<p>I will be attending the CU High School Summer Program in July to study Molecular Biology and Genetics. I would love to become a virologist and discover cures for things like AIDS, and I believe this is a great start. Columbia University is my top school, and I am absolutely excited about it!</p>
<p>So! Have you attended the program? Are you going this year? Do you know any info on the program? Did you like it? Have you taken the same course I will be taking (Genetics & Molecular Biology)? Were the courses hard? How was the environment? Was it a lot of fun? Have you participated in this program and been accepted to Columbia?
You don't have to answer all these questions, but I would love a general opinion about it.</p>
<p>Any comments would be greatly appreciated! =]</p>
<p>You might want to do a search on this - many previous post on the Columbia Summer Program with many very mixed reviews. Some of these have been positive but many overwhelmingly negative. Some of these posts are in the Columbia Forum but I have seen others in the Parents Forum and the Summers Program forum - check them all out.</p>
<p>Well I just attended the Summer program in NYC this summer and I was also in the Molecular Biology and Genetics course. If you have special interests in the fields you have mentioned, I think you really have a high chance of enjoying the program. Basically, the course is divided into two parts. The first part is the laboratory part in which you do experiments and sometimes write a lab report for them. The second part is the lecture part in which one of Columbia’s professors lectures you in a classroom as s/he would do an undergraduate.</p>
<p>I mean, I really enjoyed the program and all and especially the NYC experience was wonderful. But it all again depends on your personality and your interests to benefit/enjoy the program or not.</p>
<p>By the way, I have applied to the SEAS for the regular decision and am looking forward to results at the end of march. If you have further questions, please send me a message or sth.</p>
<p>I did the generic college prep course last year haha but I loved the program. A few of my friends complained that it was too much work for the summer, but it’s really not at all. My favorite course was actually the one I thought I would dislike the most (critical reading), so you really never know how it’ll turn out.</p>
<p>One of the girls in my suite did Molecular Biology though and she said it was a lot of work… But if you enjoy it I’m sure it’ll be fine. I think a lot of what makes the program either good/bad is that you have a lot of freedom and independence, so you really just need to make a good set of friends with your interests. So if you’re a homebody type, find friends that don’t mind relaxing on campus with you… Although, if you’re in NYC/Columbia for 3 weeks, I recommend you get yourself exploring and take in everything the city has to offer (there is an unbelievable amount to see). Get out of your comfort zone if you’re normally one to stay at home =)</p>
<p>Still, I hope you enjoy your time. I’m not going back this summer, but I applied regular decision and am waiting to hear back from CC…</p>
<p>I went to the program… had an “interesting” experience. If you’re searching for some advice about the program and want to learn anything about the program, email me, and i’ll post a thread about my experiences.</p>
<p>Do this if you have the money. Otherwise, don’t. It is a great experience … but is not cheap. Also, even though they will tell you over and over again that is has no bearing on admissions, it does give you a great feel for the campus and NYC – so, you will know exactly what you are getting into if you end up at Columbia for college.</p>