Application/Nomination FAQ

Answering Your Frequently Asked Questions

Course Schedule

Weekdays, 9:00 a.m. — 4:00 p.m.

Course 1: Monday, June 17 — Friday, June 28
Course 2: Monday, July 8 — Friday, July 19
Course 3: Monday, July 29  — Friday, August 9

Each class has a maximum of 20 students.

Tuition and Financial Assistance

COST OF TUITION: $2,370

Students are admitted solely on merit without regard to ability to pay. BFE commits to being financially accessible. If you have a real desire to be here, then we will work with you and your parents to help you get here.

BFE provides scholarships on the basis of financial need. Full and partial scholarships are awarded based on family income relative to the FPL Index. Review of the family’s last completed tax return, and a personal description of financial position determines the amount of a scholarship award.

The amount of available scholarship dollars each year is determined by donor support. Scholarships will be offered to eligible students on a first-come-first served basis until the scholarship fund is expended. Students seeking scholarships are encouraged to apply during Early Enrollment.

If an accepted student is in need of a scholarship but scholarship funds are exhausted, the student will be placed on the the wait list. Every effort will be made to generate funds that will allow the student to attend. The student may wish to fundraise on their own behalf. BFE has resources to help in that effort. Contact Jonathan Shanin for details.

Scholarships are non-transferable, will not be converted to cash, and have no cash value other than as payment towards Benjamin Franklin Experience tuition.

Advice to Students

Students who include three courses among their choices stand a better chance of receiving a course assignment. Listing multiple choices does not hurt a student’s chance of being assigned to the first-choice course. Listing only one choice does not increase a student’s chance of receiving that course.

The key quality the Evaluation Committee is looking for in an application is passion and perseverance for long-term goals. The goal itself doesn’t matter—students may excel academically, pursue music, sports, or arts, love nature, collect things—what’s important is that they show that they have grit in the area of their lives that is important to them. Exuberance, eagerness to learn, ambition, and tenacity are traits that we seek and value.

Advice to Nominators

Great candidates for the program exhibit emotional maturity, inherent curiosity, adaptability, developed coping mechanisms, and kindness. Students will be challenged and taken out of their comfort zones throughout our experiences. We rely on you to speak to a student’s emotional readiness for the program. Your nomination should convey your belief in the young person you are recommending for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Enrollment

APPLICATION/NOMINATION DEADLINES:  

Early Enrollment—March 4, 2019

Regular Enrollment—April 30,2019

EVALUATION COMMITTEE DECISIONS:

Early Enrollment—March 11, 2019

Regular Enrollment—May 3, 2019

APPLY EARLY!!  Benjamin Franklin Experience accepts eligible applicants on a first-come-first served basis. If 60 students are accepted during early enrollment period, the regular enrollment period will not open.

Only 60 Students Accepted This Summer

Benjamin Franklin Experience will accept eligible applicants on a first-come-first served basis. Highly-motivated students with a strong desire to attend the program, and/or those with specific course date preferences are encouraged to apply during the Early Enrollment period.

Eligibility Criteria

Complete applications and nominations will be reviewed by the Benjamin Franklin Experience Evaluation Committee, consisting of members from AidJoy’s Director’s Council*BFE’s Executive Director is not an Evaluation Committee member.

Each section of the application and nomination is assigned a point value by committee members. Points are combined to create a total application score. Applications in the 90% percentile and above will be accepted into the program.

How Courses Are Assigned

Course choices are assigned on first-come-first-served basis. Applicants are asked to indicate their course date preferences in the application (first, second, third.)

As students are accepted to the program, they will be placed in their first choice course. If their first-choice course is full, they will be placed in their second-choice course. If the second-choice course is full, they will be placed in their third-choice. If the student has not indicated more than one choice, or all the choices indicated are full, the student will be moved to the wait list.

Students who include three courses among their choices stand a better chance of receiving a course assignment. Listing multiple choices does not hurt a student’s chance of being assigned to the first-choice course. Listing only one choice does not increase a student’s chance of receiving that course.

Friends or siblings applying together who would like to attend the same course should send an email to Jonathan Shanin detailing the necessity and nature of their request.

Wait List

The wait list is comprised only of accepted* students who:

  • are waiting for a course assignment; and/or
  • are waiting for scholarship dollars to become available if the scholarship fund has been exhausted. In the event that scholarship dollars cannot be secured for students in need of aid, they will be accepted into the 2020 enrollment and moved to the top of the list.

*Students whose applications did not meet eligibility criteria as decided by our Evaluation Committee will not be added the wait list.