<p>culture and human behavior
the u.s. in world politics
cryptography
an introduction to philosophy
diplomacy
democracy: how much power should the people have?
politics and ideology (this seems like the best political one)</p>
<p>the list is so huge though…i might have missed other interesting ones. which ones are you looking at? and are you still applying to the ivy scholars thing?</p>
<p>Hmm… here’s a rough outline of my list:
Leadership for Social Change
Identity, Diversity, and Leadership
Leadership and the Civil Rights Movement (the civil rights movement is something I’m really interested in – see: Dylan, Bob; obsession with)
Ethical Dilemmas in Foreign Policy
A-Bombs, Milkshakes, and Love-Ins
Justice and the Family
Nationalist Politics and Conflict
Identity and Political Violence</p>
<p>That’s not complete though; I didn’t really look at anything other than the psych courses and poli. sci. stuff.</p>
<p>How long are the courses you’re interested in? One thing I’ve found is that, in general, the longer the course, the more interested in the topic the kids who take it will be, and thus the course will be a lot better. Week-long courses can attract people who aren’t really interested in or well-versed in the subject, and so discussions end up being pretty rudimentary. Also, in general, the less “sexy” the title/content of a course is, the more invested its students will be. For example, the students taking “International Political Economy of Development” are going to be pretty different from those taking, say, “The War on Terror.” Just something to consider. Also, longer and less “sexy” courses tend to attract fewer people, which generally translates to a more intimate, engaging class.</p>
<p>As for Ivy Scholars, I dunno. It’s crazy expensive, even for an Ivy League summer program – about $3,800 plus transport and books for 2 weeks, and they even require a laptop. A lot of times, that means that their standards are as much about ability to pay as about merit, and so the kids may not really be passionate, interesting individuals. (That’s one thing that I loved about TASP; since it’s 100% free for everyone, their standards are entirely merit-based.) Plus, I’m honestly not really sure what the objective of the program is. They call it a “high school leadership development initiative” – what??? It seems to be some sort of hybrid of public speaking, business skills, and political skills, almost a breeding ground for future important people. It doesn’t really seem like much of an intellectual experience though.</p>
<p>somehow, i missed every one of those courses when i was browsing through the list. the “ethical dilemmas in foreign policy” one sounds really interesting. that has more to do with what i’d like to study in college. the “a-bombs, milkshakes, and love-ins” and the civil rights movement courses seem all right, too. i’m interested in anything to do with the presidencies of fdr, jfk and lbj and the 40s-60s in general–see: wwII and the cold war era; obsession with. (: and okay, bob dylan is pretty great, too.</p>
<p>of course, your point about the titles and lengths of classes is correct. i’m definitely going to think carefully before i choose one to attend. and about the ivy scholars program, i’m a little confused myself. it is primarily about the applicant’s ability to pay, which is a major turn-off, and the kids will probably…not be what i want. and haha, the objective is really vague, you’re right. but anything compared to tasp is woefully inadequate. there’s no escaping that. i’m just trying to find the next best thing, which is proving to be painfully difficult.</p>
<p>in thinking about colleges, too, i’m not really interested in yale at all. i couldn’t care less about the name of a school. i just want something that feels like an intellectual community. places like amherst and swarthmore are becoming more and more appealing.</p>
<p>
And Brown isn’t?</p>
<p>[Summer@Brown:</a> Dates and Fees | Brown University Office of Continuing Education](<a href=“http://www.brown.edu/ce/pre-college/dates-fees.php]Summer@Brown:”>http://www.brown.edu/ce/pre-college/dates-fees.php)</p>
<p>Yeah, Brown is still really expensive. A bit less than Ivy Scholars, especially when you factor in the laptop, but no getting around that both are really pricey. Alas…</p>
<p>Also lessist, just a little FYI: I was really thinking that Swarthmore would really appeal to me, but when I visited, I didn’t really like it much. It felt somewhat elitist, and it seemed very set apart from any sort of surrounding, non-college community. It definitely felt possible to get stuck in the ivory tower of academy at the place. And, while Swarthmore’s name may not have quite the prestige of Yale, it’s still got enough prestige that some applicants are interested at least partially because of the name. Of course, it’s still a great school, and I know some people who are there now and really enjoy it, so you should make up your own opinions about the place.</p>
<p>I wish I could go and visit the campuses! All of my impressions are built only on CCers’ opinions and the schools’ websites and I am not sure if they are accurate enough. If you guys are able to visit the campuses could you send me some photos via emails?</p>
<p>neither offer significantly helpful scholarships, either. but that’s not a surprise. these types of programs are just revenue streams for the schools. thank god i’ve been working since freshman year. my parents will expect me to pay for at least half. </p>
<p>yeoman, i noticed that about swarthmore as well. while the elitist atmosphere can be irritating, it’s not nearly as bad as some of the top schools i’m thinking of. and i’m pretty good about ignoring that kind of thing overall, so long as i have a decent group of people to be around. and there will always be students who are attending a school just for its name. that’s unavoidable. when it’s really prevalent, though (i’m thinking ivy league), then it’s just aggravating. i don’t see that kind of ubiquity as a defining characteristic of swarthmore the way it is for some universities. i probably have a better chance of finding like-minded people at swarthmore than at, say, princeton. all in all, i’m still undecided about where i want to go for sure.</p>
<p>have you looked at deep springs at all? i can’t apply since i’m not a guy, but you might be interested.</p>
<p>and sure sunny. i’ll send ya pictures of my college visits this summer. i’ll be going around the east coast (brown, dartmouth, amherst, oberlin, etc.) so i’ll definitely let you know what i think.</p>
<p>I’ve heard of Deep Springs, but I don’t really see myself going there. I don’t know if it would be able to satisfy my desire to study a variety of topics across a range of disciplines, and, after going to a high school with less than 150 people total across all four grades, I don’t know if I could handle living in an even smaller environment. Basically, I think it’s a really incredible program, and I’m sure some people really benefit from it, but I don’t think it’s right for me. Also, if/when you visit Oberlin, lemme know!</p>
<p>Happy, you might want to find sources for college info other than just CC. Communities tend to homogenize themselves, and a lot of the info ends up being very hearsay-based. Some schools might have a way to ask current students questions online, which seems like a good way to get real answers. Also, this is more for already accepted students, but see if any schools would pay for you to fly out there and visit (be sure to tell them your numbers/special qualities when you contact them – they’re only going to pay for the cream of the crop to come visit). It seems unlikely, but a friend of mine got to fly all the way out to Pomona and visit for a long weekend, all on their dime, during some prospective – not even accepted yet – students weekend. (She ended up not liking it, but that’s not the point… 
)</p>
<p>
Really? Do all schools do that?</p>
<p>yeah, deep springs definitely isn’t for everyone. i would imagine that they’d be pretty flexible about staff and course issues, especially since so much of it is student run (which is what i like). but compared to a regular four year institution, i suppose it can be pretty limiting course-wise. and the size is certainly…daunting. i can see why people wouldn’t be comfortable with it. if i were a guy, i would apply though. hah. and yep, i’ll let you know when i plan on visiting oberlin. it’s not terribly far from me (at least, compared to some of the other schools i like), so i’ll end up visiting probably this summer.</p>
<p>sunny, you should absolutely try to find sources for college info other than cc. personally, i never turn to cc for admissions advice or to gain impressions of certain schools. i know what my transcripts, test scores, etc. look like. i don’t need another kid from high school telling me what my “chances” are. and there is really no way to get a real idea of what any school is like without visiting. i know that’s probably hard for you since you’re international, but listening to the opinions of other people about certain schools is just confusing and misleading. sometimes it hurts more than it helps.</p>
<p>i had a friend who got flown out to washu for a weekend without having to pay anything before she was even accepted. you might get lucky. but no, not all schools do that.</p>
<p>okay, wow, there’s a pretty decent website for college searching but cc keeps blocking it…? i’ll just email it to you, sunny.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Fun fact: DS gets a handful of apps from girls every year, mostly TASPers trying to make a statement. They review their gender policy on a pretty regular basis, I think yearly but don’t quote me on that. Anyway, I’ve heard that the competitiveness of these apps from girls is something that can add pressure on the powers that be in DS to change that policy. So you can apply if you want, though it is a lot of work for something you have no chance of being accepted for.</p>
<p>ah, i did read something about that. but of course the chances of deep springs changing its gender policy for just me is virtually nil, so i don’t see the value in attempting to apply. (: perhaps if i were to apply to the cornell telluride house later in college (since, like you said, i can’t do it as a freshman,) though, and the essay topics are similar enough, i might submit to make a point. but that is also extremely unlikely. teaching there one day would be interesting, too…but i think i’m just being silly now.</p>
<p>Ooh. Just saw this thread. One of my friends really wants to go to Summer@Brown, so I’m applying, but I’m looking at some other programs too. I remember seeing that Columbia has something on sociolinguistics, but I’m kind of leery about all of these because of the price. Sigh.</p>
<p>And lessist, I’m really interested in linguistics too, though I think our interests lie in different areas. I’m crazy about historical linguistics, and I love spotting things about languages as I learn them. Also, I saw your links to other linguistics blogs- have you checked out [Language</a> Log](<a href=“http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/]Language”>Language Log) ?</p>
<p>right, the price tags on these summer programs are pretty annoying. but brown seems to be what most people are interested in as an alternative, from what i’m reading on this thread (okay, a majority out of four people or so, hah.) they do have a wide variety of options, though, and they seem pretty interesting. </p>
<p>no, i’ve never heard of language log before. seems pretty neat, though. i scrolled through it really quick. and jhwu928, historical linguistics is fascinating, too. (:</p>
<p>Did anyone not get a rejection letter or an interview email?</p>
<p>I haven’t received anything. I will just wait a bit longer.</p>
<p>I live in Ohio (Fairly close to both the offices in Michigan and New York) and I got my rejection letter in the mail yesterday (Saturday). Happy, given that you’re an international student, yours will probably arrive a bit later.</p>
<p>i live about three hours away from cornell. i got my rejection letter on saturday. (: <- that is a pained smile, hah.</p>
<p>I know people in CA who got their letters. I live in Indianapolis and I am still waiting.</p>
<p>Hmm. International, so I’m not expecting mine for another week or so. I’m pretty much over TASP now, so it’s going to be irritating to get that letter.</p>