Camp Scholarships & Financial Aid

Financial Aid and Scholarships for Science-U Camps

Science-U strives to make our unique summer science camps affordable and accessible! Thanks to our partnerships with faculty, corporations, and organizations, we offer financial aid to families in need and award merit-based STEM scholarships to youth.

• Scholarships for Science-U are merit-based and require applications by students as well as teacher recommendations.

Financial Aid

Financial aid awards are made on a first-come, first-serve basis after registration. Our financial aid committee will meet regularly to make awards and will continue to make awards until funds are exhausted. Because of limited funds, a child can receive financial aid for only one camp each summer. However, more than one child in a family may receive a financial aid award each summer. Extended Care options cannot be covered with financial aid. If you are applying for financial aid, you are not required to submit payment at the time of registration.

The application process is as follows:

1. Once registration opens go to http://app.campdoc.com/register/psu/scienceu
2. Register your child online for his/her chosen camp and type in AIDREQUEST in the payment section to temporarily by-pass payment.
3. Once your registration for a camp is complete, an email will be sent to you with an electronic^* financial aid application. The application will request the following information and needs to be completed WITHIN TWO BUSINESS WEEKS:
   • Total household annual income before taxes
   • Total number of family members in household
   • Whether the child qualifies for free or reduced school lunches
   • Any additional circumstances you wish to be considered (such as medical expenses, job loss, etc.)
   • Optional: Parents may attach email a drawing or essay from the child explaining why they want to attend a Penn State Science-U camp.
   • Note: We are not collecting tax returns or paycheck stubs, so parents/guardians are expected to supply information that is true and accurate.

^{*The application is available in alternative formats. Please reach out to us to receive the application in a different format.} 

Scholarships

For 2026, the AAUW-State College Branch will provide scholarships for Science-U day camps to girls and young women in Centre County aged 11-17. Please click the AAUW-State College Merit-Based STEM Scholarship link for more information.

In partnership with Science-U, Penn State’s Center for Nanoscale Science has created a scholarship opportunity for motivated high school students from diverse backgrounds to attend the Science Leadership Camp. Please see the Science Leadership Camp Scholarship for more information.

For these scholarship opportunities, applications and STEM teacher/mentor recommendations are due on January 16, 2026.