Frequently Asked Questions

What is Advance Camp?

Advance Camp is a networking and training conference for anyone interested in learning more about political optics and logistics for Democratic causes.

The original Advance Camp was held in March of 2019 at Howard University and was geared towards building a deep bench of fresh talent interested in working on the wide open Presidential primary that cycle, drawing more than 1,550 attendees from all across the country, of which more than 100 went on to do advance on campaigns in 2019-2020.

What and when is the next Advance Camp?

Advance Camp 2022 will be held on the weekend of Friday April 22nd and Saturday April 23rd at the Smith Center, the arena on the campus of The George Washington University in Washington, DC, with a welcome rooftop reception at The Exchange at 1719 G Street NW on the Friday evening from 7 to 9 p.m., an all day conference on Saturday, which will be closed out by a networking happy hour in the conference space.

What are the goals of Advance camp?

The main goal is recruiting, training, connecting, and motivating the next generation of Democratic advance staff, particularly people of color, so that our team can put together the most visually compelling and impactful events.

A secondary goal is to attract Democratic political communications professionals from all across Washington DC to learn a few practical advance skills, even if they may not be interested in hopping to a full time advance job right away, they can still bring those tools of the trade back and apply it to their day-to-day job, whether that’s as a comms director on the Hill or at an allied advocacy group.

Will this help me get a job doing advance work?

A lot of attendees in 2019 were hired for full time advance positions via Advance Camp data we sent directly to Presidential campaigns because there was a serious supply and demand imbalance with more than 19 campaigns all hiring advance teams simultaneously at that time - it exceeded our expectations by a good bit!

In 2022, our goal is to make our attendees aware of the opportunities that exist in and outside of government and give them the information necessary to get involved, but realistically, it’s less likely to be a direct connection.

We will collect attendees’ interest in getting involved with opportunities in all of these various forms and then will pass along contact details to the best of our ability to folks who are making those decisions - but Advance Camp isn’t sponsored or organized by the administration and there are no guarantees of outreach or hiring implied from attendance.

How do we apply? What are the costs to attend Advance Camp?

All prospective attendees must fill out a short application as the first step if they are interested in attending. The deadline for application where we can guarantee you a pre-printed nametag has now passed, but we are still accepting applications to attend and will keep those open as long as we can (probably through Friday morning we’ll really have to cut it off)

Attending Advance Camp is free - your seat is underwritten by crowdfunding from the advance community and by a few sponsors that make this possible. You still must register on Eventbrite so we know who is attending after they apply.

We will still have substantial need-based travel stipends available to defray the cost of attendance for deserving attendees who otherwise couldn’t afford to come. If you would like to be considered for a travel stipend (which also covers your registration), please fill out the appropriate question during the application. If you’re in a position to help bring others to Advance Camp, you can donate directly at GoFundMe here.

What’s the schedule? where is Advance camp specifically in DC? What if I can only come on Saturday?

The welcome reception on Friday evening, April 22nd will be on the rooftop with a killer view at The Exchange at 1719 G Street NW from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. - there will be some food provided until it runs out and a cash bar (as in, bring literal paper money!)

Attendance at the Friday reception is encouraged but is not required to attend the conference. About 90% of folks so far have registered to attend the Friday night event.

On Saturday, our conference program will be held at the Charles E. Smith Center basketball arena on the campus of The George Washington University at 600 22nd Street NW Washington, DC 20052. The hours of the conference will be roughly 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a lunch break. An approximately 60-75 minute networking reception with beer, wine and soft drinks will follow the conference program in the Smith Center space, so the formal schedule will conclude around 5:30 p.m. An informal afterparty will then be at Victura Park wine & beer garden located at The REACH, the new-ish outdoor area of The Kennedy Center, with great Potomac views just a 10 minute walk from the conference site.

Who is organizing ADVANCE Camp?

Advance Camp is a 100% all-volunteer grassroots effort and is not affiliated with any permanent organization. It’s coordinated with a massive amount of help from friends and colleagues (with great appreciation!) by Doug Landry.

What are the COVID requirements?

You must be fully vaccinated and boosted to attend Advance Camp, with no exceptions. We’ll be following all current District of Columbia Covid guidance in place at the time of the event. George Washington University’s mask guidance is still in place, so all attendees will need to wear masks while in their seats (but not on stage or while drinking beverages during the concluding mixer). We recommend that everyone take a rapid test before joining the proceedings on Friday and of course, stay home if you are not feeling 100%.

What are the age requirements?

You must be 18 or over on the day Advance Camp starts to be able to join. The welcome reception and post-conference happy hour events are now available to those over 18, but obviously will not be able to drink alcoholic beverages for those attendees that are under 21.

Airfares are crazy - how can I reduce travel costs?

First, book the lowest airfare you find as soon as you can. Post-Covid, you can cancel almost any ticket for a future credit with no penalty. Make sure you check all three airports - DCA is closest, but both IAD and BWI often have cheaper flights and have public transit options to reach DC. If you can come earlier or leave later and see some more of the city, it might bring the cost of your flight down a bit.

For housing, try Hotwire.com or Priceline.com to find great deals on hotel rooms, in addition to checking AirBnB to see if that’s competitive.

I can’t come this year but want to know if there are future events - How can I get on the mailing list?

Click here to join our mailing list and be notified of future events!

I’m a member of the press. Can I cover Advance Camp?

Advance Camp is closed press this year.

How do I become a speaker or a discussion group leader?

Get in touch with us via email at hello@advancecamp.org.

I still have a question not answered here!

Drop us a line at hello@advancecamp.org and we’ll be right back in touch.