Students interested in applying to Cape Cod Collaborative’s Advanced Studies and Leadership Program gathered at the Wareham Middle School auditorium Thursday night.

Both the kids and their parents got a chance to ask Director Gil Newton about the program, which began in 2004, and takes place on the Massachusetts Maritime Academy campus.

The program runs June 26 to July 15, and daily lessons provide students with hands on study that is full of demonstrations and interactive work, with equipment the students would not ordinarily have the opportunity to use.

Newton said there are 18 spots for Wareham middle schoolers, and that they should view it as “a reward for all of the students’ hard work and achievements.”

Securing one of the 250 spots in the program is extremely competitive, Newton said, and each town is given a specific number of spots based on population size.

Interested applicants must have excellent grades and come with teacher recommendations.

Those accepted are housed with students from other towns, in order to give the kids a chance to interact with others and to build relationships.

The program offers courses ranging from engineering and navigation studies to improvisational comedy and publication writing.

“In the past, every single student named a different favorite class,” Newton said. “I often walk at least ten miles a day from class to class to see students, and they all enjoy the program.”

Tuition for the program is $1,300, but the town is also given three scholarships for deserving students.

Within the last week, an additional scholarship has been offered for a Wareham student.

“I wish I had gone to something like this when I was in middle school,” said middle school guidance counselor Dylan Bissonette.