<p>What are they like? Will they really help you get into the college of your choice?</p>
<p>I was looking into the ASA program in Cambridge, and the one at Columbia in New York. </p>
<p>also, if you know of any other "prestigious" programs then feel free to list them!</p>
<p>Well its hard to say what they’re like in general, because you’ll have different experiences at different programs. As for helping college admissions, it depends. A good rule of thumb is that the expensive ones will not help, because all it shows colleges is that you can afford to pay thousands for a summer program. If you’re looking for programs that will look good to colleges, read the thread below.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/summer-programs/343495-summer-programs-look-good-college-applications.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/summer-programs/343495-summer-programs-look-good-college-applications.html</a></p>
<p>I went to a summer program at Yale and had such a great time! It definitely helped my application and showed that I could do college level work ( i got 8 credits for it). Not only did it help my application but it gave me an amazing experience to write about for the common app and other essays!</p>
<p>I went to the Air Force Academy’s Summer Seminar between my Junior and Senior years. I’d say that it was really beneficial to get a feel for the caliber of students that were applying there, to see how I’d fit in with other prospects.</p>
<p>They most certainly will help you get in indirectly - you will walk away more passionate about the school and perhaps armed with knowledge beneficial to your application. I suppose you mean directly? I’d say attending one of those programs falls under the domain of demonstrated interest and I believe most schools don’t care about your interest unless you’re a borederline candidate.</p>
<p>Don’t do a summer program because you think it will help you get into your first choice. Do it because you love what the program is about and think it will be an experience to grow.</p>
<p>If you look hard enough, you will find that there are amazing experiences out there to be had almost for free. Though I’m sure the people who pay thousands of dollars to eat college food for five weeks have also had fulfilling experiences, I am currently in Jordan on a tuition-free Arabic program being stuffed full of delicious homemade food by my host family. In other words: the quality of your experience is not necessarily proportional to what you pay for it.</p>
<p>What program is that lookbeyond?</p>