<p>Hello I'm a high school senior planning to apply for th CSSI program for next summer.. i'm taking a programming class at school this year but other than that i'm pretty much a noob. i guess others planning to apply for 2015 can talk here and perhaps people who have experienced it already can give us advice!</p>
<p>Hi @hannahxconley! I’m planning to apply to apply to CSSI next year too. I’ve taken two computer science courses so far, but I believe the program does accept students with minimal background in programming.
What programming languages have you learnt?</p>
<p>@BeyondTheSky sorry i didn’t see this till now!!! in my programming class we’re learning java right now… i hope to at least learn a little of python before the school year is up</p>
<p>I’m learning Java too in my CS class! I’m also taking a computer engineering course this year where we’re learning C++ and C.
Where are you from? I live in Canada, and will probably go to uni in Canada.</p>
<p>@BeyondTheSky I’m from Illinois! I have way too many options for college at the moment lol… I’ve pretty much been checking the CSSI application every day to see if it opens oops</p>
<p>Lol the application opens in January. 
So we got plenty of time! Actually we haven’t, time always flies REALLY FAST in the senior year, and before we know it, the applications will be out.</p>
Anyone know the dates of Google CSSI sessions for this Summer?
@Rice3579 They are listed on the CSSI website, https://www.google.com/edu/resources/programs/computer-science-summer-institute-cssi/#!qualifications-and-application
Here:
Cambridge, MA: July 13th - July 31st
Chicago, IL: July 20th - Aug 7th
Mountain View, CA: July 13th - July 31st
New York City, NY: July 20th - Aug 7th
Seattle, WA: July 13th - July 31st
Thanks so much, @BeyondTheSky! For some reason, I kept getting directed to the main CSSI page with the video rather than this one when I searched for dates.
If you have any questions about CSSI application feel free to PM me. Here’s my CSSI blog from last summer: goesgoogle.blogspot.com . I’m so excited for you all that they added new locations in Chicago and NYC!!
Is this program for current HS Junior or current HS Seniors?
I’m still conflicted about if I should even apply… I literally have next to no coding experice whatsoever… I took a programming I class that only taught basic Java. It seems like most people go into CSSI with a lot of experience.
@hannahxconley My programming is experience isn’t that great either. But you’ll never know if you’d get in if you don’t apply 
I think we should still give it our best shot and see…
@laurab1220 How many people are at each location? Did you know anyone from Canada there? I’m from Canada and I haven’t taken the SAT/ACT tests. I just wanted to know if that would significantly reduce my chances of getting in.
Hi! I found out about CSSI yesterday and have decided to apply. I’m learning Java in APCS right now, have had a semester each of MATLAB and LabVIEW, completed the Codecademy course in Python, and done some basic physics models in VPython. Basically I’ve done introductory work in several languages, but I’m not really advanced in any.
@laurab1220 Thanks for blogging during CSSI; it convinced me to apply!
Are you guys in college already?
Also, do we have to pay in order to attend the program?
Can anyboydy explain what it is?
What are the essay prompts? I can’t look at the them, yet, because my transcript is not ready for upload 
@BeyondTheSky there should be around 30 in each location. Last year there were 90 selected nationally for 3 locations (30 for Mountain View, 30 Boston, 30 Seattle). There were a few Canadian CSSIers 
- don’t worry about SAT/ACT in that case.
@psithurisma YAY!!!
@Iamquiteloud I’m a freshman currently
And to all the people who just started programming no worries! 
Express your eagerness to learn!
Hey, did anyone start the application yet? What are they asking in this question:
Name one of your strengths and explain how you utilize it toward something you’re passionate about. Name one area of development and how you plan on improving it. Please think in terms of academic, professional or community involvement roles. (300 word max limit)
When they say to think in terms of whatever, do they want me to be like, “My strengths is that I’m a nice person. I use being nice to make my community nice.” Or is it more like, “My strength of being a leader is used in the community for leading.”