<p>Question: Is the National Young Leaders Conference Program (NYLC), that includes a six-day visit to Washington D.C. and is sponsored by the Congressional Youth Leadership Council (CYLC), a scam or not? They are asking for a tuition of $1,700, which sounds awfully high. Most of the students in my orbit praise the National [...]</p>
<p>I am very pretty sure it is not.</p>
<p>I have two friends who have attended the occasion and they have told me that it was a phenomenal experience. However, I am unsure of the exact name, but it had something to do with Young Leaders and D.C. so I’m pretty sure it’s legit!</p>
<p>Is it a scam? Probably not. I was invited last year, and there is a pretty impressive letter “signed” by the president and you get a fancy certificate or something like that.</p>
<p>Will it be educational? Depends. I’m sure that the trip will be lots of fun and you’ll make new friends and be at least a little inspired…</p>
<p>Will it look impressive on a college application? NO. Really. It won’t. It’s kind of like getting emails from selective colleges - makes you feel good, but doesn’t mean that you’ll get in or that someone who didn’t get it will be accepted over you. It just means that you were in the lucky position for them to get your contact info, and you have 2k to shell out.</p>
<p>Is it worth the money? Well, depends. You could probably travel to DC and have tours for a lot less, but some people find that the overall experience (ie rooming, meeting people, traveling w/group, etc) is worth it.</p>
<p>In my opinion (note the disclaimer)…</p>
<p>“The Emperor Has No Clothes”.</p>
<p>A woman at work was so excited her child had received an “invitation” to this. Of course my Daughther (and everyone else’s, right?) had received it and tossed it. How often do you get “invitations” to accept credit cards? I get “invitations” to allow a bank in Nigeria to wire me funds so that an ex-pat can come get them in the U.S…all they need is my banking data. </p>
<p>Funny, I was about to answer how having a NON college educated single parent (me) really does play a part in a child not having the same “guidance” that can be garnered by college educated parents (cough cough, the woman at work), and “everything I learned about college I learned from College Confidential” (true story), but - sometimes common sense is even better.</p>
<p>No, it is not a scam. We knew kids who went and loved the experience which is why we allowed our DS to go a couple years ago when he was invited. The experience was invaluable. It was not just ‘touring’ the DC sites. He had A LOT of work to do - mock congressional sessions, meeting with legislators, team meetings, homework… to name a few things. They had them pretty busy from morning til night with not a lot of free time.</p>
<p>If you have a child who is interested in that sort of thing, I think it is a good experience to send them. (We made DS earn his trip though, so he did a lot of car washing and lawn mowing around the neighborhood.)</p>
<p>When my son was invited I called the guidance counselor at school to ask about it. She stated that it absolutely was not a scam and in fact it was a real honor to be invited. I assumed all his friends had also been invited when in reality they were not.</p>
<p>Many students at our school receive the invitation. The fact that the program does not offer any scholarships or aid exposes the grey area of non-profit/for profit status. Someone is making a huge salary, if not an outright profit from this program. </p>
<p>Colleges do not see it as an exclusive, impressive honor. It is a fine, though expensive, summer exposure to government and D.C.</p>
<p>Fauve has it exactly right. It will not help your resume or college admissions - it is a nice program where you will meet new people, visit new sites, and gain exposure to new things. Almost like summer camp … but no campfires, and you wear nicer clothes.</p>
<p>yes it is a scam they are for profit agency that buys your childs information from other scholarship forms or marketing agencies . they are not selective they are a summer camp, the same holds true for young Americans, and the like, please check out the organization before yu lay down cold hard cash. it is better spent on their college tuition.</p>
<p>According to my research CYLC is a non-profit, but: [A</a> real close-up look - phony Washington D.C. ‘honorary’ tours for youth - No Sacred Cows | Common Cause Magazine | Find Articles at BNET](<a href=“http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1554/is_n3_v19/ai_14685572/]A”>http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1554/is_n3_v19/ai_14685572/)</p>
<p>and</p>
<p>[url=<a href=“http://jammiewearingfool.blogspot.com/2009/02/man-sues-congressional-youth-leadership.html]JammieWearingFool[/url”>JammieWearingFool: Man Sues Congressional Youth Leadership Council Over Inauguration Scam]JammieWearingFool[/url</a>]</p>
<p>No it is not a scam. I went to this program two years ago and LOVED it! I got to meet kids from all over the country, and we did a lot of interesting simulations (kind of like mock UN stuff). It was great, expensive but great.</p>
<p>It’s not a scam. You don’t pay to get a picture in a book or some type of honor certificate, you pay to go on a trip to a specific location when you actually learn a lot of leadership tools and get to sightsee through places like D.C. (or wherever it may be hosted at). It sounds cheesy, but I attended and loved Jr. National Young Leaders Conference (middle school) and National Young Leaders State Conference.</p>
<p>So yes, it’s expensive (they have full tuition/half tuition scholarships for those that show need) and though not necessarily an “honorary distinction” but it really is a great outside of the classroom experience.</p>
<p>Sounds like a good time and good learning, but (from link below):
- Looks like a non-profit feeding money to a for-profit company, founded by the “non-profit” principals. 2) Misleading as to the uniqueness of the invitation. A quote from the article: ‘The letters didn’t tell them they would be among 9,000 students attending one of 24 “special” tour weeks a year conducted by (CYLC), that it had rented their names and addresses from a national survey firm or, according to press reports, that at least two D-average students and one expelled gang member are among those so “honored.” Each year the council sends out more than 100,000 letters to students.’</p>
<p>[A</a> real close-up look - phony Washington D.C. ‘honorary’ tours for youth - No Sacred Cows | Common Cause Magazine | Find Articles at BNET](<a href=“http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1554/is_n3_v19/ai_14685572/]A”>http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1554/is_n3_v19/ai_14685572/)</p>
<p>A real close-up look - phony Washington D.C. ‘honorary’ tours for youth - No Sacred Cows | Common Cause Magazine</p>
<p>We have multiple teenagers so we were able to watch the same organization slightly change their name over the years, probably to keep the what I would call “semi-scam” going.</p>
<p>Many of you who posted on this thread apparently did not read the full “Ask the Dean” column that launched it. If you do read it, you’ll see that NYLC is NOT a scam–that it’s a well-run organization whose programs typically receive positive feedback from participants. BUT it is NOT an honor either. (The guidance counselor cited above who said it is must not be well informed.) It is also not a resume-booster at college-admissions time. So if the cost is not prohibitive and the goal is not enhancing college admissions odds, then these programs can be worthwhile.</p>
<p>The problem is with the use of the word “scam.” This is a real program, and for a certain amount of money you spend a week in DC meeting with students from around the country and going to visit different places around DC, including the monuments and congressional offices. Some students meet their congresspersons or aides. I think the word “scam” comes up because NYLC invitations are slightly misleading in that they imply it’s an honor and that you have been chosen in some special way, whereas it’s a program that looks for students to pay to attend. In our neighborhood the invitations seem to go out to both honor students and some who are flunking out. “Expensive” is a much better word than scam. I think if you have never been to Washington DC and can afford the hefty price tag for a week, it could be valuable. As some of the previous posts say, it can be a great experience. But I also know some people who did not enjoy it much.</p>
<p>Nope, I attended it twice and it’s a really great program. I’ve made great friends, saw some awesome sights, learned a lot about leadership, and got some new perspective on life. Some of the things you get to do are incredible.</p>
<p>There was, however, some drama at the Inauguration version of the program that I went to. No one was expecting those insane crowds because it was set up before Obama was closed to getting elected, so there was some separation and delays.</p>
<p>But it’s really a great program that if you have the time and money for it, I would recommend it.</p>
<p>while it isnt a scam, and not everyone receives an invitation, anyone can nominate someone to be invited, you could ask someone for a nomination, so its basically open to anyone, and holds no prestige</p>
<p>that being said, i enjoyed my time and made some pretty good friends</p>
<p>I am a parent like you who would not hesitate to spend all he has for the sake of my children (like many of you looking into this program), received a nomination from the school principle (was excited to receive such a nomination for my daughter) she was 7 at the time. paid about $1200 for a one week camp (I am a physician) -did not have to pay for travel and accommodation- since we were about an hour form the camp.
Anyway … bottom line of the experience … I would NOT do it again … simply put it -a very very very expensive camp- like any other day camp … only difference is the name, the feeling of being special and being held in a hotel.
I would not call it a scam but it really feels like it is (at least from my perspective)
My sincere advice is :find some thing else for you precious child
Best of luck
Salam</p>
<p>Last summer daughter attended the conference focus Medicine in
Boston. She had an enjoyable experience with educational and social
value to the conference. Young people need to get out and see
things on their own, listen to adults talk about a focused subject matter,
and become comfortable relating to a range of attendees. </p>
<p>She was happy to be registered for the Washington conference this summer. The
last time she was in Washington she was two years old. I trust it will be an
enjoyable experience with certain educational value. I find these conferences
to be sort of a Happening for young people. </p>
<p>I do not see the conferences as resume builders for college applications.</p>
<p>Just my .02</p>
<p>David</p>
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<p>It’s indeed a well-run organization. The organization sole purpose if to serve its founders and insiders very well. Not calling it a scam depends entirely on one’s definition. Parting unsuspecting families from their hard-earned money with the complicity of naive GCs is hardly what legitimate organization should do. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, NYLC can count on an endless supply of fools and victims, as well as people attempting to defend this obscene organization and its utterly worthless “products.”</p>
<p>The only worthwhile element is the increase in the bank accounts of those shameless promoters.</p>