YLI is a free, college empowerment program for high achieving Latino high school juniors, held virtually and at two top universities across the US. This highly selective program is designed to give young leaders the practical tools they need to successfully apply to top universities, have full access to scholarship and financial aid opportunities, and set a course for academic and career success. Attendees will enhance their leadership abilities and expand their professional networks by participating in college and career workshops and interacting with college students and professionals who serve as their mentors.

 

It is entirely FREE for students to apply and participate:

- HSF provides you housing: five days, on campus, in the YLI dorm at one of the following universities: University of Southern California or Loyola Marymount University

- HSF provides all meals on campus and program materials

- If you need transportation assistance, HSF will cover the cost of your roundtrip airfare, from your city to YLI

 

Student Eligibility:

-The Youth Leadership Institute is open to students of all races that identify as being of Hispanic Heritage

-Current high school junior at the time of application (Class of 2027)

-Must have an unweighted cumulative GPA above a 3.0 on a 4.0 (or equivalent)

-Currently attends high school in the United States or a US Territory

-Must be a U.S. Citizen, Permanent Legal Resident, or DACA

-Plan to enroll full-time in an accredited, public or not-for-profit, four-year university in the US after high school graduation

 

How to Apply:

-Create a myHSF Profile and under “Role” choose “Student”

-Select “High School Junior” under the “Class Level” section and create your account

-Verify your account by clicking “Verify my email!” in the email that HSF sends you

-Once you log into your myHSF profile, you will see the “YLI 2026 Student Application” on your Dashboard

 

Details for YLI 2026

YLI 2026 has two components, and students are required to fully attend both:

-Virtual component via zoom (two days)

-Followed by an in-person component on a college campus (five days) a few weeks later

 

IMPORTANT: To be eligible to participate in the five-day in-person component of the program, students must have fully participated in the two-day virtual component. Failure to successfully complete the virtual component via zoom will lead to dismissal and inability to participate in the in-person component. We do not have any other virtual component dates, and we are unable to make any exceptions.

 

VIRTUAL COMPONENT DATES (all required, via zoom)

-Code of Conduct Acceptance & Orientation: Wednesday, April 22, 2026, 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM PT

-Virtual YLI: Saturday, May 2, 2026 & Sunday, May 3, 2026, 8:00 AM – 6:30 PM PT each day (with short breaks throughout the day)

 

IN-PERSON COMPONENT DATES & LOCATIONS (required)

HSF will be hosting the in-person component of YLI 2026 at:

-YLI #1 (Loyola Marymount University): Wednesday, June 24, 2026 – Sunday, June 28, 2026

-YLI #2 (University of Southern California): Wednesday, July 15, 2026 – Sunday, July 19, 2026

 

Admitted students can only attend ONE in-person location:

-In their YLI application, students will be asked to note their preferred location for the in-person component of the YLI

-Within the application, students can also note if only one of the locations and dates works for their summer schedule

-Students admitted to the YLI program will be notified of which in-person location they were assigned to, via their YLI admission email

 

We encourage you to watch the YLI video below!  Questions? Please Contact Us