As we turn the calendar to 2024, it’s hard to believe it’s already time to plan for the summer. Colleges care about how you spend your free time: are you golfing and sunbathing at the beach, or are you cultivating your intellectual curiosity by delving more deeply into your areas of academic interest? The Common App has space for describing your summer activities, and some colleges, like Stanford and Georgetown, explicitly ask you to write supplemental essays about how you spent your summers.
When it comes to summer academic opportunities, not all pre-college programs are created equally. Most programs are not selective but can still be fruitful in helping students discover and pursue academic passions. Some programs, like the ones spotlighted below, are highly selective—requiring high grades and test scores, extensive application essays, and teacher recommendations—and can help students stand out in the competitive college admissions process.
TOP COMPETITIVE SUMMER PROGRAMS
Research Science Institute (RSI)
The highly selective Research Science Institute (RSI) offers a five-week, cost-free summer experience for 100 rising high school seniors on the MIT campus. The program includes a week of intensive STEM classes with professors, followed by a four-week research internship mentored by leading scientists. RSI provides access to MIT’s computing resources and hosts an evening lecture series with science and technology leaders. Participants engage in an immersive research cycle, delving into current literature, devising detailed research plans, and delivering conference-style presentations on their findings.
Summer Science Program (SSP)
The Summer Science Program provides a transformative 39-day experience for aspiring STEM researchers, fostering hands-on experimental science in a supportive community. Rising high school seniors (and exceptional rising juniors who meet the prerequisites) work in small teams with a faculty member engaging in real research projects and collecting and analyzing original data. The program offers six specialized tracks on different host campuses in Astrophysics (New Mexico State Univ., Univ. of Colorado Boulder, Univ. of North Carolina Chapel Hill), Biochemistry (Purdue Univ., Indiana Univ.), and Genomics (Indiana Univ.).
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Telluride Association Summer Seminar (TASS)
TASS is a free, six-week program for rising juniors and seniors offered on different college campuses each summer; 2024 locations include Cornell, University of Michigan, and University of Maryland. Though students from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply, TASS prioritizes applications from Black and indigenous students as well as students who have experienced economic hardship. TASS seminars “study how power and privilege shape social structures through courses in humanities and social sciences.” Students choose to apply to one of two seminars, either Critical Black Studies or Anti-Oppressive Studies.
Governor’s School
The National Conference of Governor’s Schools is a network of summer schools in 24 states for high-achieving students. Participants engage cost-free in advanced coursework and enrichment activities that foster intellectual growth and leadership skills. In California, the program emphasizes STEM disciplines, offering hands-on projects and research opportunities. New York’s Governor’s School focuses on the arts, nurturing creativity through workshops and performances. Meanwhile, Texas emphasizes a multidisciplinary approach, blending academic rigor with cultural and community engagement. Florida’s Governor School focuses on space science in partnership with the Florida Institute of Technology and NASA. Programs range in length from two weeks to six weeks, depending on the state.
Texas Tech Clark Scholars
The Clark Scholars Program is one of the few competitive summer opportunities that offer research mentorships in STEM and humanities areas alike, ranging from biochemistry to history, philosophy, and fine arts. In this seven-week research experience for rising seniors and rising college freshmen, students work 1:1 with faculty members in their field of interest in addition to attending weekly seminars and field trips. One of the most selective summer opportunities, Clark Scholars accepts only 12 students annually. Participants attend free of charge and receive a $750 stipend for their work.
CURATE A HIGH IMPACT SUMMER
Need help navigating the summer scene? Join our private counseling program at Top Tier Admissions where we help students curate a high impact summer and support their applications to strategic opportunities like these.
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Anita holds a BA in Philosophy from Princeton, where she is an alumni class officer and former interviewer, and an MA in English from Middlebury. At Princeton she also contributed her drive and competitiveness to the women’s lacrosse team, winning an NCAA Division I National Championship and three Ivy League Championships while earning national scholar-athlete academic distinction and the Connie McAllister athletic department award for “effort, selfless dedication, enthusiasm and heart.” She brings these qualities to her relationships with students as she helps to bring out the best in them.
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