By accident, I came across a for profit program in Uchicago, this is a summer youth program for the high school students. It only lasts 9 days and costs around $4000. I am wondering why a university like Chicago, JHU and Emory will accommodate such a program. What value does it provide to the participants.
Lots and lots (and lots and lots) of universities and colleges host unaffiliated, for-profit summer programs. Why? Easy money. It also gives high school students a taste of what it’s like to live on at hat college campus. My D19 did “Explo” on the Yale campus between her freshman and sophomore year, for example. She loved it.
At least the explo program is run by a non-profit organization
These high school pre-colleges are a huge money mill. Some are run by outside organzations leasing space and other resources from the university, others are run by the university itself. A few are helpful (ie a music or visual arts program might help you build up a repertoire or portfolio to show music and art schools when you apply, and might also expose you to key faculty who can write a LOR), and a very few might improve your chances of getting admitted to the school itself. The vast majority will NOT. Enroll if you find it enriching or a good way to test out a major, but don’t expect it to help your admission chances directly. Of course, the experience will provide some good insights and material for your college essays, and that will help your chances anywhere. Colleges want to understand what you’ve learned more than where you’ve been.