Exploring Your Options (EYO)

Exploring Your Options (EYO) is a week-long summer engineering camp run by WYSE at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's Grainger College of Engineering for students entering 9th through 12th grade. It is designed as a survey of engineering for students who want to compare several fields before choosing a college major. During the week, campers rotate through lessons and hands-on activities built by eleven departments, including aerospace, agricultural, bio-, chemical, civil, electrical and computer, industrial, materials, mechanical, and nuclear engineering, along with computer science. Along the way they work with current engineering students and faculty members. The camp is part of a WYSE effort to broaden participation in STEM and welcome students from groups that have traditionally been left out of the field. In 2026, the camp ran in two sessions on the Urbana-Champaign campus, June 21 to 27 and July 12 to 18, with both residential and commuter options. Residential campers stayed in a campus residence hall. The 2026 fee was $1,500 for residential campers and $750 for commuters, plus a $25 deposit. The residential fee covered housing, meals, materials, activities, and a camp T-shirt. Partial and full Trail Blazer scholarships were available.

Open to students entering 9th through 12th grade in the fall after camp, and WYSE does not make individual exceptions to grade ranges. International students may attend residential sessions only. The camp page describes EYO as invite-only. WYSE camp applications usually open in February and ask for contact details, two years of self-reported grades, extracurriculars, two camp choices, and a personal statement, followed by an educator recommendation form. Priority deadlines usually fall in late March. The 2026 sessions are full.