1 year of high school experience... what camps?

[asheyman]

Hey guys,
I joined the forensics club this year (freshman in high school). I was able to compete in several competitions in the county. Looking through your posts, I have no clue which kind of camp to go to. Some of these (Texas, Florida, George Mason, Stanford) look really serious! What kind of experience do you think I should look for and which camps might be a fit? Thanks!

[oHIo]

Hey guys,
I joined the forensics club this year (freshman in high school). I was able to compete in several competitions in the county. Looking through your posts, I have no clue which kind of camp to go to. Some of these (Texas, Florida, George Mason, Stanford) look really serious! What kind of experience do you think I should look for and which camps might be a fit? Thanks!

Finding a camp that fits you is only something you can determine. You need to decide how you want to progress in forensics.

Basically, in camp you will prepare a piece for the coming and experience a series of lectures based on which event you've signed up for.

To start, what event do you normally compete in?

[asheyman]

Hey, thanks for the reply! I'm interested in impromptu - does this exist or does it fall under interp?

[DD4n6nerd11]

Hey, thanks for the reply! I'm interested in impromptu - does this exist or does it fall under interp?

Hmmm... that's a tough one. From my understanding, a lot of kids don't do impromptu as their first event. I guess that would train under the "Speech" Category (such as OO, Extemp), not interp. I'm really not that all familiar with Impromptu. I know that most camps, not matter what your level, are ALWAYS helpful, whether you're a novice or a national champion. I'd go and research some of the camps and make sure they have impromptu before you sign up if that's what you REALLY want to do.

[nirorivers6]

I'd say enter a camp doing OO or extemp, I'd say extemp just because its more closely related to impromptu than OO, and you can use many of the skills from extemp for impromptu. Then you can minor in impromtu, where you focus on only impromptu.

[asheyman]

Hey, thanks for the reply! I'm just wondering- which camps are good for my level.. I know a lot of juniors and seniors and national competitors go to some of these camps... Does each have a group for beginners? I dont want to go to a camp that is more tuned for advanced performers.

[nirorivers6]

don't worry, they have it leveled for people of different experince levels, but you also have "classes" with everyone regradless of skill. Which I think is best.

Well personally I would recomend GMIF (George Mason), but another good one is UTNIF. It also depends where you live. You can go anywhere, but you won't pay as much in travelling costs if you go to one near you.

I think the GMIF or UTNIF would be the best place for you. I know there's many others, but I really feel that those two are the strongest, especially for what you are looking for. You can PM or e-mail me if you want to discuss this more in depth.

[DD4n6nerd11]

I agree and disagree with nirorivers6. I agree with his statement that you should probably have extemp be your first event, as both as very linked and exempt tends to be a more nationally recognized event. I disagree however with his camp statement. The only reason why most people think GMIF and UTNIF are the best is because most people on these boards go there. They are the oldest forensics institutes, but not necessarily the most successful. FFI, NSF, and WKU have just as good of programs as those two, just not as old. I consider Interprod to be the best of them judging from their record in recent years with respect to National Tournament Champions (Harvard, Glenbrooks, Yale, Emory, etc). Nationals itself has not been too kind, but really after quarters it is almost a crapshoot. haha. Anyway, I personally recommend NSF for beginners. I've heard nothing but extremely positive experiences from there, from beginners and National Finalists alike.

GMIF and UTNIF are very solid options too though. You can't go wrong really with any of them.

[oHIo]

I agree and disagree with nirorivers6. I agree with his statement that you should probably have extemp be your first event, as both as very linked and exempt tends to be a more nationally recognized event. I disagree however with his camp statement. The only reason why most people think GMIF and UTNIF are the best is because most people on these boards go there. They are the oldest forensics institutes, but not necessarily the most successful. FFI, NSF, and WKU have just as good of programs as those two, just not as old. I consider Interprod to be the best of them judging from their record in recent years with respect to National Tournament Champions (Harvard, Glenbrooks, Yale, Emory, etc). Nationals itself has not been too kind, but really after quarters it is almost a crapshoot. haha. Anyway, I personally recommend NSF for beginners. I've heard nothing but extremely positive experiences from there, from beginners and National Finalists alike.

GMIF and UTNIF are very solid options too though. You can't go wrong really with any of them.

Just to address one thing, Interprod probably would have been suggested if the person in question was in interp and was very talent/had good deal of success given you need to send in a tape and only 16 kids are accepted.

[nirorivers6]

really you should check out the websites, and just kinda go with your gut. you'll get plenty of anecdotal evidence, and it really is rather difficult to judge the success of a camp. And a camp's "success" doesn't neccessarily mean its best for you. Check out their webites and talk to people you trust about them. What you get out of camp has more to with how much you put into it, since they are all fairly equal comparitively.