| Application deadline | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Cost | Last year's cycle (2026): $1,299; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): $5,518; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): $699–$2,500; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Financial aid | Last year's cycle (2026): Application-fee and tuition waiver: $1,324. For 2026, 100% waivers were available with free/reduced-price lunch or Pell Grant documentation; Mason considered alternative hardship documentation case by case.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | 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): Limited need-based scholarships: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Very limited; did not cover residential fees or international students. The separate GI Partners path listed eight Boston-area rising-senior awards below a household-income threshold.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Expenses and aid conditions | Last year's cycle (2026): 2026 ASSIP application processing fee: $25. Nonrefundable historical fee; full waiver available for documented financial need.; Application-fee and tuition waiver: $1,324. For 2026, 100% waivers were available with free/reduced-price lunch or Pell Grant documentation; Mason considered alternative hardship documentation case by case.; Commuting and local transportation: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Students were responsible for transportation; Mason shuttles between Fairfax and Manassas were free, and low-cost general parking was usually available to non-Mason interns.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | 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): Residential housing and meals: $699–$2,097. USD 699 per week; included dormitory, three meals daily, supervision, and residential activities. Snacks excluded.; Seat deposit: $200–$500. USD 200 for one-week programs and USD 500 for three-week or remote programs; credited toward tuition.; Optional airport transportation: $50–$99. USD 50 departure one-way, USD 75 arrival one-way, or USD 99 round trip for 2026.; Optional linen rental: $50. Included sheets, pillowcase, and towel.; Limited need-based scholarships: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Very limited; did not cover residential fees or international students. The separate GI Partners path listed eight Boston-area rising-senior awards below a household-income threshold.; 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 | Grade 9 and above; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site | Grades 9–12 (provider uses rising grades) | Grades 6–12; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Additional eligibility | Minimum age 15; Requirement: Be a high-school or undergraduate student and not have graduated from university before or during the internship; Requirement: Be at least 15 by the first program day for remote and computer-lab internships; Requirement: Be at least 16 by the first program day for any wet-lab placement involving chemical, biological, mechanical, or electrical hazards; Requirement: Commit to the full eight-week, 30-hour-per-week internship, required orientation, training, mentor schedule, and final symposium; Requirement: Select one to three prospective mentors whose research, format, campus, and preferred skills fit the applicant; Exclusion: Wet-lab age 16 is a safety requirement with no exceptions; Exclusion: Students may participate for at most two summer sessions; Exclusion: Minors cannot use Mason-arranged campus housing; Exclusion: Preferred mentor skills are not universal prerequisites, and the program has no universal minimum GPA; Exclusion: Admission does not guarantee a patent, publication, award, paid position, or continued research role | 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 | Requirement: Select a course matching the student's entering grade and readiness; Requirement: Three-week programs: normally enter grade 8 through college and complete competitive admission; Requirement: One-week programs: perform at grade level or above and register while space remains; Requirement: Pre-high-school programs: meet the specific middle-school grade band; Requirement: Remote students need a suitable device and synchronous availability; Requirement: International students must arrange travel status and pay in full before BLI issues an invitation letter; Exclusion: Not every course accepts every grade in the umbrella range; Exclusion: Three-week and remote acceptance is not guaranteed; Exclusion: Housing, single-room requests, scholarships, preferred campus, airport transport, and course capacity are not guaranteed; Exclusion: International students were ineligible for the general need-based aid described in the 2026 FAQ |
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| Session dates or duration | Catalog terms: 8 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 4 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 1–3 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Format | In person / Online / Hybrid | In person | In person / Online |
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| Housing and supervision | Non-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 | Fairfax, Manassas, Woodbridge, Virginia; mentor-specific remote and collaborating-institution placements | 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 | Boston, Massachusetts, Waltham, Massachusetts, Wellesley, Massachusetts, Weston, Massachusetts, Greater Boston |
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| Selection and application | Selection: Competitive and mentor-matched. Review considers STEM coursework, GPA, experience, statements, mentor fit, and project needs; highly qualified applicants may be interviewed. No minimum GPA or overall acceptance rate is published. Application materials: Personal statements describing research interest, preparation, goals, and mentor fit; Possible mentor interview for highly qualified candidates | 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: Three-week and remote programs used competitive rolling review based on academic record, curiosity, subject commitment, perspective, and experience. One-week and pre-high-school programs were capacity-based registration. Application materials: Student-written application essay |
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| Official sources | Source 1 · checked 2026-08-21Source 2 · checked 2026-08-21Source 3 · checked 2026-08-21Source 4 · checked 2026-08-21 | 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 2026-08-21Source 2 · checked 2026-08-21Source 3 · checked 2026-08-21Source 4 · checked 2026-08-21Source 5 · checked 2026-08-20 |
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