I’m a junior in high school and I’m applying to 5 different summer programs, 3 of which are at my top schools - UCLA, USC, and UMiami (1 is at my first choice-USC.) Do these summer programs help? Not necessarily with admission into the school, but do they show initiative at all? I was just wondering the benefits of them, if any at all. Any information would be helpful!
The benefit we saw for my daughter was that it helped narrow down her interests. She was always interested in animal conservation.
First summer led her to water dwelling animals.
Second summer taught us that she comes alive with field work, not bench research.
Third summer ruled out limnology (fresh water) although she learned a lot of good techniques.
Summer after graduation brought her to Guatemala where she worked with a grassroots organization, and so on.
The summer experiences saved her a lot of time and classes when choosing how to construct her major.
I think for application writing she had a sense of how she is directing her life. All the summer applications too made writing her common ap essay easier. She was accustomed to writing about herself.