<p>I know everyone here is in different places, but I was curious if anyone here had ever been to a Governor's School. Post about your experiences here; I was thinking of applying to one.</p>
<p>I applied last year (TN School for Science) but I only made alternate because I was a sophomore.</p>
<p>A bunch of people I know have been to various ones and have had a blast.</p>
<p>I actually just turned in my app for this year (my guidance counselor requires it really early).</p>
<p>Really? I'm in TN too. I was thinking about Sciences or the new one, Comp Physics.</p>
<p>Michigan doesn't have one. Meh.</p>
<p>What is a governor's school?</p>
<p>They're intensive summer academic institutes for high school students, usually focusing on a particular subject area. I was at the Vermont Institute for Current Issues & Youth Activism last summer; it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life.</p>
<p>I auditioned for governor's school in NC for music....had a really bad audition, but oh well.</p>
<p>I should have applied in science or social science as well....</p>
<p>quaere - How was Vermont's governer's school? I'm thinking of attending this summer. I checked the website and it didn't seem very competitive since they give spots to each school.</p>
<p>I went to the Arkansas one. I had a lot of fun. I felt like it was somewhat boring considering I have IB at my school...and our IB program is pretty awesome to me. The social activities were fun and the seminars outside of our classes were VERY informative and interesting. I'd recommend Governor's School to anyone.</p>
<p>I went to the Humanities and Visual and Performing Arts one in Virginia this summer (singing). It was a fantastic experience that I'd recommend for anyone, especially this one, as the social studies/humanities coursework was integrated with the arts and vice versa.</p>
<p>The other thing is that (in VA anyway) the program is paid for by the state and so if you're accepted it's practically free. I don't know whether this is as big a consideration for everyone else, but it was for me.</p>
<p>teaspo0n:</p>
<p>GIV admissions aren't very competitive - I don't know of anyone who applied and didn't make it (including some who missed the deadline by more than a month). However, the students tend to self-select really well. Everyone I met there was very bright, motivated, curious, and just plain fun to be with.</p>
<p>The program is intense. We did so many different things that I don't know where to start. Every day was something completely new: town meeting and UN simulations, a debate about Darfur, a trip to an off-the-grid homestead, an info session about the Vermont Yankee power plant controversy. There were guest speakers from a number of major activist groups in the state, as well as people like Bernie Sanders and Peter Shumlin (president pro tem of the state senate). In the evenings we had presentations about HIV/AIDS, or Islamic culture, or African drumming. The staff were passionate and knowledgeable; the teacher who led my interest group is easily the best teacher I've ever had, and the discussions were amazing.</p>
<p>The activism institute was also great because there were groups of teens from the UK and Northern Ireland doing peace-building workshops on the same campus at the same time, so we spent a lot of time with them - going to the beach, having campfires, etc. (They'd never had s'mores before! We had to teach them how to toast marshmallows...)</p>
<p>Do you have a particular institute in mind? I was at Activism, but I have friends who've done Arts, Engineering, and Information Technology, and they all had wonderful times as well.</p>
<p>Um, let's see, what else... There's a lot of good information on their website (<a href="http://www.giv.org)%5B/url%5D">www.giv.org)</a>. They also host a Winter Weekend, usually in early February, which is a great way to get a taste of GIV if you're not sure whether to apply to the summer institutes.</p>
<p>I'm in TN too, applying for Sciences though I think I'll just apply my junior year...I've heard ours are really fun!</p>
<p>It tends to be extremely competitive for arts and less so for other disciplines, ironically, but like quaere said there's the element of self-selection. I also didn't meet a single person who didn't deserve to be there.</p>
<p>I'm in TN and a current senior in high school. I went to International Studies after sophomore year and it was amazing. I am typically kind of lazy in school, and at Governor's School I did tons of homework and reading every night and loved it just because the academics are so intense and the students are all so focused. Even though there's work and whatnot, it was still immensely fun and I wouldn't trade it for anything.</p>
<p>^I was considering International Studies as well. What sort of things did you do?</p>
<p>Bump.... Anyone else?</p>