@hellounicorns I don’t think anyone has made a Facebook group yet, but feel free to make one haha, I’ll be sure to join!
Hi Everyone! I’m an alumni from SSTP last year, and I would definitely recommend this program.
Lemme c/p what I wrote on another thread about this program:
“I went to SSTP at Uiowa last year, and I can say that it was definitely one of the most memorable summers of my life. I think I may have told khanhvu98kk about it, but the environment definitely does have quite a few places for entertainment and “fun” We’ll often go on a bunch of trips to ice skating rinks, observatories, aquariums, baseball games, etc. and there are a ton of cafes and stuff around the town. We also got the chance to go to a jazz festival there and get hooked with ping-pong lol.
Entertainment aside, the research there is legit, although it varies from lab to lab like any other research program. Most of the labs are biology-focused in SSTP (even the engineering lab, which I was in), and I know some people did pretty well in science fair with their projects. At least one person I know made ISEF with the project she did at SSTP.
If you’re debating over SSTP because of other events during the summer, don’t worry; they’re generally pretty chill with any other arrangements you have. One person was gone half the time because of MOSP, and a couple of us left for like a week because of FBLA Nationals (myself included). You’ll definitely meet pretty talented individuals there, and a bunch of the seniors last year made like Ivy Leagues and stuff.”
Overall, it’s a great experience, but it’s really what you make of it. I’m pretty sure other alumni of the program can testify to it, and feel free to PM me if you have any other questions!
Also, in terms of participation, we had around 40 people last year, since I think they adjust it based on the number of people who apply. I actually do not know the acceptance rate though, but say hi to steven and julius (the RA’s) if you end up going 
Yeah def. say hello to Steven, Julius, Echo, and Maliya…especially Julius
Dew, are you the guy whose name started with a law?
PM me schakrab. Roomed with Mr. State Parliamentarian if that confirms anything.
@hellounicorns hi!! i’m an sstp alum from last year. i was also placed in ob/gyn (although it was my first choice). do you know who your mentor is? for my research, i participated in a qualitative study on the stigma surrounding infertility. my mentor also let me shadow some surgeries and patient appointments which were really cool! two of my friends who were placed in a different ob/gyn lab actually did a quantitative study on pre-eclampsia in women (grinding up mice livers and all that fun stuff). even though ob/gyn wasn’t your first choice i’m sure you’ll still learn a ton of stuff and have a good time (:
@katsanddogs Hi! My mentor is Dr. Santillan. Thanks for all the feedback! I’m probably going to SSTP this summer
@hellounicorns Dr. Santillan is the one doing pre-eclampsia research! I’m not sure if he’s still working on that, but either way enjoy SSTP!
Did anyone get an email about the course fee yet? Also, to alumni, how much money did you bring?
I got in (astrophysics), SAT of 2100 and GPA ~3.8 but I’m homeschooled so most of my grades have come from advanced math/science classes I’ve duel-enrolled at a university.
@hellounicorns I never got an email about course fee, maybe they’re waiting until the spring semester at uiowa is over?
Also, question for alumni: Did you receive any information beforehand about what you should bring or who your roommate will be?
PS. I live in Iowa City so if you have questions about what it’s like here I might be able to answer them.
For course fee, I think that should have been on the lab match email that they sent you with your acceptance (the fee which you pay online on the application website).
Most of the information comes around like the end of May or so, with various forms and things that you need to scan. However, there will be a travel chat room sort of thing that’s password protected that will allow you to arrange flights and stuff, and that should be emailed sooner.
For roommates, I think that’s supposed to be a surprise when you get there.
So I got off the wait list, and I have a few questions
Are most of the people going from Iowa? (I’m from the north east)
Also I play an instrument and don’t want to get rusty over the five weeks, and was thinking about renting an instrument in Iowa City. I know there is some afternoon free time, and I’m not interested in practicing a crazy amount each day, I just don’t want to not play for 5 whole weeks. Alumni, did anyone do this last year? Is this far-fetched?
I was accepted but I’m not sure if I’m going to go. My high school prom is on June 25th and I really wanted to go. I mean maybe I could come late to SSTP? Or does it seem silly to miss nearly a week out of a five week program?
@kitkat last year, only a few people were from Iowa. Many of the individuals were from California (my school had 4 people attend), and SSTPers are spread out all across the U.S. We even had a couple of international students (one from South Korea), so you’ll meet a lot of different people. For the instrument part, I think that should be fine! One person (from Iowa) brought his trumpet along for part of the time since he was in the marching band for his school, and he practiced for a while at the University.
@kookypuppy98 you can come later without any problems. I think I mentioned it in a previous post, but we had someone come late like two weeks because of one of the olympiad training camps. And a couple of us left for like a week because of FBLA nationals. There are usually a couple people who will miss like a week or so from SSTP
Has anyone received an email on how to sign up for the courses after getting admitted to ISIS?
Not yet 
Does anyone know what sorts of courses we’re even taking? I haven’t seen any information anywhere about that, either.
@mrcaulfield the course at SSTP pretty much just tells you stuff like the basics for writing a research paper/abstract, making poster presentations, tips to keep in mind for conducting research, info about different research competitions, etc. The class is pretty easy, and you’ll be fine as long as you take the research seriously (since your professor apparently gives you a rating at the end lol).
Hi guys, I’m applying for Iowa SSTP 2016, and I saw that my teachers have not finished my rec letters. Do they accept rec letters after the deadline?