• Classes Start May 3-8, 2026
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General Info, Policy & Procedure

The atmosphere & experience of friendship & fun is incomparable. Best value for money of anywhere for education. ~ Irene A.

READ THE POLICY AT A GLANCE

Read our policy and procedures as an entire document by clicking the above button.

Looking for something specific? Click on any of the topics below.

Application Procedure
Discounts, Scholarships, Rewards, Giveaways and Prizes
Registration and Class Attendance
Class Size
Class Changing - (aka "Switching Classes")
Housing & Meals 
Directions
Model Release
Conduct and Etiquette
Photographs and Recording
Smoking
Terms of Payment
Cancellations / Refunds
Liability

* Military Discount cannot be combined with any other offer. Valid for full tuition for military member only. Proper verification is necessary. Certain restrictions may apply. Ask MARS Registrar or Director for more details.

** A class is deemed viable if it has the minimum number of students enrolled to conduct that class.

The tuition fee includes instruction, hotel accommodations (double occupancy), all scheduled meals, special school-wide events and social functions. You must complete an application form to enroll. You must be at least 17 years of age to attend MARS, however if you will be under 18 years old at the time you attend the school, a waiver signed by a parent or legal guardian is required, and will be sent to them directly via email to complete. Barring any unforeseen issues or circumstances beyond the control of the school, your first choice instructor will be granted. However, you must choose an alternate, ‘second choice’ instructor on the application. If you are unwilling to do that, it is recommended you do not register for the event. Anyone NOT enrolling for the following year while at the school, must complete either the online PAY IN FULL registration, or the DEPOSIT with MONTHLY AUTO PAY option. If you need assistance, contact the MARS Registrar via email registrar@marsschool.com or phone 609.778.8077 to help you with registration.
Registration Deadline is MARCH 29.
PAYMENT IN FULL IS DUE BY APRIL 1 (for anyone not already paid-up).
Registrations taken on or after April 1, are non-refundable, and may be subject to class availability and/or single room upgrade charge.

Students attending MARS are eligible for a special “at-school discount” with application for the following year. Agreement and payment must be made prior to leaving the event. If taking advantage of early sign-up bonus, other awards or scholarships cannot be ‘added’ to the discount. However, awards or scholarships can still be used, with the one of highest value applied. MARS Scholarships awarded or won (either through MARS or other Affiliate), and/or discounts garnered through MARS, may not be combined. You may however, combine other affiliate scholarships (PPA, State organizations, etc), with any MARS scholarships, with a total maximum amount not to exceed the current school tuition. If by chance, you have won or received multiple MARS scholarships to the upcoming session of the school, you can apply the highest value of any one scholarship toward full tuition for the upcoming year. NOTE – This does NOT apply to Recruiter Rewards. We encourage anyone attending, who has attended in the past, to recruit, and bring, up to 15 first time students with them to the upcoming session. The recruiter will STILL receive $100 CASH for each one. Read more about the AMBASSADOR PROGRAM. Random prizes may be given away or raffled off at different times during the school-week. One (1) complimentary ticket is provided with each student registration. These “badge tickets” will be for prizes offered during lunch and dinner. Registering for the Alumni Dinner Program gets you a special ticket just for that event to win a $500 scholarship for the following year’s event. Only students are eligible for the scholarship drawing. Thursday night’s closing banquet offers multiple prizes and “big bundles”. Special tickets for this event can be obtained during the event. All tickets, for all functions and opportunities, will be drawn at random. To provide the greatest opportunity to as many people as possible, only 1 prize will be offered per winning ticket (per person), regardless of how many times that person’s ticket(s) are pulled. Winner will have the opportunity to keep what they’ve won, or forfeit the win with hopes of winning something else. At that point, a new ticket will be drawn for the same prize.
MARS is proud to offer a 10% OFF Military Discount*

School registration and Hotel check-in typically begin in the main lobby of the Hotel on Sunday (see online schedule for details). Everything is included in your tuition, but the hotel may require a credit card impression upon arrival to cover any other expenses you may incur during your stay above and beyond what is included with your tuition. Your paid registration is good only in the class for which you registered. Registrations are not transferable, and class hopping is not allowed.
Attendance will be taken each morning and each afternoon. Classes are required to stay and travel together as a class unit, unless otherwise directed by instructor or school. If you need to leave mid-week for any reason, please inform the school Registrar. Class attendance every day is mandatory to qualify for your PPA Merits and Continuing Educational Units. Students who are current members of PPA will receive two Service Merits and five CEUs for attending MARS. Please wear your provided name badges to all classes and events.

Class size averages 11-18 in most cases, and is on a first come, first served basis. Classes may run with fewer students or more students, based on what the instructor can handle. MARS caps classes at thirty. Applications are subject to acceptance by the Mid-Atlantic Regional School of Professional Photography. To ensure acceptance in the class of your choice, apply as early as you can. Late-comers may find the class of their choice already filled. If your first choice is not available, you will be automatically placed in your second choice class. Alternate placement is based on availability and is at the discretion of the MARS Board.

Based on class availability, and/or approval of the MARS Board —
from INITIAL Registration until February 28
one courtesy class change will be allowed within this time period. After a courtesy change, any additional changes, within that same time period, will be subject to a $50 admin fee per change.
March 1 until March 15
a $100 admin fee will be charged.
March 15 until March 30
a $250 admin fee will be charged.
April 1 until April 15
a $500 admin fee will be charged.
APRIL 15 through THE SCHOOL-WEEK
no class changes will be allowed. No excuses. No exceptions.

Accommodations at the Hyatt Place are included in your tuition. Rooms are double occupancy. Please list the name of your roommate on your registration form, otherwise one will be selected for you. Single occupancy rooms are available for an additional fee of $425.00, and may be mandatory if application is received after the deadline. MARS cannot take, nor guarantee, specific room requests.
Student/Attendee rooming change requests can be made up until March 1. Requests after March 1 but before March 15 will incur a $100 administrative fee. No room changes can be made after March 15. If you are registered as double occupancy, and insist upon a single room after March 15, based on hotel’s availability, you will be charged the $425 single room charge PLUS a $425 administration fee.
Full meal plans are available for Guest or Spouse for an additional $450. Individual meals can be purchased separately. We encourage you to get the FULL meal plan for spouse or guest. School meal plan is as follows – BREAKFAST  S-F, LUNCH  M-Th, DINNER  S, M, W, Th (Wrap Party), BRUNCH  F.
One additional adult (spouse, friend, etc) staying in your room, but NOT attending class, you will automatically be assigned a single room (if you have not opted for that already). If you do not buy a meal plan for your guest or spouse THEY WILL NOT BE ABLE TO HAVE SCHEDULED MEALS. Guests not on the meal plan, but caught eating, will be charged for the individual meal(s).
The rate for children in a room with two adults is $125.00 per child, and does not include meals. Meal plan for child under 16 is $350 for the week. Under-aged children must be attended by an adult at all times, and cannot attend any class.
NOTE ABOUT MEALS – Instructors and classes are encouraged to go on-location if the curriculum dictates. However, please keep in mind, there are scheduled times for meals. The hotel kitchen and staff work hard to prepare those meals at the designated times. But the kitchen and staff also need to cleanup and ‘reset’ for the next meal or function. You must attend during those times if you want to eat your included meal, so be mindful of your time while ‘out-and-about’. Understand that if you arrive after the designated end time for a particular meal, you will not be served. There are no refunds, compensations, or allowances for missed meals.

Whether you’re driving or flying, it’s easy to get to the Hyatt Place in Dewey Beach. If you are flying in and want to avail yourself of our shuttle service to and from the airport, please fly into Philadelphia International (PHL). Shuttle is ONLY available starting on Sunday. NOTE-the shuttle will pick up ALL arriving passengers on Sunday, so you may need to wait while this happens. We suggest trying to schedule your arrival time at 11 am on Sunday, as we want to try to be on the road toward the hotel by 1:30 pm. The return trip to the airport is easy. All guests will leave from the hotel for their flight home at around Noon on Friday. starting at Noon on Friday. The trip from PHL is about 2 hours, so please plan accordingly. Get DIRECTIONS HERE

All students and staff at MARS are asked to sign the Model Release Form . After completing, please email the entire form to REGISTRATION@MARSSCHOOL.COM

Please conduct yourself in a considerate manner with all instructors, fellow students, hotel staff, models, trades people, trustees, assistants, and guests. Harassment of any kind, especially sexual harassment, will not be tolerated. Common courtesy demands that you refrain from unnecessary talking or creating other disturbances during the lectures and demonstration. Please be considerate and save phone calls, texting and emails for after class hours. Shut off all phones and pdas during classroom tutorials.

Please remember that photographs that you create in a classroom situation, being done under the supervision of your instructor, are for tutorial purposes only, and are not eligible to be entered into competition, according to the rules of competition of both PPA and most state and local affiliates. Nor may you use any photographs taken in class for samples, publication or personal gain. Videotaping instructor class sessions is not permitted.

Smoking is not allowed in the hotel building or at other indoor events.

U.S. FUNDS ONLY! We accept checks, all major credit cards, and PayPal. You can pay in full with the application, but a minimum deposit of $325.00 is required at the time of registration to reserve your seat in class. MARS offers an EASY-PAY PLAN, featuring low monthly auto payments (see online registration form for details). A $4 monthly service fee will apply to all auto-payments. Final payment, or payment in full, is due no later than April 1. Payments received after April 1 are subject to a $50.00 late fee. Returned checks will be subject to a $35.00 service fee. Rejected, expired, or un-updated card info, resulting in declined autopayment, are subject to an $8 administration fee per occurrence, and/or may result in termination of discounts (if applicable). Confirmation notification and a statement of the balance due (if any), will be forwarded by the registrar. Deposits, Credit card processing fees, and penalty charges are not refundable.

—-Student/Applicant/Guest Cancellation
If a Student/Applicant/Guest must cancel enrollment/attendance at the school, cancellation must be done IN WRITING, otherwise any chance of a refund* will be forfeited.
—-Terms
1. Student/Applicant/Guest cancellation WITHIN 30 days of initial deposit AND more than 3 months before the start of school, MARS will issue a refund of monies paid to date minus a $99 administration fee PLUS any credit card processing and/or penalty fees assessed to that time.
2. Student/Applicant/Guest cancellation AFTER 30 days of initial deposit AND more than 3 months prior to the start of the school session, MARS will issue a a refund of monies paid to date minus a $425 administrative fee PLUS any credit card processing and/or penalty fees assessed to that time.
3. Student/Applicant/Guest cancellation occurring 3 months or less prior to the start of the school session, there will be NO REFUNDS. NO EXCEPTIONS. By this time a seat has been saved for you and other costs have been incurred based on your reservation.

ALL requests for REFUNDS or ALLOWANCES ARE SUBJECT TO MARS SCHOOL BOARD APPROVAL and DISCRETION. All credit card processing and penalty fees are not refundable. MARS will not reimburse students for any travel expense due to course cancellations or faculty replacements.

——-School/Instructor Cancellation
The Mid-Atlantic Regional School of Professional Photography reserves the right to cancel courses, make faculty changes, or to refuse admission to any student.
In the event of a class cancellation by the school, student/attendee will automatically be placed in their second choice class, or have the option to register for another class (subject to availability). Barring those options, student may opt for a 50% credit (of monies paid to date less service fees) toward the following year’s event. Depending upon timing, or extenuating circumstances, refunds of any amount may not be available.
If a class is viable**, and an instructor cancels on the school, there will be no refund to students in that class. In this instance, the student will automatically be placed in their second choice class or have the option to register for another class (subject to availability). The school will endeavor to find a suitable replacement instructor, (although no guarantee can be made).
NOTE-There will be NO REFUNDS if the student/attendee does not select a second choice, selects a second choice that is the same as their first choice, or is unwilling to be placed in their second choice.

The Mid-Atlantic Regional School of Professional Photography, it’s officers, trustees, or assigns, shall have no responsibility or liability for personal injury to any participant, or for loss or damage to any participant’s property, or for personal injuries or damage to the property of any other person resulting from the participant’s involvement in any workshop or with the program in general. Neither the school, nor the hotel, is responsible for lost, stolen or damaged equipment or personal property of any kind. MARS will not reimburse students for airfare, travel expenses, or other costs, due to course cancellations or faculty replacements. While we endeavor to make each class a rewarding experience for every student, MARS is not responsible, nor will it issue any refunds, adjustments or credits, of any amount, or any kind, for dissatisfaction with course, course content, instructor method, or overall subject matter. MARS shall have no responsibility for the acts, errors or omissions of instructors, staff, or other providers of service to participants during the school.