| Application deadline | March 1, 2027 (2027 cycle) | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Cost | Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): $2,500; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Financial aid | Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): Need-based scholarship after acceptance: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. First come until funds exhausted; next-cycle terms unknown.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | 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 |
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| Expenses and aid conditions | Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): Residence hall, meals, linens, laundry, and local program transport: $0. Included in 2026 attendance fee.; Travel to and from West Lafayette: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Participant responsibility, including optional airport shuttles.; Need-based scholarship after acceptance: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. First come until funds exhausted; next-cycle terms unknown.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | 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 |
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| Stipend or pay | Catalog terms: Weekly salary: $500; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): Lost-wages stipend: $3,000; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Eligibility | Unconfirmed — check official site | Grade 12 (provider uses rising grades) | Grade 11 when applying; summer rising grade is one higher |
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| Additional eligibility | Citizenship: U.S. citizen; Residency: Enrolled at an Illinois high school; Requirement: Senior in 2027–28 or 2027 graduate; proof of insurance | Requirement: Be a rising senior in the announced cohort; Requirement: Complete the future application with transcript and accepted standardized scores if still required; Requirement: Recommended for 2026: three high-school math years and one chemistry or physics year; Requirement: Be available for the full residential week; Requirement: Follow Purdue housing, supervision, health, safety, conduct, accessibility, team, media, and travel rules; Exclusion: Assuming 2026 terms recur; Exclusion: Treating recommended coursework as a guaranteed admission threshold; Exclusion: Missing the full session or required application documents; Exclusion: Assuming STEP guarantees Purdue, Engineering Honors, scholarship, credit, recommendation, award, or admission advantage | 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 |
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| Session dates or duration | Starts July 12, 2027; Ends August 6, 2027; 4 weeks (2027 cycle) | Catalog terms: 1 week; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Catalog terms: 5 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Format | Unconfirmed — check official site | In person | In person |
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| Housing and supervision | 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 | Unconfirmed — check official site | West Lafayette, Indiana, Purdue University campus | Albion, Milledgeville, McMinnville, River Falls, Waterville, Bethlehem, Galesburg, 2026 campus assigned after admission; campus list can change by cycle |
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| Selection and application | Unconfirmed — check official site | Selection: Rolling review until limited sessions fill; waitlist afterward. No acceptance rate is published. | 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 |
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| Official sources | Source 1 · checked 2026-10-10 | Source 1 · checked 2026-08-20Source 2 · checked 2026-08-20Source 3 · 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 2026-08-20 |
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