Are The National Youth Leadership Forum Programs Worth It?
Are you a high school student trying to decide if the National Youth Leadership Forum is a good opportunity for you? The National Youth Leadership Forum is an intensive summer program. It’s designed to introduce high school students to various careers. Currently, the National Youth Leadership Forum offers programs for high school students in six fields.
During these programs, students will learn more about these specific careers:
- medicine
- national security
- law
- business
- engineering
- media and journalism
Students apply to attend an institute in the career field of their choice.
The National Youth Leadership Forums are held on college campuses in the United States during the summer. During the National Youth Leadership Forum, students attend lectures and events, and take field trips.
Students are able to meet with prominent people in each field. They live in the college dorms on campus during the sessions. Each program lasts approximately one week.
In order to apply to National Youth Leadership Forum, you must be nominated. You can be nominated by a teacher at school, a leader from a local business or organization, a counselor, or somebody else. A nomination means that somebody thinks you would be well-suited for the program. If a student is not able to secure a nomination but still wants to attend, they can nominate themselves.
The National Youth Leadership Forum is open to all students. Anybody who is a high school student can register for and attend a NYLF program. There is no particular GPA, class rank, extracurricular activities, or classes needed in order to attend. This makes the program unique because it does not discriminate or exclude certain groups of people. Any person is welcome to attend and benefit from the intensive programming available during the National Youth Leadership Forum. Some people may believe that the National Youth Leadership Forum is an exclusive and privileged event, but this is not the case.
So what are some of the benefits of attending the National Youth Leadership Forum?
The first benefit is that you will learn about careers that you are interested in. Each program is designed to help give you more information about the career field you choose. This is a great way to decide if a particular career is a good fit for you.
Medicine program – Students attend lectures with doctors, visit a medical university campus, and also will be able to practice with diagnostic tools.
Law program – students meet with lawyers and current members of the FBI, visit court rooms, and take part in a Supreme Court mock debate.
Business program – students attend workshops and take part in a corporate entrepreneurial session.
National Security program – students with members of various United States military and federal agencies. They will also visit and learn more about major landmarks such as the Pentagon, and learn special tactics and strategies.
Engineering program – students learn about design, robotics, and more. They will get hands on with their own computer programming.
Media program – students will produce a magazine and learn about news reporting in today’s world.
This is a great way to meet professionals in the career field you are interested in. You will be spending time listening and meeting to people who have spent their lives in this field. You will be able to get their advice, listen to their stories, and ask them questions. This is a good way to network and build connections with people. You may be able to find a future internship or job based on the people you meet during the National Youth Leadership Forum.
The National Youth Leadership Forum is held on college campuses. This session provides insights into college life and life on campus. If you are nervous about attending college, or if you are interested in learning what living on campus is like, a benefit is that this program will give you insights into college life.
So what are some of the drawbacks of the National Youth Leadership Forum?
It is quite expensive to attend. While prices vary depending on which session you choose, programs can be over $3,000. This is not an affordable expense for many families. Included in this fee is housing, transportation during the program, two meals each day, and materials for the program. Students are responsible for paying for their own lunch, as well as for their transportation to the college campus site.
The programs are quite short, at around one week long for each program. Students may find this length perfect as an introductory way to learning about a career. It is not a long enough period of time to go in-depth to learning about a career field. Students may prefer an internship or volunteering if they want more depth of information.
There are many things to consider when thinking about attending National Youth Leadership Forum.
- If you have a specific career in mind that is offered and that you want to learn more about.
- If you are interested in spending time on a college campus for the summer.
- If you want to network with career professionals and spend time with other students your own age, then the National Youth Leadership Forum may be a great choice for you.
If you don’t have the money or the time or the means to attend, don’t worry – there are plenty of other ways to find out about these careers as well.