<p>I am a freshman in highschool an I am confused about EVERYTHING. T_T</p>
<p>Well, after reading through a few threads, i reaslized that TASP was mentioned a lot. I checked it out, and i realized that it was pretty...prestigious? or was a really good summer program, but after looking at the website, I have no idea what it actually was. It was a summer program about ________. Science? English? </p>
<p>What exactly IS it? and why is it such a good program?</p>
<p>It’s a good program. You can’t apply for another 2 and a half years, so I wouldn’t worry too much about it for now. Just have fun in high school while you still can :).</p>
<p>TASP stands for Telluride Association Summer Program. Telluride Association is an independent education trust based in Ithaca, NY, so called because it was founded by a guy based in Telluride. Colorado, who made his fortune in the early 20th c. stringing electrical lines over the Rocky Mountains. He built a house at Cornell University to send his young employees back East for an engineering-cum-liberal-arts education (in those days Cornell was the only Ivy League college with an engineering school). Telluride House, and the Association that funds it, no longer has any ties to Telluride, CO or to the power industry. The same guy, L. L. Nunn, also funded Deep Springs College. </p>
<p>Telluride Association runs a few intensive six-week summer seminars on a variety of topics, most often in the humanities and social sciences, for academically talented kids between their junior and senior year of high school. Each seminar is team-taught by two faculty members from top universities, and generally comprises 16 students. Telluride invites applications from those who score in the top 1/2% on the PSAT, but anybody who knows about the program is free to submit an application, and test scores are not at all a major factor in the evaluation of candidates. The application consists of five or six substantial essays due in January or early February. A couple hundred finalists are interviewed in March, and decisions are announced at the end of April.</p>
<p>TASP is prestigious because it is small, highly selective, and because it is completely free to all accepted students. The chances of getting in are daunting, but it is a wonderful experience for those who do.</p>
<p>So for TASP, you apply as a upsoming senior?</p>
<p>You apply in the middle of your junior year, for the following summer.</p>