| Application deadline | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Cost | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Financial aid | Last year's cycle (2026): Need-based fee and participant-travel assistance: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. SSP committed to cover 100% of demonstrated need; exact award depends on family circumstances and may include participant airfare or other required travel.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Expenses and aid conditions | Last year's cycle (2026): 2026 application fee: $0. Completely free to apply.; Need-based fee and participant-travel assistance: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. SSP committed to cover 100% of demonstrated need; exact award depends on family circumstances and may include participant airfare or other required travel.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: Local transportation: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. SSMV offers free MTA access. SHIRE does not cover transportation, although a WeGo stop serves Hillsboro High School.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Stipend or pay | Last year's cycle (2026): Lost-wages stipend: $3,000; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Historical cycle (2024): SHIRE paid internship: Unconfirmed — check official site; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Eligibility | Grade 11 when applying; summer rising grade is one higher | Grades 8–12; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Additional eligibility | Ages 15–18; Requirement: Be a current high-school junior; Requirement: Be at least 15 and not yet 19 during all program dates; Requirement: Complete for credit and a grade by June any high-school physics plus precalculus; Requirement: If the school does not offer physics, complete calculus for credit and a grade by June instead; Requirement: Commit exclusively to the entire assigned residential session; Exclusion: Current freshmen, sophomores and seniors; Exclusion: Self-study used in place of the required graded coursework; Exclusion: Applicants unable to attend the complete assigned session; Exclusion: Applying to more than one SSP project in the same cycle | Residency: SSMV requires future attendance at a district-operated Metro Nashville Public Schools high school; Residency: ISR, SHIRE and REHSS are limited to specified MNPS/ISR pathways; Residency: All offerings require local in-person attendance in Nashville; Requirement: SSMV: apply in eighth grade and plan to attend an eligible district-operated MNPS high school; Requirement: ISR: attend Hillsboro, John Overton or Stratford STEM Magnet and commit to the four-year sequence; Requirement: SHIRE: be a rising junior or senior already in ISR; Requirement: REHSS: be a current ISR student entering senior year with STEM-career interest; Requirement: Meet the relevant subprogram's attendance, academic-standing and schedule requirements; Exclusion: This is not a single open-enrollment camp; Exclusion: General national or out-of-district applicants are not eligible for the listed MNPS pathways; Exclusion: SSMV applicants selected or waitlisted must confirm an eligible district-operated high school; Exclusion: REHSS and SHIRE are not open to students outside ISR; Exclusion: Participation does not confer Vanderbilt undergraduate admission |
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| Session dates or duration | Catalog terms: 5 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 6–208 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Format | In person | In person |
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| Housing and supervision | Residential. Supervision and housing details: Unconfirmed — check official site | Non-residential. Supervision and housing details: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Location | Albion, Milledgeville, McMinnville, River Falls, Waterville, Bethlehem, Galesburg, 2026 campus assigned after admission; campus list can change by cycle | Nashville, Metro Nashville Public Schools and Vanderbilt University/VUMC |
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| Selection and application | Selection: Admission is limited and holistic. SSP reported about 700 participants admitted across every 2026 track, but did not publish Astrophysics application totals or a track-specific acceptance rate. Application materials: One required recommendation from a current school math or science educator; Optional second recommendation, preferably from a math or science educator | Selection: SSMV is limited to 26 students per grade. ISR is not academically selective but is school-restricted and rigorous. SHIRE considers grades, schedule conflicts and ISR-teacher input. REHSS is restricted to current ISR rising seniors. |
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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 2026-08-20 | 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 2026-08-22 |
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