For incoming students selecting a Frog Camp, there are plenty of choices ranging from Costa Rica to Colorado.

This year, there’s even a mystery destination.

The 24 students who will opt for the mystery destination won’t find out where they’re going until they arrive at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.

“It kind of symbolizes what the college experience is for students,” said Trung Nguyen, assistant director of transitions.

Nguyen, who works with Frog Camp, said Mystery Destination is a camp for the adventurous student.

“College is a lot of unknowns, and Mystery Destination is a great camp that gives incoming students an idea of what college is like,” he said.

In honor of Frog Camp’s 20th anniversary, Student Development Services (SDS) wanted to add something new to the lineup of Frog Camp options.

John Mark Day, director of first-year experience, said Mystery Destination was added because students coming to college need to adapt to new situations.

“New students face constantly changing situations and have to learn ways to be resilient in unfamiliar situations,” Day said. “What better way to start that than by putting them on a plane to a completely unknown location?”

Although students, facilitators and faculty will not know the location, specific staff within SDS will as they start to plan and coordinate activities for the camp.

“Keeping the location a secret is a fun challenge,” Nguyen said. “What helps is very few people know the exact location or the schedule for the camp.”

Incoming student Laura Gilligan said Mystery Destination would allow her to explore a new place while meeting new people.

“College is about going through new experiences and meeting new people through those experiences, so I think Mystery Destination would get me out of my comfort zone to try new things and not worry about what is next,” Gilligan said.

Incoming first-year Callie George said although the trip would be a good fit for certain people, she said she would rather be fully prepared in advance.

“I would love to step out of the box and travel somewhere new if I could at least get a hint on where I was going,” George said.

Regardless, SDS staff say prospective students have been reacting positively to the new camp so far.

“We have shared the camps at numerous Mondays at TCU, and students and parents have expressed extreme excitement about the idea of not knowing until the day of camp,” Nguyen said.

Incoming students will be able to register for Frog Camp at my.tcu.edu.