| Application deadline | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Cost | Last year's cycle (2026): $2,400–$5,200; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): $5,518; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Financial aid | Catalog terms: Need-based financial aid: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Available through the application for accepted, qualified students; award and amount are not guaranteed.; 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 | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Expenses and aid conditions | Catalog terms: Enrollment deposit after acceptance: $1,000. Ordinarily secures the seat after acceptance unless BlueStamp approves alternate payment or financial-aid arrangements; confirm refund and balance terms for the new cycle.; Need-based financial aid: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Available through the application for accepted, qualified students; award and amount are not guaranteed.; Meals during the in-person program: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Lunch is generally not provided except a published Friday pizza lunch.; 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 | 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; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site | Grades 9–12 (provider uses rising grades) | Grades 9–12; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Additional eligibility | Requirement: Be entering grade 9, 10, 11, or 12 in the applicable summer; Requirement: Choose a published in-person, remote, or approved custom schedule and be available for its required live blocks; Requirement: Show motivation, self-direction, and willingness to solve open-ended engineering problems independently; Requirement: Submit an accurate application with requested short responses and references; Requirement: Attend the admissions interview; a parent or guardian participates in part of it; Requirement: Select an approved project with BlueStamp before the program and follow its budget, parts, tool, safety, and documentation rules; Requirement: For remote participation, have a feasible delivery address, workspace, internet connection, live-session availability, adult support where required, and lawful/safe tool access; Requirement: For in-person participation, arrange daily transportation and meals and comply with site pickup, conduct, safety, and minor-protection rules; Exclusion: Using the middle-school tuition, dates, priority rules, or hours for a high-school application; Exclusion: Assuming a live application form means 2027 dates, tuition, seats, or aid are announced; Exclusion: Expecting BlueStamp-provided in-person housing or daily lunch; Exclusion: Treating the project as a guaranteed invention, patent, publication, recommendation, internship, academic credit, award, or admission advantage; Exclusion: Missing required live time or attempting unsafe, unapproved, unlawful, or infeasible projects; Exclusion: Assuming a custom schedule, financial-aid award, fee reduction, project choice, replacement parts, international shipping, or refund is automatic | 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 14–18; Requirement: Be a high-school student age 14-18; Requirement: Submit the program and scholarship interest form for the applicable cycle; Requirement: Complete registration, payment, residential, health, consent, and credit-eligibility steps if offered a place; Requirement: Participate in the full residential academy; Exclusion: College credit has restrictions and is not available to every participant; Exclusion: Interest-form submission does not guarantee admission, scholarship, waitlist movement, college credit, credit transfer, prize, startup funding, company formation, sales, University admission, or admissions advantage |
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| Session dates or duration | Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 4 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Format | In person / Online | In person | In person |
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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 | San Jose, California, In-person at 3800 Blackford Avenue in San Jose; live remote option may accept students elsewhere subject to time-zone and parts-shipping feasibility | 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 | Salt Lake City, Utah, University of Utah, Lassonde Studios |
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| Selection and application | Selection: Application and interview review occur in receipt order while seats remain. BlueStamp does not publish applicant counts, acceptance rates, aid rates, cohort size for the next cycle, or a guaranteed decision. Application materials: Admissions interview, including parent or guardian participation for the designated portion | 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: The 2026 cohort reached capacity and accepted waitlist interest. Scholarships were limited and considered merit and need. Current cohort size, applicant count, acceptance rate, selection rubric, and waitlist movement are not published. |
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| Official sources | Source 1 · checked 2026-08-20Source 2 · checked 2026-08-20Source 3 · checked 2026-08-20Source 4 · checked 2026-08-20 | 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 2026-10-12Source 2 · checked 2026-08-22 |
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