Is CTY worth it?

<p>From what I've heard, CTY is more of a social than an academic experience. People say it's a lot of fun, but nobody really says that the courses helped them in anyway. It's around $3,000, if you add in the registration fee/other fees. Does anybody have any opinions?</p>

<p>It's great academically, too. I took a course in Theory of Computation, and I learned things I would not have been able to anytime in high school otherwise. Tough, challenging, and well worth it.</p>

<p>Definitely worth it. A great academic and social experience that also improves character. :D</p>

<p>Do you think that your studies at CTY were applicable to your studies during the school year? If so, in what ways?</p>

<p>cty is INCREDIBLE. and the shakespeare course i did there included two plays i ended up studying in school. depending on the class you take, there's definitely material/skills that will be applicable in school.</p>

<p>Take a fun course in an area of your interest, and it'll be worth it.</p>

<p>Has anyone ever taken a science class there?</p>

<p>Four years makes me say yes. I took: Individually Paced Math, Philosophy of Mind, Ethics, and Etymology. Im a graduating senior, and those three years of humanities have heavily influenced my desire to study philosophy in college.</p>

<p>Yes, Kate, I took Biotechnology and Advanced Chemistry and my brother and some friends took Physics and Animal Science, and High School Chemistry.</p>

<p>It's very good, like last summer when I did all those titration labs to find oxidation numbers and did redox reactions, it is helping me tremondously now, because the teacher is going kinda fast thru those topics to cover everything, so I'm not "confused" like other kids, plus we still keep in touch, and the professor was really nice. If I had a chemistry question, I could probably ask him, even though he's all the way in NJ, and he'd help me out. </p>

<p>And that gel electrophoresis I did back in 8th grade and learning about PCR and doing those E.coli experiments has helped me soo much now, in 11th grade AP Biology. It all just comes back to you, and it's great to feel "familiarized" and recognize it while other kids have to learn it for the 1st time. </p>

<p>Plus you make great friends in the span of 3 weeks that you may keep in touch with forever, and it's very fun socially. </p>

<p>And you even get a feel of how it is to live in dorms with people you've never met before -- real college dormitories.</p>

<p>Anyone considering the program should definently give it a shot .. it's just .. wonderful, in all aspects of the program. :)</p>

<p>Are the classes hard?</p>

<p>Uh .. yeah, but they're meant to be that way./</p>

<p>You're not allowed to take books/notebooks outside of class, the point is to see how much you learn just in a 3 lecture class plus 2 hr study hall plus (for some classes) 2 hr lab.</p>

<p>You get a grade for all classes, but I mean, they understand that you dont have a chance to really really learn the material . . so some classes consider it good if you do better on the post-test than the pre-test (which is . . a given that you'll do). Some classes are harder and give you a grade of what you would have gotten in the class, based on your lab reports and your test grades. </p>

<p>Like . .physics, was extremely hard from what I heard, and most kids got a 0 on the pre test, and i think the highest grade on the post was like failing . . but i mean, in the teacher's eyes that's considered good, as in you learned something at least. In adv. chem, the pre and post tests were past ap questions, so most kids didnt do well at all, i mean they are supposed to be tough though. You're supposed to learn a lot of material, sometimes basically a year of material in 3 weeks, it's "challenging" but "rewarding" in a sense.</p>

<p>Yeah, mandatory fun is the rule there. No work outside of class, unless you take the type where you get an actual grade (i.e. biology, chemistry, self-paced math, etc.). But most classes are grade-less.</p>

<p>Evaluate your interests and curiosities and select a course that would fulfill them.</p>

<p>Do they give you a report card or something like that at the end? Does it go on your transcript?</p>

<p>No no no .. it's an enrichment type program. I doubt any 3 week course can cover a year of material thoroughly enough to let you put it on your transcript and count as a "real" grade. In biotechnology, I did get a pretty detailed letter of how I performed in the class and my work cooperation, doing labs with other kids, etc at the end. I think almost all of the classes give you a recommendation letter letter, saying what you covered, how well you interacted and participated, and so on.</p>

<p>If you don't do well, do not worry because it will not count against you. You go there just to learn as much as you can, about other kids and about your topic of interest. Some parents send their kids just for the social aspect too. I mean, I thought it was balanced pretty good, the amt of work and the amount of activities.</p>

<p>CTY is amazing. Do not hesitate in going.</p>

<p>Why was it amazing in your opinion?</p>

<p>hmm.... maybe I should apply...</p>

<p>Is it really challenging? Harder/Easier than your normal high school?</p>

<p>CTY is an awesome program...especially for distance edu</p>

<p>I did it the summer of 7th and 8th grades. It's not as challenging as it is rewarding. The material you cover will most likely not be covered in traditional classes, nor will you find the same atmosphere or students anywhere else.</p>

<p>Note: CTY won't really help you that much for college, so if you have more important things during the summer, go for those things. Otherwise, go to CTY, and I assure that you will not waste your time.</p>

<p>

Can you elaborate?</p>