I’m going to be a rising senior this summer and I’m planning on applying as an engineering major, but all these research programs are so prestigious and competitive, I might end up doing something more business leadership related over the summer despite my intended major. Would this look bad/worse on college apps than if I tried harder to pursue science research?
How about Operation Catapult at Rise-Hulman?
No, it does not need to match up with your major. In fact, a program in business leadership might provide you with experiences and skills that may come handy later on in your engineering studies and/or career.
I also second Operation Catapult. I attended this past summer, so feel free to ask me any questions you might have.
http://www.rose-hulman.edu/admissions-financial-aid/early-planning/operation-catapult.aspx
Also Look into PAN (Physics of Atomic Nuclei); there are two different sections at MSU and Notre Dame. The program lasts one week and is completely free except for potential travel costs. I attended this past summer, so ask me if you have any questions.
http://www.jinaweb.org/outreach/PAN/
Also look into COSMOS in California. It’s a semi-prestigious (possibly even prestigious) summer program that has different sections held at four different UC campuses.
https://cosmos-ucop.ucdavis.edu/
@Episteme @intparent
Sorry for hijacking this thread for a moment, but I’m super interested in Operation Catapult. I wasn’t sure how to format the activities section. Currently, I’m listing out my most important extracurriculars, including years participated and officer position. I don’t want to make it messy, but I do want to list out all of my ECs (should I do that?). Anyway, how should I answer the activities section?
P.S the application is remarkably short compared to other summer applications. No essays at all…
One of my kids went to Operation Catapult. Most everyone there liked it a lot. She liked her team and her project, but came away realizing she did not actually want to be an engineer. A lesson better learned in high school than in college, IMHO, so I was fine with it.
Are you asking about how to format the activities section on the Operation Catapult application? Don’t remember it at all, sorry…