Ever since the first Congresses of the United States, young men have been serving the House of Representatives. In 1827, the first "pages" were hired... see historical information. The page program enlists fewer than one hundred high-school juniors from across the United States (even Puerto Rico, Guam, and U.S. Virgin Islands!) to live, work, and study as pages in the House of Representatives.

This program, which includes the House Page Residence Hall and the House Page School, is administered by the Office of the Clerk, under the direction from the Majority and Minority leadership and the U.S. House of Representatives Page Board. The practice of having pages dates back over 200 years. While there are over 400 Members of Congress wishing to recommend a young person for a page position, there are only about 72 page positions available. This narrows opportunity considerably. All students must be sponsored by a Member of Congress to become a page. Thus, the first step is to ask a Member of Congress for sponsorship. That Member will then have to contact the proper hiring authority to start the application process. Not every Member can sponsor a page every time.

1. Contact your Representative
If you are eligible to become a page, contact your Member of Congress here. Your Member may or may not be eligible to sponsor you. If not, you may contact Members outside of your district from your state, or the Speaker's Office for sponsorship.
2. Fill out an application
After receiving an application from your potential sponsor's office, which looks like this, fill out the necessary lines. You will need to provide all your basic info, social security number, parent/guardian info, extracurricular activities, work experience, autobiographical statement, three letters of recommendation, an official school transcript, and school report.
3. Send in your application and wait patiently
Once you've sent in your application, the process may take weeks to months before figuring out if you were accepted. Wait patiently for an acceptance letter and packet in the mail.

This varies from person to person. If you are wondering when you might hear, contact your Member's office. Some hear of their acceptance only weeks before their term starts!

Academic year pages can apply for one semester (spring or fall). The spring semester begins at the end of January and ends the first week of June, while the fall semester begins in September after Labor Day and ends at the end of January (one day before the arrival of the spring pages). Summer pages can apply for two three-week summer sessions. End of the summer pages who wish to stay for the fall semester can apply to do so at the end of their term. Likewise, fall pages who wish to stay they entire academic year can apply to stay for the spring semester. Not all pages can stay beyond their first term.

Once accepted into the page program, new pages must equip themselves with the necessary room supplies, clothing, school supplies, uniform, and spending money for life in D.C.

Room Supplies:
• Laptop computer (recommended, not required)
• Bed sheets/covers, pillow(s)
• Hangers (for clothes)
• A couple of towels for showers, etc.
• Bath mat for outside shower
Clothing:
• Clothing for warm/hot days (beware of D.C.'s humidity)
• Clothing for cold days (even below zero days!)
• Snow clothing
• Formal clothing for Washington Seminars, Dances, and Functions
School Supplies:
• Backpack (see-thru plastic backpack is recommended by page handbook, but not necessary)
• Pencils/Pens
• Notebooks, Binders, and Binder Paper
• Graphing calculator (for mathematics classes)
Uniform:
• Plain navy blue blazer (no stripes/designs)
• Multiple white dress shirts
• Grey slacks
• Black dress socks
• Black shoes (comfortable dress shoes recommended)
Spending money:
• $250.00 recommended for first month before pay
• Enough to last you through countless trips to Subway, Tortilla Coast, Starbucks, and Duncan Donuts

The page program is administered through the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives, although pages are selected by the Speaker of the House after nomination by Members of Congress. There are up to 72 page positions available each semester. Two-thirds of the positions belong to the Majority party in the House, while the other third belongs to the Minority. Members of Congress are rotated on a list so that all Members have the opportunity to nominate a page every few years. If one's Member of Congress is not eligible to sponsor (nominate) a page for the term they are applying for, one may apply for sponsorship through a different Member's office from his or her state. Pages are chosen in comparison of all applicants based on their academic performance, extracurricular activities, written essay, and letters of recommendation.

All applicants must have at least a 3.0 GPA to be eligible for the House Page Program and all academic year pages must attend the Page School. Candidates must submit a home school verification of the GPA based on the four major courses, no electives. Limitations may arise due to the House Page School curriculum. Applicants who were educated in programs without GPA calculations (i.e., home schooling) will be evaluated for qualifications through other means. However, comparable academic achievement will be required.

Applicants from schools with block schedules in which courses are completed in one semester should note that the House Page School runs a year-long curriculum, with one-half credit awarded for one semester's work in a course.

All applicants must be at least sixteen years old on the dated that they begin their page term. No exceptions.

Selection to participate in the page program is made at the sole discretion of the Speaker of the House and the Minority Leader, and may be terminated at any time, with or without cause and with or without notice.

Pages must be able to walk considerable distances each day, carry and deliver packages of up to twenty-five pounds, and answer phones speaking fluent English.

Class availability differs from year to year. Classes that have been available historically include: Honors Chemistry, Honors Physics, Energy and Public Policy, Physics with Calculus, Honors Algebra II with Trigonometry, Honors Precalculus with Trigonometry, Honors Precalculus, Honors United States History, Honors Economics, Honors International Relations, Honors Studies in Leadership, Honors Government and Politics, Honors American Literature and Composition, Honors British Literature and Composition, Honors Humanities/World Literature, Honors Intermediate French, Honors Advanced French, Honors Intermediate Spanish, Honors Advanced Spanish, Computer Applications/IT, and Yearbook. Students are required to pick five of these classes. Also, students will be mandated to attend a class called "Seminars in Washington Area History." This class takes place on weekends (usually Saturdays), and offers Pages unique educational experiences in the Washington, D.C. area. Field trips, conferences, speakers, readings, and discussions comprise the "text" of this Social Studies course.

School transfers differ with each school and person. Some students will be forced to take similar classes to "match-up" with their Page School classes. Others can take any classes they choose when they arrive home. Either way, pages need not worry about transferring back to their "home-school." All school transfer work will be done by the Page School's counselor, who will work with the page's school and the page to come up with a workable solution.

Pages are paid on the last Friday of every month. On an annual basis, pages receive $19,394. Since pages do not serve year-round terms, they will not make the total $19,394. Each month, the page's home will receive a pay-stub in the mail showing how much was paid to the page. The payments work out to be somewhere between $800 and $1,200 each month, depending on your state's tax codes. Pages are encouraged to get Congressional Federal Credit Union bank accounts (debit cards, credit cards, and ATM cards are available). Congressional FCU bank accounts are only available to House employees and can be held for the lifetime of the account's owner. Pages can have their payments deposited directly to their Congressional FCU account, or to their home bank account. In the capitol, there are CFCU ATM machines for withdrawl purposes. And, in the Longworth House office building and Rayburn House office building, there are bank tellers to help out pages with any additional banking services.
For more information on the Congressional Federal Credit Union, Click Here.

No one can answer this question for you! But, I believe these quotes from former pages speaks on behalf of how incredible the experience truly is:

"Life as a congressional page on Capitol Hill was fast-paced, exhilarating, monumental, memorable an by far the best experience of my life thus far. The opportunity to go to Washington at the age of 16 was an incredible opportunity. My experience as a congressional page has shaped the person I am and will greatly affect the person I will become." -- Bryan Chitwood, Oklahoma

"My service as a U.S. House of Representatives page changed my life. It deepened my desire to better this nation." -- Mary Jo Pham, Illinois

"The Page experience impacted and changed my life… all for the better." -- Bruce M. Lloyd, New Jersey

A former page who did not enjoy their time in D.C. and who was not deeply impacted by the program is difficult to find.