@Sue22, Yes. I used “resume padding” in the wrong way. I actually meant “helpful resume building.” I guess I was hoping to explain that one can’t build a good resume by trying to pad resume or even build resume in too superficial intentions. And I got mixed up with vocabulary.
CTY is an organization that advocates and provides opportunities for gifted kids. Part of this includes summer camps, but the projects that the OP linked to are part of a completely different program to help kids do science research over a period of at least three months mostly likely during the school year. This program does not cost money and in fact pays a stipend. Doing research in high school is a weird phenomena, at least to me, but there is a lot of discussion on CC already about how to go about doing this.
@warbrain, I didn’t know. Sorry for being confused. For general application-worthiness of CTY Summer camps, I also recommend searching “CTY Worth” on CC for a lot of discussion as ell.
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but the projects that the OP linked to are part of a completely different program to help kids do science research over >a period of at least three months mostly likely during the school year. This program does not cost money and in fact >pays a stipend. Doing research in high school is a weird phenomena, at least to me, but there is a lot of discussion on >CC already about how to go about doing this.
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warbrain: where in CC can I find discussions about research in high school? Like the 3 month research you mentioned? Thank you.
@smithonian29 ask your HS guidance counselor. Our HS offers a research class that starts junior year and meets once a week before the school day begins. We had two students that I know of who were published in medical journals.
Personally, as a scientist, I think most kids are better occupied taking all 3 core science classes, then one or 2 advanced ones than trying to do original research.
Thank you twogirls. I’ll try again with our clueless counselor and see if this time he knows something.
And “yes” twogirls. I will follow with your original idea of the teen courts. Cool!
" I’ll try again with our clueless counselor and see if this time he knows something"
Honestly, I don’t think its fair to expect a school counselor to help you uncover opportunities outside the school environment for enrichment for your child. Of course, some will do so and some really good ones will go above and beyond but to me that is just an extra bonus not something to be expected. It’s surely not in the job description and your child isn’t the only child he needs to focus on, let alone the only bright child.
A lot of us posting here have bright kids. I never visited my child’s counselor to help me arrange for meaningful opportunities for my child and wouldn’t even think of doing so to help my child find ways to be engaged during the summer.
As far as your child not being invited to participate in STEM clubs formed by other students, here are two paths to take: 1. Has your child asked point blank if they can participate? 2. Your child can organize and start their own club for their own interests.
@smithonian29 glad to help. I asked my daughter if she wanted to participate in the research class and she said no because she had too many other things going on (and she did). Her biology teacher kept asking the class and she continued to say no. I did not force the issue. She woke up senior year and told me that she should have done it, but at that point it was too late. Fast forward to the present and it really did not matter- she still got accepted to excellent schools and was involved in research as a freshman in college. It all works out and in my opinion, needs to be directed by the student.
Some of the posters here don’t seem to have a good understanding of CTY.
The organization has been a leader in both research on gifted education/outcome based AND in providing opportunities for kids whose school (for whatever reason, even the home-schooled) cannot provide enough intellectual/academic stimulation. There are also the social aspects of CTY’s camp and group learning opportunities which are life-savers for kids who may be marginalized in their home schools.
I have been involved in the organization for over 20 years and personally- have never met a family whose kids participate who are doing it for resume-padding or to get their kid into college. There are 12 year olds with extraordinary abilities- and not every family can afford to have a parent step out of the work force to home school, and not every family lives near a magnet school or duel enrollment set up. CTY has been a lifesaver for these families.
The idea that any kid who can pay is involved in CTY is a ridiculous notion- the organization provides gifted education opportunities for kids who live in housing projects and whose single parent works a minimum wage job. I have met some of those kids. They are extraordinary-- and again- they can’t pay (and they don’t),
As a society, we don’t do a good job understanding the needs of intellectually precocious children. We have no problem looking at an Ally Reisman and realizing that with talent at the very far end of the curve, asking her to train in gymnastics with the local gym teacher at her local elementary school would be crazy.
But please stop bashing CTY. If you’ve known one family who thought that taking the talent search test was going to get their kid into Harvard, I could introduce you to 50 who had absolutely no clue that their 12 year old could score an 800 on the math SAT-- and moreover, didn’t even understand that an 800 is a great score which likely suggests that their 12 year old’s needs are not being met in their “regular” 8th grade math class.
@blossom ,
No one is denying CTY’s contribution or personal growth from participating CTY. The question at hand is that CTY Summer camps are not selective enough or regarded highly enough by colleges to be worthwhile if someone’s primary purpose of CTY is resume building for college admission.
If kid is considering either medicine or law, the consensus here on CC, that college name is irrelevant. Just attend any college your heart desires. If it is Harvard, than you are doing it strictly for the desire of your heart and NOT by huge measure for the medical school or the law school adcoms. While they care A LOT about many other things that student accomplished during his college years, the name of the college is not one of them.
The main reason why CTY is not useful on your college resume is because most of their camp programs are aimed at middle schoolers. Not because they aren’t selective enough. I haven’t looked lately, but perhaps they have more for high school students. My oldest learned matrix math in one of the classes he took as a seventh grader that he didn’t see again until he took a quantum theory class. What he learned in those classes (Game Theory was one Cryptography was another) was useful as background for things he did later with math and computer programming. It was never about resume building - it was about giving him something to do in the summer that made him happy.
BTW I give every year to the CTY scholarship fund, because I do feel very strongly ALL gifted kids should get this opportunity.
Mathmom- your dollars do more good than you realize. It’s easy to dismiss the programs as yet another thing for affluent families to do for their child- until you see some of the applications and the case files on the non-affluent who apply.
Yes- CTY- not useful at all on your college application. Not meant to be. Has nothing to do with whether or not they are selective enough or regarded highly enough by an Adcom. That’s not what the programs are designed for. I could hand you a list of “early college” programs that are popular in affluent areas-- some of which take place on elite college campuses. They generate revenue for the college when the dorms are empty; they are run by organizations which also offer “travel” programs to exciting places overseas but are not meant to meet the needs of the population CTY targets. Nothing wrong with these programs and if you can afford them- great.
What you learn from CTY is highly valuable. CTY is doing great things! I believe that CTY Summer camp would be great for OP’s son for his personal growth, which is what CTY is meant to be. And CTY is much better than average Summer camp at very selective universities that has almost no requirement at all.
But the fact that you did CTY Summer camp and not something else that is as helpful in personal growth does not distinguish you as RSI or other more competitive programs would. And it won’t be a meaningfully enhancing entry in his resume for both ug and medical school applications. Frankly, not much that is normally offered to a 14 yo would. And as @blossom pointed out, CTY is not meant to be used that way. My understanding is that therefore OP is looking for something that is not CTY Summer camp. I don’t think there is one really. But CTY is still not the one in my opinion. Maybe she can hire a scientist to co-author a peer reviewed journal with her son.
I think, while it takes good academics to get necessary score for CTY eligibility, they admit most applicants who have the score, which may not be too hard for kids aiming for top colleges. But please don’t take my opinion and see the past discussions instead.
Here is a whole list of summer programs for teens. I am sure something on this list maybe of interest for your son. A lot of them are geared towards high school students but there maybe something for a 13/14 year old student.
http://www.teenink.com/summer/
I am not sure about the minimum age requirements for this but it may be of interest to you.
When I was in high school I volunteered at the Smithsonian for one of their exhibits. It was one of the most memorable out of school experiences I ever had. I worked as a translator for a live cultural exhibit. The exhibit was created as a cultural exchange between the U.S. and another country. My job was to translate what the artists were saying or demonstrating to exhibit visitors. Maybe he could be a volunteer/docent for another exhibit (science related) in another museum or at an aquarium. That would be fun and educational at the same time.
I think a job shadowing program is probably not unrealistic, but that typically starts in summers after high school. A google search like Medical Careers Summer Program would probably yield something fruitful. I did something similar, albeit at 17, and ended up interested in my field and pursuing it for my career.
I understand you want something that has more of an internship ring to it, but lets remember — a 14 year old probably doesn’t even make his own doctor’s appointments, so he is unlikely to be comfortable even reminding patients of theirs. This is why people are suggesting more developmentally appropriate summer opportunities. That way, when a more career-focused opportunity does come along in a few years, he will be confident, well spoken, reliable, at ease with authority, etc.
One of my kids did volunteer work at a city museum, which ultimately morphed into a paying job there. This, IMO, was a huge differentiator in this kid’s college apps - specifically mentioned in the college’s “welcome to the class of” letter, and noted by a faculty member at the parents’ welcome weekend when the member saw my name tag and knew my kid’s name.
Btw, this was not related to kid’s ultimate major or career path. It was just substantive, intellectual and differentiating.
My kids also did CTD (similar to CTY - Midwestern version). It enables them to both get a taste of living on a campus and have some independence, and explore areas they couldn’t have within high school confines. For one of my kids it triggered an area of interest previously unknown. If you can afford it, there’s really no downside. But not from resume-building. Just exploration and maturity.
No, no, no! This is the definition of resume padding-hiring someone to essentially fake a credential for a kid who has not yet had enough training in science to make a meaningful contribution. 
Thank you raclut for the link. I already see some camps for high school freshmen.