Harvard SSP?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

<p>So I know the admissions board clearly expresses that attending Harvard Summer Program does not help your admission chances to the actual school. But, your supposed to do something productive with your summer to impress them (among many other more important reasons). So if the admissions board is immediately going to see I attended THEIR summer program and not want to play favourites, does that mean it would be better and more helpful for me to go to a summer program like Yale's?</p>

2

<p>What? It’s not that Harvard summer school doesn’t help your admissions chances; it’s that summer school doesn’t help your admissions chances period. They can help your chances indirectly, like if it sparks an interest that you later pursue in a more impressive fashion. But all Harvard SSP (and other SSPs) do is show that your parents have the $$$ to dish out.</p>

<p>to summarize:</p>

<p>SSP
Advantages

  1. Take cool classes with probably good professors
  2. Meet other people from around the country/world
  3. See what the campus is like
  4. rampant underage partying
    Nonexistent Advantages
  5. Looks good on resume
    Disadvantages
  6. Costs your parents money</p>
3

<p>…OH. So does the whole “doing something like Duke’s TIP or a medical program in the summer helps your app chances because it looks good that you did something productive in the summer” only apply to med/leadership/lawyer/etc programs??</p>

<p>And just a question, if I do Yale Summer school then apply to Harvard will it hurt my admission chances because it’s Yale? :P</p>

4

<p>You should do something productive no matter what. But you shouldn’t base that on what you think Harvard wants to see. You should do something that you enjoy (that’s meaningful in some way, i.e. video games don’t really count). </p>

<p>I spent my summer working as a camp counselor of 9 year old kids. It was something I enjoyed and eventually they hired me to direct the summer camp. I have no idea if Harvard was particularly impressed by that and I’ll never find out. But I would have done it either way. </p>

<p>Other people spend their summers flipping burgers or scooping ice cream. Some volunteer. Some go to summer school. </p>

<p>A medical program in the summer can certainly help you! But so can a lot of other things that don’t carry brand names. It’s up to you.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>No, but a “ColumbiaGirl” username might!</p>

5

<p>Wow, thank you so much, that really helped! 'Cause like, I’ve done counselor jobs before and I love that so it’s really good knowing that you can do simple things and have them mean a lot too… And LOL yeah, I was a little set on Columbia when I registered :p</p>

<p>Wait, so your in Harvard now? Er, kinda random q but…what did your EC’s look like?</p>

6

<p>hey guys, im a harvard SSP alum:P i went last year and i have LOTS i could say, so please dont hesitate to contact me and ask me any questions!
i would love to share my experience.
i remember being in your spot last year and i had lots of questions that previous studens helped me answer so yeah:P
again, dont hesitate !</p>