Students

The 2022 GOALS Program takes place July 17-20, 2022.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis through June 5th, 2022!

Thank you for your interest in joining us as a 2022 GOALS scholar! Please read all of the  information on this page before applying. When you are ready you may apply via Google forms using this link.

Please note that this application requires two parts: 

  1. Student application via Google docs using this link.
  2. Support from an adult submitted using this link.  

Girls’ Outdoor Adventure in Leadership and Science is a free summer program for high school girls and gender-expansive youth to learn science hands-on. GOALS scholars learn how to design and conduct field-based scientific experiments while developing leadership and outdoors skills. The program this year includes a group camping trip with hiking that also allows participants to engage in hands-on learning and leadership activities. 

GOALS is an opportunity for people who have had that experience of walking into a classroom, a lab, or an outdoor space and finding that no one else looked like them. GOALS was created to increase opportunities for high school students who are from backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). We particularly encourage people of color, trans, nonbinary, genderqueer, and LGBTQ+ people to apply. If you’ve doubted that you belong in STEM or the outdoors, GOALS is for you.

GOALS wants to assemble a diverse team of students for our camping experience so we can all grow as scientists and leaders while exploring, sharing, and celebrating the many facets of our identities. These identities can include: 

  • Race and ethnicity,
  • Sexual orientation and gender identity,
  • Cultural background and upbringing,
  • Hometown and family dynamics,
  • Personality,
  • Socioeconomic status or class,
  • Languages spoken at home,
  • Education level of family members,
  • Immigration status,
  • Body size and ability,
  • Religious or spiritual identity, and
  • Other identities and life experiences.

The purpose of this application is for us to understand how you view yourself, the role you will play on this trip, and the role this trip will play in your life. There are no right or wrong answers! However, the questions below all have character limits. Our most successful applicants typically use almost all of the allotted space. 

ELIGIBILITY:

ALL of the following statements must be met in order to be eligible for GOALS. Please send us an email if you are unsure if you meet these requirements. You must: 

  • Be a rising junior or senior in high school (completing 10th or 11th grade in Spring 2022)
  • Identify with girlhood (we welcome all trans, cis, genderqueer, and non-binary youth)
  • Live within 35 miles of Davis, CA 95616
  • Be available for the trip, scheduled to take place from 7/17/2022 to 7/20/2022
  • Be interested in learning more about science and the outdoors
  • Want to work as a member of a team
  • Be able to hike with a small backpack

PARTICIPANT EXPECTATIONS: 

GOALS is an outdoors experience that will expose you to hands-on science projects. GOALS means working with other girls as a team. GOALS can be both a physically and mentally challenging program. We’ve designed the days so that all participants will be able to complete hikes and activities, with plenty of time for breaks to decompress. Some of the challenges you can expect include keeping a positive attitude, physical endurance , being away from home (and your phone) during the trip, getting along with your peers night and day, critters and dirt (your tent mate’s smelly socks), being asked questions that no one knows the answers to (welcome to science), and creative problem-solving, to name a few. While some of these may sound a little scary, we believe they are also what make the experience so much fun and such a great learning experience. We are confident that you will have fun and want to make the outdoors a bigger part of your life.

COVID-19 CONSIDERATIONS:

We take everyone’s health and safety into consideration and will be monitoring COVID-19 closely as our trip approaches. At this time, we expect to require proof of full vaccination. The program includes sharing a van to our campsite and sharing a tent with another scholar. Masking guidelines of the county and state of California will be followed. We may change elements of the trip and our COVID-19 policies as the situation continues to change and evolve. 

SUPPORT FORM

As mentioned above, your application requires two components: 

The support form can be filled out and submitted by any adult that knows you well and is not related to you. This can be a teacher, counselor, coach, spiritual leader, or any other adult not related to you. It is your responsibility to contact an adult support and make sure they submit the form by June 5th. This is the same due date for the student application. Applications will not be reviewed until both forms are submitted.

BEFORE YOU START

The application will be completed in Google forms. Once you have started the application, you will not be able to save it. This application asks you to complete short essay questions. Before you begin, type out the answers to these essays in a Word Document and save them. Since you are not able to save your answers in the application as you go, we do not recommend drafting your essays in the application. The essays are:

1) We want to get to know you! Tell us about yourself. You can include information about your background, interests, and hobbies, a particular challenge you faced, as well as anything else that you feel is important for us to know. (1500 characters max)

Your answer can also include something creative such as a poem, drawing, song, story, photo, or a short video. If you want to do something creative, email it to goals.ucdavis@gmail.com. If you choose to make a video, please include a YouTube link.

2) Why do you want to participate in this program? What are you hoping to gain and learn from the experience? For ideas of what you might experience on a GOALS trip, check out our website, www.girlsoutdoorscience.com for stories from past scholars and general information about the program, but do keep in mind that this year will be different as we continue to reimagine the program during the uncertainties of the ongoing pandemic. (1500 characters max)

3) Describe your interest in science. We have a broad view of science at GOALS that extends beyond what you might typically learn in the science classroom. Your answer can include something you learned in school or a scientific discovery that you think is important or interesting. (1000 characters max)

4) How will you contribute to the diversity of the team? (1000 characters max). We are looking to build a diverse team – diverse in terms of ethnicities, cultural backgrounds, hometowns, upbringing, personalities, identities and life experiences. Tell us what makes you unique!