<p>Are there any summer programs left at all to do? My summer opened up at the last minute. I am a freshman right now.</p>
<p>Not really. But don’t worry; just starting searching in cc right now for the good summer programs right now and get ready for next year.</p>
<p>Brown is still accepting. Is their program any good? Is Brown the only one?</p>
<p>Is it good? People’s opinion on that will differ, but it’s a respectable program. Is it worth the money? Will it impact your chances of getting into Brown/other prestigious colleges? A different question entirely.</p>
<p>I know that no summer program except those free ones for geniuses will impact a chance of getting into a prestigious college, I just hate to sit around and do nothing. I want to be productive over the summer, or at least have a new experience.</p>
<p>then try getting a job.</p>
<p>Even if the Brown one isn’t one of “those free ones for geniuses” I did it last summer and I learned a lot. While it won’t help you get into prestigious colleges, I think it would give you somewhat of a boost if you apply to Brown ED (especially since you can be VERY specific in the “Why Brown?” essay) and even if you don’t apply ED and it helps even less than I think it does, I definitely learned a lot. I would pick Brown precollege over a summer of doing nothing if I had the same choice again this summer.</p>
<p>WARNING <em>PERSONAL ANECDOTE</em> (I know those are frowned upon here at CC): After I took the Biochem class at Brown last summer, I was offered a position to do research at a university near me that I was originally rejected for. Since I was already at Brown, I could not start until about 3 weeks after my partners (both of whom were in the same grade I was) did. I found that I was able to grasp the material and understand what was going on better than they did even though I missed the first 3 weeks because I’d learned a lot that could be applied to my topic (I mutated a protein) in that class.</p>
<p>I also learned a bit about what college-life since pretty much the only rules were be back before 11:00 at night (meaning if you REALLY wanted to you could take a train to Boston for the afternoon BY YOURSELF as long as you’re back by curfew), don’t do drugs, and don’t download music illegally. I was able to do so much I wouldn’t be able to do without my parents at home.</p>