Anonymous wrote:Totally agree with the comment that just because a program costs money doesn't make it "pay to play." Additionally, many of these programs provide scholarships for those who can't afford to pay full price. My DC participated in the Yale Young Global Scholars program a few years ago and loved it. All of DC's friends from YYGS got into highly-selective colleges although I (of course) don't think YYGS was the reason for that. However, when DCUM posters talk about colleges looking down on selective (but sometimes costly) summer programs, i don't think that's necessarily the case.

Nearly all of the programs that cost money are considered pay for play. YYGS is an exception to that rule.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC did a summer program at BU in DC's prospective major. There was some small degree of selectivity, but we mostly chose it because it cost less than similar programs. We knew it wouldn't be particularly helpful to DC's application, but it was still well worth it:
(1) It was a kind of gift for DC's hard work--DC got to live in Boston for a summer, which was pretty cool. (DC paid about a quarter of the cost.)
(2) It let DC further explore/confirm DC's prospective major, which helped shape DC's college list toward schools strong in that major.
(3) It gave DC a chance to assess BU and whether DC might like a more urban school.
(4) It gave DC to try a mini-version of college, complete with demanding courses, dorms, and a meal plan. This also helped DC in assessing which colleges to apply to because DC had some semblance of experience.

TLDR: I don't think it helped DC's application much (although DC did well), but DC's summer program was helpful in other ways.

You think sending your kid to college program to take academic courses during the summer is a “gift” for all their hard work during the school year? What is wrong with relaxing, hanging out with friends, working, etc. during the summer? No wonder these kids are so anxious and miserable.

Ignore this comment - my DC also did a program at BU last summer (the RISE program, which was pretty selective) and had an absolute blast. Made amazing friends, loved having a summer of freedom in Boston living in the dorms, and came home with a much better sense of what they wanted to study and where they wanted to apply to college. The negativity on this board never ceases to amaze me. Just move on.

Anonymous wrote:DC did a summer program at BU in DC's prospective major. There was some small degree of selectivity, but we mostly chose it because it cost less than similar programs. We knew it wouldn't be particularly helpful to DC's application, but it was still well worth it:
(1) It was a kind of gift for DC's hard work--DC got to live in Boston for a summer, which was pretty cool. (DC paid about a quarter of the cost.)
(2) It let DC further explore/confirm DC's prospective major, which helped shape DC's college list toward schools strong in that major.
(3) It gave DC a chance to assess BU and whether DC might like a more urban school.
(4) It gave DC to try a mini-version of college, complete with demanding courses, dorms, and a meal plan. This also helped DC in assessing which colleges to apply to because DC had some semblance of experience.

TLDR: I don't think it helped DC's application much (although DC did well), but DC's summer program was helpful in other ways.

You think sending your kid to college program to take academic courses during the summer is a “gift” for all their hard work during the school year? What is wrong with relaxing, hanging out with friends, working, etc. during the summer? No wonder these kids are so anxious and miserable.

DC did a summer program at BU in DC's prospective major. There was some small degree of selectivity, but we mostly chose it because it cost less than similar programs. We knew it wouldn't be particularly helpful to DC's application, but it was still well worth it:
(1) It was a kind of gift for DC's hard work--DC got to live in Boston for a summer, which was pretty cool. (DC paid about a quarter of the cost.)
(2) It let DC further explore/confirm DC's prospective major, which helped shape DC's college list toward schools strong in that major.
(3) It gave DC a chance to assess BU and whether DC might like a more urban school.
(4) It gave DC to try a mini-version of college, complete with demanding courses, dorms, and a meal plan. This also helped DC in assessing which colleges to apply to because DC had some semblance of experience.

TLDR: I don't think it helped DC's application much (although DC did well), but DC's summer program was helpful in other ways.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your child is interested in singing or theater, I highly recommend the summer program at Oklahoma City University -- Kristin Chenoweth is a graduate of OCU. The program is run by the director of opera and musical theater, and for the Ultimate Summer Experience, they do a full length musical. The students come away with SO MANY skills. It is the best program. My DD attended that and one at Carnegie Mellon, and OCU blew CMU away in terms of skills.

Did you compare it to MPulse? Michigan’s musical theater program is considered to be one of the best, if not the best in this country.

https://smtd.umich.edu/engagement-outreach/youth-programs/mpulse/

If not, hard to say OCU is the best.

PP didn’t say OCU is the best. They said they highly recommended it and that it was much better than CMU, which they did have experience with.

I guess I misread this comment. “The students come away with SO MANY skills. It is the best program.”

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your child is interested in singing or theater, I highly recommend the summer program at Oklahoma City University -- Kristin Chenoweth is a graduate of OCU. The program is run by the director of opera and musical theater, and for the Ultimate Summer Experience, they do a full length musical. The students come away with SO MANY skills. It is the best program. My DD attended that and one at Carnegie Mellon, and OCU blew CMU away in terms of skills.

Did you compare it to MPulse? Michigan’s musical theater program is considered to be one of the best, if not the best in this country.

https://smtd.umich.edu/engagement-outreach/youth-programs/mpulse/

If not, hard to say OCU is the best.

PP didn’t say OCU is the best. They said they highly recommended it and that it was much better than CMU, which they did have experience with.

Anonymous wrote:If your child is interested in singing or theater, I highly recommend the summer program at Oklahoma City University -- Kristin Chenoweth is a graduate of OCU. The program is run by the director of opera and musical theater, and for the Ultimate Summer Experience, they do a full length musical. The students come away with SO MANY skills. It is the best program. My DD attended that and one at Carnegie Mellon, and OCU blew CMU away in terms of skills.

Did you compare it to MPulse? Michigan’s musical theater program is considered to be one of the best, if not the best in this country.

https://smtd.umich.edu/engagement-outreach/youth-programs/mpulse/

If not, hard to say OCU is the best.

Iowa Young Writers Workshop
Kenyon writers workshop
Bard College

^Do any, not so any. Sorry for typo.

Anonymous wrote:If your child is interested in singing or theater, I highly recommend the summer program at Oklahoma City University -- Kristin Chenoweth is a graduate of OCU. The program is run by the director of opera and musical theater, and for the Ultimate Summer Experience, they do a full length musical. The students come away with SO MANY skills. It is the best program. My DD attended that and one at Carnegie Mellon, and OCU blew CMU away in terms of skills.

So any of these programs offer anything for kids interested in the tech side of theater? That’s my DD’s area of interest.

Bank of America has a great competitive summer program.

Any good programs for a kid who is interested in math, econ, finance?

VA Governor school’s are great and free-plus impressive to UVA et al. Have to apply and be accepted. Many different subjects offered:

https://www.doe.virginia.gov/teaching-learning-assessment/specialized-instruction/governor-s-schools/summer-residential-governor-s-schools

Anonymous wrote:Totally agree with the comment that just because a program costs money doesn't make it "pay to play." Additionally, many of these programs provide scholarships for those who can't afford to pay full price. My DC participated in the Yale Young Global Scholars program a few years ago and loved it. All of DC's friends from YYGS got into highly-selective colleges although I (of course) don't think YYGS was the reason for that. However, when DCUM posters talk about colleges looking down on selective (but sometimes costly) summer programs, i don't think that's necessarily the case.

Yes depends on whether they have a competitive admission process to attract the most talented students - the UCSB summer mentorship program is expensive and hard to get into but offers invaluable research experience with close mentors on many fields - especially helpful for students who eventually want to pursue graduate studies. It also helps prepare HS students for the demands of college applications as it is a similar process.

From what I have heard though - There are some summer programs that are just revenue collection ops for the universities. So it is important to research ones that will serve your DC well

Totally agree with the comment that just because a program costs money doesn't make it "pay to play." Additionally, many of these programs provide scholarships for those who can't afford to pay full price. My DC participated in the Yale Young Global Scholars program a few years ago and loved it. All of DC's friends from YYGS got into highly-selective colleges although I (of course) don't think YYGS was the reason for that. However, when DCUM posters talk about colleges looking down on selective (but sometimes costly) summer programs, i don't think that's necessarily the case.