Academic Fee Waivers

Fee Waiver Information

National Park Service regulations allow academic institutions to obtain a waiver of park entrance fees, provided the visit is for academic or scientific purposes, and the resources or facilities that the group intends to use support those purposes.

A school group does not automatically qualify for a fee-waiver just because the visit is educational. Academic groups must demonstrate that they qualify for the waiver by meeting each of the three requirements listed below.

 

Academic Fee Waiver Requirements

Entrance fee waivers are granted only if each of the above three criteria are met.

Requirement #1: Eligibility

Applicants must prove they are a bona fide academic institution by submitting the following: 

1. A statement from an accredited educational institution confirming that the group is visiting for the purpose of providing academic credit based on a curriculum. 

2. A statement of accreditation or recognition as an educational institution from a legitimate international, national, regional, state, or local authority for the applicant's location. 

Requirement #2: Relevance 

Applicants must provide a written statement verifying that the visit supports specific curriculum for which academic credit is offered. 

Requirement #3: Educational Purpose

Relevance to park resources must be described. (In other words, explain why your activities must be done at the national seashore.) Applicants must provide a written statement identifying the park resources and/or facilities that will be used to support the educational purpose of the visit, and how they are relevant to that purpose. 

 

Home Schools

Home schools may be granted fee waivers based on the course of study following the procedures above, as long as they meet their state’s requirements for home schools. 

 

Other Groups

Not-for-profit groups such as service, civic, fraternal organizations, scouts, 4-H, Road Scholar etc., do not typically qualify for an academic fee waiver.

 

Application

All applications must be submitted a minimum of four weeks in advance to allow for processing time. Applications submitted less than four weeks may not be granted due to inability to verify documentation.

If you arrive at the park without the approved fee waiver, you will be required to pay. We cannot issue fee waivers upon request at the entrance station.

Download the Academic Fee Waiver Application here. [PDF 209KB]

Submit all completed applications and required documentation to:

Email

e-mail us

Mail

Padre Island National Seashore
Attn: Academic Fee Waiver
P.O. Box 181300
Corpus Christi, TX 78480