-08-20 | Source 1 · checked 2026-08-20Source 2 · checked 2026-08-20Source 3 · checked 2026-08-20Source 4 · checked 2026-08-20Source 5 · checked 2026-08-20Source 6 · checked 2026-08-20Source 7 · checked 2026-08-20 |
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