[Tyler_Kaplan]

Essentially there is no correct or incorrect way to this. Every FRC team has their own culture, so you and your team really need to decide what works best for you.

But my personal opinion on the matter is that it should be structured and run more like a sports team. I would only have tryouts or an application process if there is a large enough group of students coming into the program. Also one of the biggest pieces of advice I would give, is that if at all possible move your meeting times back until around 6:30 for the weekdays. This is one of my favorite things that 1678 does. It allows mentors like me to be available for most meetings, because by then most people are off of work. If you want more mentor involvement, this is one of the biggest things I would do.
Also I've found that when you call yourselves a team, and have certain requirements to stay on the team, it makes the commitment from the students stronger.

So really you need to find out what will work best for your specific program, but I always fall on the side of making it stand out as not just an after school club.