My S applied EA, but chose summer option if necessary to UP. Does anyone have details on this? For example, how many kids are enrolled, is it full time. Cost? Is that housing the same as the rest of freshman year? Any time off?
Sorry to ramble, any info would be great. Thanks and Good Luck!
https://summersession.psu.edu/first-year-students
There is also a helpful thread pinned at the top of the Penn State forum here. 
Thank you, missed that thread somehow
My daughter attended summer LEAP last year. Was the best experience and she was thrilled she did it. Met her best friends and got two great classes under her belt. There is no time off during the 6 weeks other than July 4th (and for her it was just the one day). And it is full time. The cost should be in the link above. Housing is usually not in East (the traditional Freshman housing- although you can request other places). She lived in the LEAP area all summer (can’t remember the dorms), was able to move her stuff into her room for the year in East (not set up) then came home for the week or so between summer and fall. I’m not sure how many enroll but it’s a pretty large program and the campus is busy. If you search for PSU summer session lots of info will come up.
There are about 10,000 students on campus on campus although LEAP is smaller. It means you get to have a smaller class (so, picking what would be large classes in the fall is a good idea, saving Foreign language and English for the Fall to continue having a few more small classes) and have a group of friends since you’re with classmates every day. It really helps in getting used to the campus and feeling like you ‘fit in’. It allows you got the ground running in the Fall. If you can afford it, it’s a great choice.
Best decision we could have ever made for our kids! Knocking off two courses in a more manageable environment allowed them to start fall with 4.0. Plus since they were ahead with credits, they were able to register for spring classes earlier than some of their peers. (The more credits you have, the earlier you register.) As a result, they’ve been able to mostly get all the classes they need, have a better schedule (no 8ams), and get professors of their preference.
Downsides: they lose their last summer, and they frankly are burned out by May. And it’s outrageously expensive for OOS families. Just my two cents.