<p>I have had the most phenomenal experiences at Johns Hopkins CTY. CTY manages to get a really interesting, quirky group of kids who love learning for the sake of learning. Even if your kid is challenged in school, they may be with a very competitive group of kids who get good grades to get good grades. At CTY, kids just love to learn, discuss, and create. </p>
<p>As for Breakthrough, I really hope to get the internship next summer!</p>
<p>My kids have had the classic summer experience: working at a local country club. They were able to walk there. They spent a little of their money, but saved most of it to use as spending money in college. Worked with a bunch of other HS and College-age kids — so a fairly fun way to spend the summer, too. Had to learn about customer service, accepting criticism graciously, getting up and out of the door on time etc. Very basic stuff…but helped them become more independent. On the scale of summer activities…fairly low stress and a nice break from academics. They have been able to participate in summer leagues for their sports, which has been an added bonus. One kid also did some volunteering for a local community service group…since the hours at the country club were limited for kids under 16 and were mostly weekend hours.</p>
<p>When this topic comes up as a new thread, I frequently post the comment from the Harvard admissions director about how good they think it is to get a “regular” summer job. Article is fairly old at this point, but they still keep it on the Harvard website: </p>
<p>"Summer need not be totally consumed by highly structured programs, such as summer schools, travel programs, or athletic camps. …An old-fashioned summer job that provides a contrast to the school year or allows students to meet others of differing backgrounds, ages, and life experiences is often invaluable in providing psychological downtime and a window on future possibilities. Students need ample free time to reflect, to recreate (i.e. to “re-create” themselves without the driving pressure to achieve as an influence), and to gather strength for the school year ahead. "</p>
<p>[Harvard</a> College Admissions § Applying: Taking Time Off](<a href=“http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/apply/time_off/index.html]Harvard”>http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/apply/time_off/index.html)</p>
<p>For many reasons, I’m glad this is the type of summer experience my kids have had. They have been very satisfied with it too, and have been glad there was no pressure to “perform” during the summer. (One kid is a high performer graduate of an HYPMS school, the other, a graduating HS senior who is not such a high performer, has already been admitted to his 1st choice school…)</p>
<p>One of the best experiences my kids had over the summer was when then went on an overseas Taiwan study tour for a month together with their cousin. They all had a great time & bonded so they are closer than ever! S was even able to find an employer who was fine with him taking off for a month in the middle of his summer internship.</p>
<p>The summer internships my kiddos have had: D worked at a public TV station & did a very tedious transcription of interviews on slack-key guitars. She liked answering the phones during the call-in portion of a show MUCH better. S has worked at a summer science program for 3 summers–he really enjoyed it and they went on a lot of field trips. He has also worked in a microbiology lab at the local U as well as an intern at NASA. He found all of the experiences interesting, tho they didn’t pay as well as he might wish.</p>
<p>I worked in an Endicott-Johnson shoe factor one summer. The brutally tough working conditions for low piecework pay was a motivation to do well in college. And working along side of middle aged men who had been in the factory for decades, it was the best learning experience I had as a teenager.</p>
<p>If you’re interested in a service academy attending one of their Summer Seminars is a good idea to see if you would really like it. A friend of DD2 attended USNA this year and DW went to the same at USAFA years ago.</p>
<p>My S had a great summer experience and he received an automatic scholarship with his SAT score that covered tuition, room & board- Plus he received 6 college credits. He went to the Summer College at Ole Miss, for hs students. They had many international students, so it was quite diverse. I think they even have some language programs that pair up the Intl’s with the language students. He worked as a bus boy in the month prior and the month after and made a lot of cash, so all in all it was a great Jr. summer.</p>
<p>this is geared towards participants at SCA</p>
<p>What kind of people go to SCA?
How old?
Do you have to be from the same region as where you want to work?</p>
<p>Gwen, Did your D do the summer study or internship program? Glad to hear the good review…my D is applying to the program in January. I was skeptical about spending $$ on a summer program when she asked…would rather she apply for a summer job. All her past summers have been low key (babysitting, volunteering in the rec dept., reading, hanging at the beach)…so I guess one summer enrichment program during her HS career is worth the price. </p>
<p>Modadunn – I am all for summer employment!! Great life lessons (about work and the value of money) and new skills and perspective.</p>
<p>My daughter also did a summer program at BU last summer and loved it. My older daughter did a one-week summer journalism program at UMDCP that she really liked. These programs are great for HS kids to get a feel for college, explore majors and helps them identify what type of school they want. </p>
<p>My college daughter studied abroad last summer because she did not want to miss an entire semester at her school. It seemed expensive on the surface, but it turns out that the credits she earned last summer will allow her to graduate early or be a part-time student her last semester, so we’ll recoup some of the cost on that end.</p>
<p>Thanks momjr…good too point out the focusing benefits (major/type of college desired). Bet it was FUN too.</p>
<p>I spent a summer in college interning at a US Embassy overseas. Normally, I would not have been able to do this, since the State Department requires interns to pay for their own airfare to and from their overseas internship posting. But it just so happened that when I was chosen I was wrapping up a semester abroad, and the tickets from my study abroad location to my internship site were relatively cheap (and I already had a return ticket from my study abroad location to the US, and I was able to just change the date on that). Plus, my college gives every student $2000 to do a summer internship, so I was able to use that to support myself during the summer (housing and transportation to/from work was free with the internship but we had to buy our own food) and to buy the plane ticket (though the State Dept. does offer some paid internships, and two of the people I interned with were paid). </p>
<p>It was an amazing summer. Not only did I get to experience life within a US embassy abroad, something hardly anyone outside of the foreign service gets to do, but I had lots of time on the weekends to travel and see different parts of the country and go to the beach. I made new friends among the interns, the embassy people, the locals, and I got to practice my language skills. I had applied for the State Dept internship twice before that summer and both times been rejected, so I guess third time’s the charm.</p>
<p>awalczak, here’s a bit of information, but I suggest you send a private message to catdaddy (posts #6 and #10 in this thread), as his high school aged son participated in SCA. My son did college level SCA internships.</p>
<p>The [SCA</a> website](<a href=“http://www.thesca.org/]SCA”>http://www.thesca.org/) has extensive information on the high school programs, ages 15-19. You could serve near or far from home. [The</a> Nat’l Conservation Crews](<a href=“http://www.thesca.org/serve/national-crews]The”>http://www.thesca.org/serve/national-crews) are located all across the country, while the [Community</a> Programs](<a href=“http://www.thesca.org/serve/community-programs]Community”>http://www.thesca.org/serve/community-programs) are designed for those who live within commuting distance of those areas.</p>
<p>The people as the SCA headquarters in New Hampshire are really nice and helpful, so you if you have questions after reviewing the website, you could call them. (603-543-1700)</p>
<p>Here are some [experiences</a> from SCA alumni](<a href=“http://www.thesca.org/follow-me]experiences”>http://www.thesca.org/follow-me) that offer some idea of the people who participate. I expect you’ll encounter kids with a great variety of interests while sharing a love of the out-of-doors, hiking, camping, etc. Hope this helps, and best of luck to you!</p>
<p>Best high school summer experience for DS was Hampshire College Summer Studies in Mathematics(HCSSiM). It was an amazing experience for him. </p>
<p>Best college summer experience: a paid internship in Tokyo, Japan. His college has a program sets up Japanese summer internships for students.</p>
<p>Pathways: Yes, the college summer programs were a lot of fun. It was a great opportunity to meet a lot of new people from different areas. I think it builds confidence for kids to head off to college without a group of friends.</p>
<p>Anything that got my son away from home was good. The WCATY (gifted/talented summer programs for 3 weeks) were good in the HS years. The college years summer spent in Seattle was supposed to be great weather, etc- but they had atypical high 90’s most of the summer and NO air conditioning, even in university buildings, much less housing. For student and parents the best time comes with that 12 month college apartment lease- an excuse to stay away from home and enjoy the summer in the college town. Love my kid, but… Bored at home is no good, especially for the rebellious teenage years.</p>