<p>I know recently this forum has been completely dedicated to discussing acceptances, rejections etc. for seniors, but I'm looking for some info regarding the ND Summer Experience.</p>
<p>I'm a junior right now, and I applied a while back (won't hear back til May).</p>
<p>For anyone who participated:</p>
<p>How was it?
What sort of activities were there outside of the classes? The site is REALLY vague.
Were all the activities mandatory?
Was it strict as far as keeping you in a certain spot at a certain time, or were you free to do whatever when not in class?
Was it worth the time and money?</p>
<p>If you have input on these topics or any others, please help me out.
Thanks!</p>
<p>it was one of the best times of my life. i loved it.</p>
<p>i went last year and intended on doing the business program but was put in theology. im pretty conservative and the teacher was pretty liberal, but he definitely made me think a lot and i enjoyed it and think my views have become even stronger.</p>
<p>not relle many of the activities were mandatory... you pretty much went to class and did what u wanted at night.</p>
<p>they had bowling and other fun activities including a bookstore basketball tournament, but also had some serious things like community service in the south bend area</p>
<p>as i said, you were pretty free to explore what you wanted outside of class and the only thing they really cared about was keeping you out of the opposite sex's dorms and making sure you were in the dorms at the right times. everything else was up to you.</p>
<p>it was definitely worth the time and money for me and i would do it again if i could. maybe ill be a counselor sometime</p>
<p>My daughter went two years ago and loved it. She had a wonderful roommate and they still fly to see each other twice a year! The only downside that I observed was that some of the tracks assigned homework. Those that were stuck doing homework and reading were busy doing that at night and not able to socialize as much.</p>
<p>My daughter is a freshman at ND now. An inordinate number of kids from her summer experience program were admitted. The school says that attending the program does nothing to enhance the application. However, it does show strong interest which never hurts. </p>
<p>I know that it is really expensive but we felt it was really worth it!</p>
<p>hi! i attended summer experience in summer 2006 and was in the acting track and i LOVED it! now i am getting ready to start at ND in august!</p>
<p>so to answer your questions...</p>
<p>it was a great experience for me! i don't have any family ties to ND or really live nearby so it was a really good chance to get to know the university. also, i really enjoyed the acting track, the roommates...over all it was so great!</p>
<p>outside of class there were lots of activities -- wew ent bowling, they showed movies and had a cookout on the 4th of July, there were Masses in the Basilica and prayer services in the grotto, a basketball tournament, a lecturer, a bonfire, a dance, and the section i was in had a game night! it was awesome..and you could always just hang out</p>
<p>the activities were not mandatory, except everyone was required to go do some service in south bend</p>
<p>outside of class we pretty much did whatever we wanted and went wherever we wanted. there was a curfew and we were not allow in the other sex's dorm...but otherwise it was pretty open</p>
<p>it was absolutely worth the time and money for me-- it gave me a chance to get to know the school and some great people! to ber honest, i didn't learn too much from the acting track, as a lot of the information covered was stuff i had learned in other classes at home...but i really enjoy acting so it was fun regardless. and i think the other classes are probably a lot different!</p>
<p>It would not be fair if attending Notre Dame's summer experience increased one's chances of being accepted at the school as there are many families who just can't afford to send their children to the summer sessions - thus, they shouldn't be "penalized?" (if that is the right choice of words) for not being able to attend ND during the summer.</p>
<p>so? why can't it raise your chances? all schools need money and if you're paying them, they have to thank you. it's probably of very minimal help to your application, but still... if the person shows interest in the school and has paid that money already, they're going to be looked upon pretty well</p>
<p>I disagree. Notre Dame is not obligated to "thank you" because they offered a summer experience and you paid the money to attend. They are not obligated at all.</p>
<p>BobbyC - You seem to think that just because your parents can afford to send you to ND's Summer Experience that Notre Dame owes you a thank you?
Shame on you for displaying such an obnoxious sense of entitlement. You should feel fortunate - not entitled!</p>
<p>I don't think it's entitled to think attending the Summer Experience will help your chances. There is financial aid available for NDSE, so money won't stop many from attending. I think it will show interest, which is always a plus.</p>
<p>I requested aid, not sure if I'll get it. I'll probably go either way (assuming I get in).</p>
<p>If anyone has past experiences from the program, it's much appreciated.</p>
<p>It is considered entitlement when one pays for something and then thinks that that he deserves (paid service aside) something for it in return (ie, preferential treatment during the application process). Notre Dame offers the summer experience so that prospective students can enjoy the ND experience - not to provide a "hook" for future applicants.</p>
<p>Well thanks for your input guys, but I don't think they are obligated to thank me. I just think it is nice that they might a little bit. In no way do I feel entitled to that and I was as thankful as anyone to be able to attend NDSE, I'm just saying that ND may express gratitude by giving you a slight edge. It is not wrong for a school to do something like that, but in no way are they obligated to do so.</p>
<p>hawaiiboy15: Attending a summer leadership seminar at any of the four of the five service academies will enhance your chance of admission, but it is very hard to get accepted to these seminars as you have to qualify in several areas including intelligence, athleticism & health, including undergoing & passing a full Dept. of Defense (DOD) medical exam. Acceptance to the USAFA's summer leadership program is nearly tantamount to acceptance by the academy subject to receiving a Congressional appointment. My son was accepted to all four and attended three of them. Naval Academy was the most physically demanding although that can change between West Point & Annapolis yearly. USAFA is mostly classes & activities due to the extreme altitude acclimation period of 3 months.</p>
<p>Son attended the Intro to Engineering program. He loved it! I think ND's program offered more of a college experience, esp since profs from the eng dept were speakers at some of the "classes". If you can attend, I would say go for it! The only drawback son mentioned was no A/C in dorms and the dorm he was housed in had the smallest rooms on campus. But, that did not deter him from applying and I think the program further strengthened his decision to major in engineering. As to whether his attendance ultimately helped in his acceptance, maybe. He did apply EA however and was accepted. He applied and was accepted to a few other EA schools as well. He tried to keep his bases covered in that regard. I do seem to remember however, that he mentioned that they were told to keep up with the assignments as it could be looked at favorably should they apply. But, then again, perhaps they were told this to insure complete participation. Who knows how admissions thinks--that has been hashed out on another thread!! If you can attend, do so-as I think it is valuable in that you can become familiar with the campus and perhaps help you make decisions regarding a major. Good Luck!</p>
<p>Has anybody attended the Latino Community Leadership Seminar? I'm going this summer, and I was wondering if anybody could offer a little more insight into the program. I am also attending the Intro to Engineering program.</p>
<p>The Intro to Eng program is great according to our now Soph ND student. I think he felt that it provided valuable exp into the program at ND as well as majoring in eng. In fact, I believe that this program was what helped him to decide to apply to ND. Enjoy it!</p>