| Application deadline | Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Cost | Last year's cycle (2026): $700–$1,175; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Financial aid | Last year's cycle (2026): 2026 SYP need-based, named and sponsored support: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Eligibility, value and covered expenses varied; several sponsored Pathways were no-cost, while other awards were partial or location-specific.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Expenses and aid conditions | Last year's cycle (2026): 2026 Exploration enrollment deposit: $150. Historical nonrefundable per-course deposit; Pathway applications required no deposit.; Course-specific lab/material fee: $0–$1,500. Historical published range among examples; many courses had no added fee, while Advanced Build: Gaming Computer added $1,500.; 2026 SYP need-based, named and sponsored support: Amount: Unconfirmed — check official site. Eligibility, value and covered expenses varied; several sponsored Pathways were no-cost, while other awards were partial or location-specific.; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Stipend or pay | Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): 2026 internship stipend: $5,600; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Eligibility | Grades 6–11; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site | Grades 9–12; Grade timing: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Additional eligibility | Requirement: Use the student's current or most recently completed grade, not the upcoming fall grade; Requirement: Select a course whose listed grade band includes that grade; Requirement: For a Pathway, complete its selective application and supplemental-document requirements; Requirement: Meet any program-specific citizenship, academic, health or safety requirement; Exclusion: Current grade-12 students, early-middle-college students and secondary-school graduates are ineligible; Exclusion: Some Pathways exclude international participants or impose U.S.-citizenship rules | Ages 15–18; Citizenship: U.S. citizen or permanent U.S. resident; Residency: Located in DC, Maryland, or Virginia within commuting distance of the museum for the full program; Requirement: Currently enrolled in high school at the time of application; Requirement: Age 15-18 at the start of the internship; Requirement: Write and converse fluently in English; Requirement: Available for the fixed eight-week, 24-hour-per-week schedule; Exclusion: Applicants outside commuting distance; Exclusion: Applicants who cannot attend the full fixed schedule; Exclusion: Family members and friends may not serve as the required recommender |
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| Session dates or duration | Catalog terms: 1 week; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site | Last year's cycle (2026): Starts June 23, 2026; Ends August 14, 2026; 8 weeks; 2027: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Format | In person | In person |
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| Housing and supervision | Unconfirmed — check official site | Non-residential. Supervision and housing details: Unconfirmed — check official site |
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| Location | Houghton, Michigan, Michigan Technological University campus; supervised live-in or commuter participation | Washington, District of Columbia, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History |
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| Selection and application | Selection: Standard Explorations enrolled in order received while seats remained. Pathways used grades, short responses and supplemental documents; no portfolio-wide applicant count or acceptance rate is published. Application materials: Unofficial transcript, short responses and a recommendation/certificate/other evidence where required by the Pathway | Selection: Selective; applicants rank projects, but a ranked department or project is not guaranteed. Application materials: Four statement-of-interest responses of 250 words each; One confidential recommendation from a non-family recommender |
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| Official sources | Source 1 · checked 2026-08-21Source 2 · checked 2026-08-21Source 3 · checked 2026-08-21Source 4 · checked 2026-08-21Source 5 · checked 2026-08-21Source 6 · checked 2026-08-21Source 7 · checked 2026-08-21Source 8 · checked 2026-08-21Source 9 · checked 2026-08-20 | Source 1 · checked 2026-08-20Source 2 · checked 2026-08-20Source 3 · checked 2026-08-20 |
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