How important are summer programs & internships for college admissions?

[314159265]

The Princeton admissions officer who read my application told me at Princeton Preview that it's almost expected that students do something during the summer before senior year. He added that even more students are doing something during the summers before junior and sophomore years as well.

However, this something doesn't have to be a summer program you pay for. The Princeton admissions officer described this "something" as an activity that rounds out a component of an applicant's profile. For example, mock trial was a big component of my application; my admissions officer told me that my summer internship with the County DA's Office before my senior year really highlighted my commitment/passion for mock trial (and, naturally, for law).

So, what's important isn't the name of the summer program; what's important is how it relates to your interests (or how it makes you interested in something new). But you have do be doing something of use, especially before senior year.

[madbean]

I'll enter my own observation that whatever a kids does during HS summers, it will not hurt his/her application. So if chilling and refueling from hard academic year, working for $$, traveling, attending paid for summer program, etc, none of that will hurt the applicant. However, for admission consideration at many highly selective universities with holistic review, these summers do offer opportunities for the applicant to distinguish him/herself from the pile of other extremely well qualified files the adcom is considering. If she writes a play and gets a student troupe to perform it, or works in a lab and makes a contribution, or initiates any sort of activity that enhances known interests--like fundraising, art, starting a website, research, etc etc, this will all help tell that student's story. When added to good grades, scores, and choice of major, the adcom can see how much initiative that student has.

The only trouble with paid-for summer programs (aside from the connotation of family wealth), is they may appear as passive activities. The student arrives and follows the program. Often, the student writes a paper, creates an art piece, gains specific insights into the culture, etc at the program and these can be used in the essay, I feel, to help the adcom see how such programs have helped the student's growth and independence.

[compmom]

I hope a lot of people on CC get to read this by the head of admissions at Harvard, concerning the stress level involved in doing all the right things to get into selective schools:

Harvard College Admissions § Applying: Taking Time Off

The burnout, depression and anxiety rate at Ivy league and other "top" schools is very high. The game of "doing the right thing" just continues through the college years, with a new focus of Wall Street or grad/med/law/business school.

There are many, many great schools out there. Loren Pope's books are helpful in getting a start at looking at some of them, but there are many other resources as well.

I think it is healthy to stay home and chill a little, during high school summers, while also working or volunteering at something that either interests you or pays some bills, ideally both - but working w/out pay can be worthwhile financially in the long run.

How about a clever essay about the joys of doing nothing once in awhile?!

[qialah]

So, what's important isn't the name of the summer program; what's important is how it relates to your interests (or how it makes you interested in something new)

Bingo. In my experience as an alumni interviewer it's very, very difficult to impress an ad com with a summer activity per se. What matters is that you can reflect on the experience intelligently.

[colorado_mom]

From what I've read, it's only the free elite programs that make good impression. The pay-for programs can be very useful to the student, but they are not worth financial sacrifice in hopes of an admit boost.

Methinks kids should do what interests them in hs and not expect an Ivy admit. If it comes, they should consider it a bonus. The truth is there are soooo many students applying that is is a crapshoot for most anyway.

[collegealum314]

Summer programs do not help for the vast majority of top 10 colleges (outside of ones that are extremely exclusive like RSI). It might help at Caltech and maybe MIT. Also, it might help for good colleges outside of the top 10, though, particularly if you can demonstrate academic prowess through aforementioned program (for instance, getting an "A" in a college class.)

[oldfort]

Summer programs do not help for the vast majority of top 10 colleges

Since there are only 10, which of top 10s do not consider summer programs important? Just out of curiousity, how would you which one considers summer programs important and which one doesn't?

[collegealum314]

^My feeling is that taking a college class or some other academic experience would help in Caltech admissions and maybe in MIT admissions. A ton of people I met at MIT had taken college classes the summer after junior year, though that was in the 90's and MIT doesn't have the same selection criteria.

Also, maybe places like Cornell or U. of Chicago, places not quite so competitive that a display of academic prowess like getting an 'A' in a college class would still be an asset. (Also, U. of Chicago places a special emphasis on recruiting intellectuals.) For the others, you would be better off spending it creating some kind of community service organization the summer before junior year.

How do I know? Well, observation of college results and rhetoric from admissions offices I guess. It's not an exact science.

[Mom2jl]

My son was admitted to all of the schools he applied to, including Stanford, where he will attend in September. Because he worked so hard during the school year and was very stressed out, we were of the mind that it was important for him to recharge his batteries every summer. So, he mostly relaxed by reading, hanging out with his friends (mostly playing video games) and traveling on family trips. Besides his good grades and test scores, I'm sure the reason he was admitted to several top schools was probably because of his well-written, insightful essays and maybe his recommendations. The fact that he wasn't very busy in the summers didn't seem to be a factor, at least for him.

[oldfort]

Cornell's Hotel school absolutely requires hospitality work experience. If U of Chicago look for intellectuals, then they would like their applicants to have been selected to some highly selective summer programs or some meaningful summer EC. I think students from Chicago would tell you that it is highly competitive, and self selecting. For all of those schools, it takes a lot more than just getting As to be admitted. They turn down quite a few 4.0 students.

[mathmom]

^My kid who got into U of Chicago did nothing intellectual over the summer. What he did do was write a pretty wacky essay, with a funny ending and another essay about a volunteer activity where he describes what he learned about the history of our neighborhood through archiving the papers of the neighborhood association. He showed himself thinking like a historian by the way he wrote about the subject.

[oldfort]

^I guess it proves collegealum's point that U Chicago is not as a competitive of school as other top 10 schools. I was wrong.

[compmom]

Mom 2 jl, liked your post and agree. And he arrived at college in good shape, no doubt, without the burnout and competitive intensity of so many others.

[AzNasty21]

This thread has been completely insightful and wonderful to read but I have one question. I am a rising senior while doing an internship right now during the summer but I wonder how do the admissions officers of various colleges know if I am doing this internship or not. How do colleges know if students actually do a college program, internship, or take a class?

[Pizzagirl]

The whole question of "how important are summer programs" presupposes that you're racking up points, and summer programs give you x number of points. They may be important in the overall profile of one kid, and unimportant for another.