How to Apply to ACADEMY | Youth Academy

Getting Started on Your Application

Applications for 2024 are now open!

Use the buttons below to get started or to return to your application.

If you have attended ACADEMY in the last 4 years, the application system is the same that you used to apply the last time. If you are a new student to ACADEMY, please use an email address that you will check often as this will be the email address ACADEMY will use when notifying students of their application status, acceptance, payment information, class selection and last minute reminders. Please do not use student school emails as sometimes those accounts are deactivated over the summer.

When you return to the system, press the 'Account Login' button and enter in your log in credentials. If you have forgotten your login credentials, press 'Account Login,' then 'Forgot Your Password?' If you have futher trouble with the system, please send us an email: youthprograms@sou.edu.

New Students

100% completion of Application. Please note: ACADEMY Staff will not review applications if there is missing information. A complete application includes all of the components listed below. Please be certain the essay/student statements are complete.
1. New student statement prompt: Describe things you have done to enrich your life. You may include information about special interests, leadership, activities, and awards. What makes you a good fit for ACADEMY? (Essay must total 400-500 words for application to be considered.)
2. 2nd Prompt: Tell us about a time in which you encountered a big problem and how you worked to overcome it. Explain what happened and who helped you along the way. How did this experience shape your belief in the power of collective effort, and how do you think it aligns with ACADEMY’s 2024 overarching theme of 'Minds Unite'? (Essay must total 400-500 words for application to be considered.)
Most recent report card with at least a 3.4 GPA or equivalent in whatever form your school reports progress at school. If you have not received a spring report card yet, a fall report card will be adequate. Please upload this into the appropriate spot in the application.
2 confidential letters of recommendation. One must be from a current teacher or school administrator. The other letter of recommendations can be from a religious leader, scout leader, 4H leader, coaches and/or extra-curricular teachers etc. Letter of recommendations may not be from family members, family friends or from the student themselves.

During the application process, you will fill out the name and email of 2 recommenders. This will help us know who to expect a letter from. It is the student's responsibility to ask the recommender to complete the recommendation form and the system does not automatically inform them of the request of recommendation. After you submit your application to us, we will send you email updates as we receive your recommendation form(s). You can login any time and view if we have received them or not. A green check mark means we have received it and a red X means we have have not yet received it. Not to worry, it is not an indicator that recommender gave you a positive or a negative recommendation.

Please download the recommendation PDF form here and give to your recommender to fill out. They are welcome to handwrite or type on the form. The filled out recommendation forms can be scanned and emailed to us at youthprograms@sou.edu or mailed to us at SOU Youth Programs 1250 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Please note that these recommendations are to be confidential and should not be sent to us from the applicant or their family. Recommendations should come directly from the recommender.

Returning Students

100% completion of Application. Please note: ACADEMY Staff will not review applications if there is missing information. A complete application includes all of the components listed below. Please be certain the essay/student statement is complete.
1. Essay Question: Tell us about a time in which you encountered a big problem and how you worked to overcome it. Explain what happened and who helped you along the way. How did this experience shape your belief in the power of collective effort, and how do you think it aligns with ACADEMY’s 2024 overarching theme of 'Minds Unite'? (Essay must total 400-500 words for application to be considered.)
Most recent report card with at least a 3.4 GPA or equivalent in whatever form your school reports progress at school. If you have not received a spring report card yet, a fall report card will be adequate. Please upload this into the appropriate spot in the application.
1 confidential letter of recommendation. This letter must come from a current teacher or school administrator. Letter of recommendations may not be from family members, family friends or from the student themselves.

During the application process, you will fill out the name and email of 1 recommender. This will help us know who to expect a letter from. It is the student's responsibility to ask the recommender to complete the recommendation form and the system does not automatically inform them of the request of recommendation. After you submit your application to us, we will send you email updates when we receive your recommendation form. You can login any time and view if we have received them or not. A green check mark means we have received it and a red X means we have have not yet received it. Not to worry, it is not an indicator that recommender gave you a positive or a negative recommendation.

Please download the recommendation PDF form here and give to your recommender to fill out. They are welcome to handwrite or type on the form. The filled out recommendation forms can be scanned and emailed to us at youthprograms@sou.edu or mailed to us at SOU Youth Programs 1250 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Please note that these recommendations are to be confidential and should not be sent to us from the applicant or their family. Recommendations should come directly from the recommender.

Junior Counselors

100% completion of Application. Please note: ACADEMY Staff will not review applications if there is missing information. A complete application includes all of the components listed below. Please be certain the essay/student statement is complete.
1. New Student Essay (New to ACADEMY Only): Share an experience where you have been a mentor or when you were positively impacted by another mentor. What qualities and traits are important to you in this role? (Essay must total 400-500 words for application to be considered.)
2. OR Returning Student Essay (Returning to ACADEMY Only): In what ways have your experiences at ACADEMY shaped you? What do you want to bring to ACADEMY this year? (Essay must total 400-500 words for application to be considered.)
3. Essay #2 for all Applicants: (Essay must total 400-500 words) Imagine a world where there are no limits to what you can achieve. In your essay, describe a dream or aspiration that you hold dear and explain why it's important to you. Then, articulate the steps you believe are necessary to turn that dream into a reality. Additionally, discuss how being part of a collaborative community, like ACADEMY, can help you pursue and achieve this dream. How do you envision your dream aligning with our camp's ethos of 'Minds Unite' and the idea that 'together, anything is possible'?
Most recent report card in whatever form your school reports progress at school. If you have not receieved a spring report card yet, a fall report card will be adequate. Please upload this into the appropriate spot in the application.
1 confidential letter of recommendation if you have participated in ACADEMY in any capacity previously, 2 for brand new students to ACADEMY. This letter must come from a current teacher or school administrator. Letter of recommendations may not be from family members, family friends or from the student themselves.

During the application process, you will fill out the name and email of your recommenders. This will help us know who to expect a letter from. It is the student's responsibility to ask the recommender to complete the recommendation form and the system does not automatically inform them of the request of recommendation. After you submit your application to us, we will send you email updates as we receive your recommendation form(s). You can login any time and view if we have received them or not. A green check marks means we have received it and a red X means we have have not yet received it. Not to worry, it is not an indicator that recommender gave you a positive or a negative recommendation.

Please download the recommendation PDF form here and give to your recommender to fill out. They are welcome to handwrite or type on the form. The filled out recommendation forms can be scanned and emailed to us at youthprograms@sou.edu or mailed to us at SOU Youth Programs 1250 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Please note that these recommendations are to be confidential and should not be sent to us from the applicant or their family. Recommendations should come directly from the recommender.

Senior Counselors

100% completion of Application. Please note: ACADEMY Staff will not review applications if there is missing information. A complete application includes all of the components within the application. Please be certain the essay/student statement is complete.
1. Senior Counselor Essay: (Essay must total 400-500 words). Think about a time when you and your friends or classmates had to solve a problem or complete a project together. Describe the situation, what your role was, and how everyone worked together to succeed. How did this experience make you feel, and how do you think it relates to ACADEMY’s 2024 theme?

Important Dates and Deadlines

Priority Application Deadline – April 15
General Application Deadline – April 30
Tuition Assistance Award Notifications – After June 1
No applications accepted after May 27. Applications received after April 30 will be added to our waitlist and reviewed as space becomes available.
We will notify successful applicants beginning in early spring.