Frequently Asked Questions

Blueprint partners with select colleges to provide students with the highest quality pre-college summer programs. Each program enjoys the full support of its partner-school, offering students the opportunity to meet with admissions counselors, attend faculty guest lectures and explore life on campus.

Blueprint Summer Programs offers students the opportunity to truly prepare for success getting into and succeeding in college! You will be able to test-drive college life. Learn new material through one of our many exciting courses. Meet unique students just like you from all over the world. Get connected and inspired by our wonderful staff members. Develop some crucial college and career readiness skills. And truly gain a special and one-of-a-kind opportunity to learn in a hands-on and experiential way!

Pre-college programs have a bit of a common misunderstanding lurking around them, meaning – no pre-college summer program can guarantee you a spot at the university you are hoping to get accepted into. That was really never their purpose and we don’t want to misguide you in anyway. It is an experience to lay the foundation and get you ready for that next step in your life!

Now, with that being said, college admissions officers do look at how a student spends their summers and how prepared they are for college life – it can never hurt to feature a personal story on the common app about your time spent on campus at a pre-college summer program, detailing the skills you learned during your time with Blueprint.

That’s up to you! We have many students enroll for either the 1 or the 2 week program so there will always be plenty of action. Blueprint has one session at each campus, but you can choose the 1 or 2 week program. If you stay for 2 weeks, material covered in your major is fresh in week 2 so you’ll be discovering new things in the classroom, on new trips and with new projects!

The programs are not the same; in fact, each program possesses its own special personality and culture. Courses offered reflect academic strengths and facilities, and we work hand-in-hand with each school’s faculty and staff to ensure you have the best possible experience. Blueprint sets very high standards for each program and they all share several basic features.

You will get the same Blueprint experience no matter which program you choose. Find out what kind of college experience you think you would enjoy the most. If you have your heart set on a city school – then UCLA or Georgetown are great options. If you see yourself more on a rural campus – you could try out UVA or Lehigh. But if you envision yourself attending a big state school, UF is a perfect fit!

The majority of students do come alone, which is a fantastic way to practice a real college experience. But friends and family members are absolutely welcome and specific roommate requests are available during the registration process. Either way, we know you’ll have a great time!

Yes! Depending on citizenship, the most students need to attend Blueprint is a tourist Visa and be 14-18 years old. We also suggest students feel comfortable identifying as a B2 level english speaker or higher.

Unfortunately, we do not allow students to live off campus during the program. The concept of being a commuter student takes away from the special bonding moments that the students and staff get to have outside of class. The student would totally miss out on all activities, as well as, the opportunity to see what it actually feels like to have your own roommate and dorm room. It’s a huge component we feel is pretty vital as a part of the student’s experiential learning.

Yes, each program maintains a designated airport where we offer full airport pick-up and drop-off service for our students. Students may request Blueprint’s Pick-Up/Drop-Off service during the online registration process for an additional fee of $99 each way.

Arrival times vary by campus, please check your welcome pack for details. Blueprint’s designated airports are:

• Georgetown University: Reagan National Airport (DCA) Washington, DC
• Howard University: Reagan National Airport (DCA) Washington, DC
• Lehigh University: Lehigh Valley International Airport (ABE) Bethlehem, PA
• UCLA: Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) Los Angeles, CA
• University of Florida: Gainesville Regional Airport (GNV) Gainesville, FL
• University of Virginia: Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport (CHO) Charlottesville, VA

Students registering for two-week programs can take two separate courses – one each week – or extend their original course with a second week of all-new material. Interested in a Core 4 and a Careers course? Take both! Ready to dive deep into one topic? Go for it! You make the call, we make it easy.

While our courses are academic in nature, we strive to eliminate as much stress as we can from our programs, which means no tests or homework. As a result, we cannot award college credit – only a rewarding experience!

No matter what course you choose, you will be gaining an invaluable experience as you get exposed to some true college realities. Our daily College and Career Readiness Seminars, which every Blueprint student goes to, will give you a better understanding of what it means to plan for college and succeed. Reach out to our enrollment specialists at 877-415-1111 and they can help you choose a course that’s right for you!

Our instructors do not assign homework nor do they test their students. We encourage students to learn for the joy of learning.

You will cover new content in both weeks, but your experience may differ depending on the class size. If the class is large, during the second week the instructor will present new material but may review some material from week 1 to get new students up to speed. If the class is small, you will typically work on an independent project (with instructor oversight) during the second week.

Just like a real-life college student, you will reside and eat on campus. Blueprint partners with our host universities to offer our students the best experience possible. You’ll stay in a college residence hall with other blueprint students and staff (female staff live on the girls’ floor/wing and male staff live on the boys’ floor/wing) and enjoy three meals a day at a campus dining hall. We believe on-campus immersion is an essential part of getting a true taste of college life and getting to know your host university! For school-specific information, please visit our website.

All students have a roommate unless your family chooses the single room option during the registration process. Roommates are carefully selected according to age and interests. For students planning to attend with a friend, Blueprint offers the option to make roommate requests during the online application process.

We put careful consideration into pairing up our students. In May, we e-mail out our Student Blueprint questionnaire to registered families, which helps us get to know each student better. We match roommates by gender, age and similar hobbies/interests, and we try not to pair roommates that are signed up for the same course. You also have the option of requesting a specific roommate, if you happen to have a friend attending the same pre-college summer program as you.

For each week of your program we set up a $150 Road Trip Account for your student. This money covers student travel on program-wide field trips, admission to exclusive events and meals on those trips. For your student’s time on campus and for extra spending money on road trips, we do recommend sending your student with $75 per week for souvenirs, and anything else they might want to buy during the program.

Laptops are required for students taking Computer Science, but highly recommended for all students. General program guidelines govern laptop and cellphone usage during the program. And just like college, students are responsible for keeping track of their belongings.

In addition to dinner and some free time, evenings include scheduled activities so you can continue to have fun and engage with other students. Past activities have included relay races, movie nights, trash bag fashion shows, frisbee golf competitions and various sports and games.

We like to keep our students pretty busy so there is minimal free time but, it does exist! We do offer optional activities during an hour or 2 block of the day. If you are beat and just wants to go chill out in the common area or take a nap in your room, you’re are free to do so! Now we also have mandatory blocks of activity times where student attendance is necessary, though at most programs students will have a choice of activities to choose from during those times. We like to prevent the inevitable home sickness as much as we can and we do that by keeping students active and engaged.

Students are not allowed to leave campus unsupervised. However, if you have friends or family in the area who would like to “sign out” your student for a few hours to attend a dinner or other family-specific activity, then special arrangements can be made.

We work hard to create an accessible and low-stress environment for both our students and families. So that means no applications! You don’t have to submit transcripts, essays, or application fees. All you have to do is register.

Blueprint works with many non-profits every year to provide groups of underserved students the opportunity to attend one of our pre-college programs. We currently do not offer scholarships to the general public. However, payment plans are available, which enable families to divide their balance into monthly installments. Just select the “payment plan” option during the online registration process.

All that is due upon registering is a $500 non-refundable deposit. You may choose to pay the tuition in full at that point. But if you choose not to, you will be automatically enrolled in the payment plan option, which will divide your remaining balance into monthly installments that are automatically drafted on the 5th of every month, up until June.

We interview hundreds of applicants each year, and Blueprint staff members are the best and the brightest in their fields. Instructors include partner-school faculty, gifted graduate students, and talented professionals. Our national recruiting campaign draws people from across the country, ensuring that each team is comprised of experienced individuals dedicated to creating a safe and fun experience for every student.

When you get to a blueprint program, you enter the blueprint bubble! This means that we make every effort to ensure every student’s physical and emotional safety at all times. Classes, seminars and all other activities are specifically and exclusively for blueprint students. Each program has a director, health professional, instructors, ra’s and more, to ensure a fun and safe environment. Students may explore campus during their free time, but must notify a staff member and bring a buddy with them.

All students are required to have health insurance, along with a recent physical exam. Blueprint Summer Programs now offers travel and emergency medical protection through CampDoc.com for all students registered for a 2018 pre-college summer program. Prepaid deposits and non‐refundable travel arrangements can be covered in case of cancellation or interruption, sickness or injury, or in the event a parent loses their job. Participants will also be eligible for first payer coverage with no deductibles for emergency medical expenses during international and domestic trips, in case of sickness, accidents, evacuation, and transportation home.

Registered families may purchase this protection plan by signing in to their CampDoc.com account. Please visit www.campdoc.com/protection-plan to review the full plan details. If you hav any questions, please email protection-plan@campdoc.com or call 734.636.1000.