I’m a rising senior. I’ve got accepted in ross, and I’ve been waiting for decisions from others. I’ve been debating between ross, mathcamp, hcssim and local internship and wanted to get help choosing one.
Ross is probably the most intense and prestigious one that will look good on a college app. However, I’m international from asia (that’s 12+ hours of time difference with EST), and my school’s summer is only 7 weeks which makes me unsure if I should devote almost all of my summer just for Ross.
Mathcamp is definitely shorter, and I’ve heard that Hcssim is less intense, which will give me time to work on other stuff, including the college app.
Working with a local college professor won’t be as prestigious, but I’ll be able to go in-person, won’t have to live with the time difference, and be more flexible with scheduling.
Are summer camps worth the effort? Which one would be a better choice? All thoughts or experiences are appreciated! Thanks.
Are you talking about Mathcamp Canada USA? If so,
MathCamp > Ross >> HCSSIM >> local college.
Note also that Hampshire College is always on the verge of shutting down due to poor finances.
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HCSSiM is hosted at Hampshire when it is in person, but most of the faculty are from other institutions. Ross has recently been based out of Ohio Dominican University, so the host university really has little to do with the quality of the program.
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The problem with HCSSIM is not the quality of the program, which remains very good. The problem is that Hampshire college could shut the doors at any time, and so a scheduled summer program might get shut out with little or no notice. It’s a small risk, but one unique to them.
Definitely recommend Mathcamp or HCSSIM. I attended Ross program last year and it was a very hectic experience. I am an international student as well(from Sri Lanka) and my time difference was not as bad as yours. The online experience was not structured for this program to cater to international students. Also, based on what I have heard about Mathcamp online program last year, will definitely recommend choosing that.