Hello, I was recently accepted to this program and have decided to attend. There isn’t much information on the internet about it except for a few old threads on this website, so I thought I’d create my own thread in the hopes of talking to fellow students/past year students. How difficult is the program and is it actually worth the high price? Thanks 
hey! I got accetped to PACT a few weeks ago and ended up not accepting the position. the main reason was because of what I PERSONALLY felt (may not be the case) was a lack of prestige.
As it is, cost-based programs already lack in prestige and difficulty compared to cost-free programs. In addition to that, PACT extended their deadline once, then after that deadline was hit, they STILL continued to accept applications saying on their website ‘space is still available, feel free to apply’.
After talking to other ppl, it seemed like every single kid who applied to PACT got in. All in all, i was happy i got accepted but it really did not seem worthwhile for me to participate.
Again, i wanna stress that this is my PERSONAL belief/opinion and im sure the case may be different.
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I understand honestly, I too felt a certain lack of prestige, but my personal interest in the course more than made up for it! Thanks for taking the time to reply!
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Hello
I got accepted to PACT and chose the online option, but I also just got a research opportunity with a professor at my local university. For three weeks the timings for the research and PACT overlap. I am trying to see if I can handle both. Looks like the lectures everyday are for two hours and then problem solving. If any of you attended the program vitually, can you please tell me how a typical looks like? Can you solve the problems offline? Do you have to submit all your work daily?
Thank you
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I know from pals that PACT is amazing… they believe it helped get their kids into Mudd and Cal Tech. However, it is $$, so probably research is the way to go. Congrats to you! Two amazing options!
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When I applied for PACT, i was told the deadline is March 15th and so my parents paid the tuition. But, the application is still open. Had I known, I would not have committed that early. I don’t want to give up the research opportunity either. Thats why I would like to hear from people who attended in the past to know the typical day at PACT virtual and see if I can manage both.
I am a parent so cannot speak to the daily schedule. I do recall that there are recitations in the afternoons, but they were optional. DS took PACT on-line and felt it was valuable. How long it takes you to do the work will depend on the extent of your background in the material and your aptitude. Some struggled; some did not. DS already had exposure to Data Structures & Algorithms when he enrolled and found the curriculum straightforward. This was definitely not the case for everyone.
The key here is that the professor who leads it is unusually invested in the success of his students. This is to a degree that I have not seen in any other course DS has taken. To understand what the professor is like, I suggest you watch his TED talk that is posted on the PACT website.
You say that there is a three week overlap between your research and PACT. PACT is only a three week program. I think it really depends on how much you want to invest in doing well in the program and how much free time the research position will leave you. They both sound like great opportunities, but as a parent, I would worry about being distracted from doing them both at the same time and not giving your all to either. Just my two cents.
Really, you can’t go wrong either way. They both sound like great opportunities. Good luck!
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Spoke with DS briefly - he doesn’t remember exactly but recalls that homework is assigned daily. You do it offline then upload answers each day. Hope this helps.
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