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    In-person Program
    Open, closes 16 May 2027

    Summer Springboard Middle School Junior Intelligence Agency

    by Summer Springboard

    • 2027 program

    Over six days on Georgetown University's campus in Washington, DC, middle schoolers join the Junior Intelligence Agency, where they build cipher wheels, practice disguise and surveillance, and lift fingerprints and test inks in a forensics lab. The week includes a visit to the International Spy Museum and ends with a final mission in which teams investigate a robbery, brief student attorneys from the Middle School Trial Law course and testify as expert witnesses. Summer Springboard runs it, and students either live in the dorms or commute.

    Facts checked against the official page on 11 Nov 2026 · Editor: Sean StevensSean Stevens · SourcesSucceed has a commercial partnership with this provider.

    At a glance

    Official facts · checked 11 Nov 2026
    DatesOfficial
    2027: 4 to 9 July (Session 1), 11 to 16 July (Session 2)
    Who can applyOfficial
    Completed 6th grade of middle school by the program start date. 3.0 grade point average (or local equivalent). Aimed at students completing grades 6 to 8. International students show English proficiency by telephone interview or an accepted test score
    Total costOfficial
    2027: $2,998 residential, $1,598 non-residential
    Format and placeOfficial
    In person, University residence hall, Georgetown University, Washington, DC
    Length
    1 week
    Included / budget separately
    Included: accommodation, meals (All meals for residential students, lunch for commuters). Separately: materials and admin fee $99, airport transfer $95 each way, Unaccompanied minor escort $50 each way, Late payment fee $150
    Deposit and refunds
    Deposit $600. Cancel before 1 March 2027: 100% of tuition is refunded, except the $99 application fee, which is never refunded
    Financial aid
    Need-based scholarships from a limited pool cover up to 30% of residential tuition or up to 60% of commuter tuition
    Apply by
    2027: 21 February (1st Wave), 18 April (2nd Wave), 16 May (Final General Admission)
    Cohort and selectivity
    Applicants who meet the grade and GPA requirements are reviewed holistically against Summer Springboard's Essential Eligibility Criteria, and courses are filled first come, first served
    Credit or certificate
    Summer Springboard completion certificate and letter of recommendation from the professor
    Official page
    summerspringboard.com/teen-programs/middle-school-junior-intelligence-agency-georgetown-summer-springboard

    Get the key facts by email

    The dates, costs and how to apply, then 2 reminders: 2 May (2 weeks before) and 13 May (3 days before).

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    Middle School Junior Intelligence Agency

    Succeed's assessment

    Should you apply?

    Succeed

    In short

    A middle schooler who learns by doing and is ready for a closely supervised week in a Washington, DC dorm will get the most here. Families hoping for academic depth or credit will get less, because it's a short, hands-on sampler.

    • Why it's worth it

      The week builds to a real payoff, because JIA teams investigate the robbery at the center of the Middle School Trial Law case, brief that course's student attorneys and testify as expert witnesses, so the codebreaking and forensics get tested in a courtroom rather than just practiced.

    • What it asks of you

      The real commitment is cost and independence rather than schoolwork. A residential week plus flights and transfers adds up for six days on campus, and students share a college dorm room and keep and take their own medication.

    • Who should skip it

      Students who want to go deep in one subject, because the week moves through codes, disguise, fingerprints, digital security and testimony in about 15 hours of class, and it ends with a completion certificate and a recommendation letter rather than credit.

    What does a week of missions look like?

    Class runs from 9am to noon, Monday to Friday, which makes five three-hour sessions, and Wednesday afternoon adds extra academic time that may include an excursion or guest speaker. Students check in on Sunday and check out at 2:30pm on Friday.

    On the Georgetown middle school campus, afternoons start at 1:30pm with a recreational activity or an academic excursion, followed by an academic skills lab at 3:30pm where students work on their final projects, then free time from 5pm. Residential students have dinner at 6pm and supervised evening activities such as talent shows, trivia nights and karaoke from 7pm, and they're back in the dorm by 8:30pm for a mentor check-in at 9:30pm. Commuters' programming runs until 5pm Monday to Thursday.

    Who can apply, and how selective is it?

    Students need to have finished sixth grade by the time the program starts and hold a 3.0 grade point average or its local equivalent. Summer Springboard aims the course at students completing grades 6 to 8, and international students show their English through a phone interview or a test score such as a TOEFL iBT of 60.

    Beyond the grade and GPA bar, the application asks for short-answer essays and signed agreement forms, and Summer Springboard reviews each one against its Essential Eligibility Criteria. Those expect students to walk more than a mile and follow instructions in English, and a student with certain health conditions may need medical clearance and 12 months of stability. Summer Springboard publishes no cohort size or acceptance rate, and courses fill first come, first served.

    What does the week really cost?

    For applications made by 30 November 2026, the week costs $2,998 as a residential student or $1,598 as a commuter, and Summer Springboard raises tuition on 1 December 2026 without saying by how much. On top of that comes a non-refundable application fee that starts at $99 and rises to $149 after 21 February 2027 and $199 after 18 April 2027, and a $600 deposit is paid with the application.

    The residential price covers all meals, a dorm room, excursions, the course and evening activities. Commuters get lunch, the course, excursions and daytime programming, but no breakfast, dinner or evening activities. Summer Springboard lists no course supplement for this course, while the Medicine and Electrical Engineering courses at the same campus add $250.

    Flights aren't included. The optional airport transfer costs $95 each way, and Summer Springboard requires students aged 14 or younger who fly to travel as unaccompanied minors, which adds $50 each way plus the airline's own charges. Families also need health insurance, and the organizer suggests about $100 a week in spending money.

    Need-based scholarships cover up to 30% of residential tuition or 60% of commuter tuition from a limited pool, and they can't be put toward the deposit or application fee. Refunds shrink as summer approaches, as the table shows, and an optional Tuition Protection Plan lets you cancel for any reason up to the day the program starts.

    When you cancelWhat you get back
    Before 1 March 2027All tuition, except the $99 application fee
    2 March to 1 April 2027All tuition except the deposit and application fee, or 100% of what you paid as credit for a future year
    2 April to 1 May 202775% of tuition except the deposit and application fee, or 100% as future credit
    After 1 May 202725% of tuition except the deposit and application fee, or 75% as future credit
    After 1 June 2027Nothing, and nothing transfers to a future year

    How are students looked after on campus?

    Residential students share an air-conditioned double room with one roommate on gender-separated floors, and Summer Springboard staff live on the same floor. The residence halls have 24-hour security and key-card entry, Georgetown's security monitors the campus around the clock, and a mentor checks in at 9:30pm, after which students must stay in their rooms.

    Staff directly supervise classes and excursions. In free time, students can move within set campus boundaries in groups of three or more, and phones must be off during program activities. All staff pass background checks and training. Families complete a medical form and show proof of insurance before the start, and a sick or injured student is escorted to the nearest medical facility while parents are notified, with the family paying any costs.

    How do you apply?

    Applications go through Summer Springboard's enrollment page, and after 21 February 2027 the fee rises and some courses may close and move to a waitlist.

    1. Check that your session still shows as available on Summer Springboard's program availability list, since final general admission closes on 16 May 2027.

    2. Create an account, confirm the verification email, then start a new application and choose the Georgetown middle school campus, your session, this course and residential or commuter tuition.

    3. Complete the full application, including the short-answer essays, which takes about 30 minutes and must be done with the student present.

    4. Pay the $600 deposit and the application fee when you submit to hold the place.

    5. Expect a decision within 5 to 7 business days, after which further forms open, and return any follow-up paperwork Summer Springboard requests within 48 hours.

    6. Pay the balance in installments, which for applications before 10 March 2027 fall due on 10 March, 10 April and 10 May 2027, and return pre-departure documents by 1 May 2027 if you enrolled before 25 April.

    What should you do next?

    Decide between the 4 to 9 July and 11 to 16 July 2027 sessions, and between living on campus or commuting, ideally before tuition goes up on 1 December 2026. The student needs to be there for the roughly 30-minute application, so set aside time together with their GPA to hand and the $600 deposit ready.
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    Frequently asked questions

    No. Summer Springboard runs it on Georgetown's campus, and it states that the university doesn't control and isn't responsible for any part of the program.

    Summer Springboard hasn't named the 2027 instructor yet. It says its faculty come from area colleges, universities and professional forums and are chosen for subject expertise, and in previous years students met Jennifer Anderson, an Associate Judge on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

    Summer Springboard lets middle schoolers add more one-week courses for a longer summer, and Georgetown runs two back-to-back sessions, so a student could take this course one week and another Georgetown middle school course, such as Trial Law, the other. Enrolling in more than one program gets 5% off both, and it's worth asking the organizer how the weekend between sessions works.