<p>Has anyone at CC participated in the ND Summer Experience. If accepted, I plan on doing the life science track. To anyone has completed this program...was it fun and worth it?</p>
<p>My daughter went into the theology track which is where she was placed. She wanted science . She loved it . Loved the whole experience. Made her fall in love with ND as her choice for college. And it gets them to start a file on you. One of their goals for the summer experience is recruitment.</p>
<p>There was someone from our kids' high school that went to the Engineering one and absolutely loved it. He also fell in love with ND. We were amazed one time when we were up there in the summer to see this kid from our hometown walking around in LaFortune! He ended up getting waitlisted and going to SLU, but really got a lot out of the summer.</p>
<p>Another opportunity for a cool time on campus in the summertime is a stay at Notre Dame Family Hall. It's basically a dorm they convert to a family hostel, starting in early June, and running through the end of July. Once you get over the fact you are staying in a dorm room (or rooms) and there is no AC (not as necessary up there most of the time), it is an amazing experience for the entire family.</p>
<p>Particularly when the kids were younger, we were attracted to it because of the price. The discounted weekly rate was $150 for one room, $210 for two rooms--I don't think it is a whole lot higher now. Wristbands give you access to all sorts of on campus facilities--like the Rockne, Rolfs, including the pools, and the beach on St. Joe lake (usually not open during the year.) </p>
<p>One of our favorite things to do is to take canoes or paddleboats out on the lake--rental is something absurd like a buck or two. By far the most popular activity is to use the bicycles, provided for free in two-hour signout increments, to pedal around all over campus. They've got bikes for all ages. They've got bikes in every size, from little pee wee ones with training wheels to a large number of Schwinn coaster brake bikes and a couple of bicycles built for two. There are lots of planned activities for the younger set, too.</p>
<p>As stated, we did this for years when money was very tight. I'd say since we first had kids in 1987, we probably spent a week on the campus in at least ten of those years. It became something of an annual retreat for us, a perfect place to get time to reflect and re-direct for the upcoming year. This year, we are going to stay just a couple of nights because we haven't done it for a while, as a staging area before we can access a rental house in Southwest Michigan. </p>
<p>Granted, this isn't any type of curriculum-led program. You don't get the flavor of the campus in full swing--although summer is plenty vibrant, with a rhythm all its own--but it is a great chance to explore the campus. </p>
<p>By the way, you don't have to be an alum to take advantage of this. Just go to the ND website, and run a website search for Notre Dame Family Hall. You can stay a couple of days or a whole week.</p>
<p>Thanks..one more question? What is the difference between the engineering camp and the summer experience program besides the obvious major-focus difference. The engineering one is 3 weeks and a lot less $ than the Summer Experience, which is only 2 weeks. So is the Summer Experience a lot better or something?</p>
<p>I went to the Engineering program (IEP) last year and loved it. IEP was AMAZING- professors taught all of our classes, the labs were great, and the kids you meet are awesome. I think it is less expensive because of grants or something the University recieves, not sure... I can tell you, though, that I was amazed a program like that only cost $1250. The difference in cost has nothing to do with the value of the program.
I didn't do Summer Experience or know anyone that did, but IEP seemed more work-intensive, comparatively, without being dry or boring. Lots of lectures, labs, and assignments, but they weren't deathly to do. I wouldn't reccomend it just for the ND experience, though. It is really focused on kids who want to be engineers, are thinking about becoming engineers, or know they want to be engineers and are trying to pick a specialty.
FYI, I did the program and decided 1. not to go to or apply to ND, and 2. not to go to engineering school. I did, however, have an amazing experience, learned a lot about engineering and the school, and met a ton of cool people (most of which are going to be engineers somewhere, and about half of which wound up applying to ND.)</p>