Georgetown University Summer Programs National Security & Intelligence Academy

Weekdays are long. Georgetown's sample schedule runs sessions from 9 a.m. to noon and again from 1:30 to 5 p.m., mixing lectures, off-site visits and lab-style activities, then sets aside 7 to 9 p.m. for the capstone project after dinner. From 9 to 11 p.m. there are optional student activities under residential life supervision until curfew.

Over the week you cover homeland security, international politics, cybersecurity, drug trafficking, arms proliferation, border protection, national security and artificial intelligence, and careers in the field. Georgetown also lists a visit to the International Spy Museum and talks from guest lecturers among the highlights.

The faculty member Georgetown lists is Lorne Teitelbaum, an adjunct associate professor at its Center for Security Studies, who has spent more than 33 years in intelligence and now teaches Intelligence Community leadership and ethics at the National Intelligence University. He started at the Central Intelligence Agency in 1991, spent three years as senior speechwriter for the Director of National Intelligence, worked in the Executive Office of the President and was recently Distinguished Visiting Professor of Intelligence and National Security at the US Naval Academy.

Andrea Mayer, curriculum advisor for Georgetown's high school programs, is also listed. Georgetown doesn't publish a class size or staff ratio for this academy.

You can apply if you're in grade 8, 9, 10, 11 or 12 in the school year before the summer and have at least a 2.0 GPA. Admission doesn't guarantee a place, though. Once you're approved you still have to register and pay the full tuition, and seats go first come, first served, so a late payer can miss out on a popular week.

The application asks for a 300- to 500-word personal statement on why you want to attend, plus a School Official Reviewer Form from a counselor (Georgetown's preference), advisor, teacher or principal who can vouch for your readiness and confirm your GPA. Homeschooled students can't use a family member or paid tutor for the form. Georgetown weighs your grades, courses, the reviewer form and the statement, decides on a rolling basis and emails a decision within about three weeks of a complete application. One application covers every Georgetown academy.

International students don't need a student visa (I-20, F-1 or J-1) or a TOEFL score, but Georgetown gives no visa help for non-credit academies and recommends English strong enough to follow technical discussions and argue a point.

In 2026 the academy cost $3,725 if you lived on campus, covering housing and 19 meals a week, or $3,095 as a commuter, with no housing or meals. Commuters can buy an optional meal plan from Georgetown Dining, usable only at Leo O'Donovan Hall. Georgetown hasn't published 2027 prices yet and says all rates are subject to change.

On top of tuition there's a $50 non-refundable application fee, waived if you apply by 31 January 2027, and international students pay a $45 health insurance fee. You pay the full tuition by credit card when you register.

Commuting comes with conditions. You must live with a parent, guardian or an adult they designate, within 45 minutes of campus at any time of day including rush hour, and Georgetown's decision on a commuter request is final.

Georgetown offers a limited number of need-based scholarships to admitted students, covering tuition only. You apply separately with two essays by 2 March 2027 and hear by the last week of March, and Georgetown says the Summer 2027 academy scholarship application is scheduled to open in late December 2026.

If you withdraw, how much comes back depends on timing, measured from the date Georgetown receives your request:

You leave with a Georgetown non-credit transcript showing Pass, Fail or Withdrawn. A Pass means you completed all the course and attendance requirements set by the Georgetown faculty. It isn't college credit, and the transcript doesn't record anything beyond that grade.

The more useful takeaways are the crisis-response simulation and capstone project you work on during the week, which give you something concrete to talk about. Academy students also get access to The Edge, a soft-skills learning platform run by Ascend Now.

Resident counselors live in every residence hall and supervise all students, with one on duty in each hall throughout the day, and evening activities run under residential life supervision until curfew. Commuters are assigned a resident counselor for their time on campus. Georgetown's Protection of Minors Policy covers everyone working with under-18s, and the Georgetown University Police Department patrols campus with full arrest power.

The rules on alcohol and drugs are strict. Possessing them, or even being around them, means immediate dismissal from the program and the residence halls. Outside office hours, families can reach the program staff member on duty through the campus police at (202) 687-4343.