| 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 | Unconfirmed — check official site | 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): Local SAME Post sponsorship: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Posts may pay half or more, but award amounts and availability vary and are not guaranteed.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): U.S. family-income guarantee: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. U.S. students from families under $80,000 attended free in 2026.; Full/partial need-based aid and international aid: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Aid available where cost is a barrier; international aid considered case by case.; 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): Reservation payment after selection: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Selected campers paid half the applicable registration fee to hold a place.; Local SAME Post sponsorship: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Posts may pay half or more, but award amounts and availability vary and are not guaranteed.; Travel to the camp region: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Participant responsibility; pickup from the camp's designated closest airport was available under the published travel process.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): U.S. family-income guarantee: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. U.S. students from families under $80,000 attended free in 2026.; Full/partial need-based aid and international aid: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Aid available where cost is a barrier; international aid considered case by case.; 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 10–12; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site | Grades 10–12; 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 | Minimum age 15; Citizenship: United States citizenship required; Requirement: Be enrolled in high school and at least 15 years old on arrival; Requirement: Have completed freshman year for most camps; have completed sophomore year for the Army camp; Requirement: Plan to pursue engineering, architecture or a related STEM degree or career; Requirement: Demonstrate leadership, teamwork, good character and physical ability to participate; Requirement: Provide proof of medical insurance and required health information; Requirement: Confirm the selected camp's GPA rule; official pages variously describe 3.2 as a minimum or highly recommended; Exclusion: The 2026 application and camps are closed; Exclusion: Non-U.S. citizens are not eligible under the published criteria; Exclusion: The Army camp does not accept students who have not completed sophomore year; Exclusion: A student may attend only one SAME camp; Exclusion: Camp placement, top-choice placement and SAME Post sponsorship are not guaranteed; Exclusion: Full-week attendance is required | Ages 14–18; Residency: Students from the United States and abroad are eligible; international financial aid is case by case; Requirement: Be age 14-18 by the applicable program cutoff; Requirement: Have completed grade 9 or equivalent before the session; Requirement: Not be enrolled full time in a college or university by the program's first day; Requirement: Be available for the entire six-week residential session and comply with dormitory, curfew, visiting, safeguarding, and conduct rules; Requirement: Independently attempt the official application problem set and explain experiments, conjectures, proofs, and partial progress; Requirement: Submit the required recommendation, transcript, form, short answers, and any financial-aid documents; Requirement: Retain scratch work and be prepared to explain reasoning if originality is verified; Exclusion: Applicants outside the age/education window or already full-time college students at program start; Exclusion: Collaborative, copied, AI-assisted, internet-generated, uncited, or inadequately explained problem-set work; Exclusion: Applicants unable to reside for the full six weeks or follow residential/safety expectations; Exclusion: Assuming all eight problems must be solved or that prior advanced courses/research are required; Exclusion: Assuming selection guarantees aid, publication, conference presentation, college credit, recommendation, admission advantage, internship, or job |
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| Session dates or duration | Catalog terms: 4 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 1 week; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 6 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Format | In person | In person | In person |
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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 | 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 | Honolulu, Vicksburg, Jacksonville, Colorado Springs, Camp Lejeune, Port Hueneme, Hawaii, Mississippi, Florida, Colorado, North Carolina, California | Boston, Boston University campus, Massachusetts |
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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: Each camp generally serves 40-80 students. SAME Posts review applicants and nominate or sponsor candidates, but SAME publishes no overall applicant count or acceptance rate. | Selection: About 80 high-school students are selected through demonstrated mathematical thinking in the problem set, academic context, recommendation, transcript, and short answers. PROMYS does not publish the current applicant count or acceptance rate. Application materials: One recommendation |
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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 2026-08-22Source 2 · checked 2026-08-22 | 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 2026-08-20 |
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