Anyone have a quick take on Stanford Summer Camp? S got letter "invite". I know the area well/lived nearby many yrs, we're more interested in the quality of the program than area sights and culture.
Also, from what I know about Stanford (the university) I believe that, should S attend camp it would have zero impact on SU assessment of him were he to apply next fall. True?
Still interested in hearing camp experiences, regardless of advantages it may/may not confer to potential applicants. Thanks.
I had a GREAT time at camp. A great summer. You have a lot of freedom so it really feels like your in college, the camp is beautiful, you get to have a seminar with the admission officer.
Yes, they tell you the camp doesn't have much impact on your SU admission. Actually they mean that it doesn't have an impact on your admission to SU specifically. For example, if you did summer college at Harvard or Yale, it looks just as good as doing it at Stanford. Still I recommend it because doing a summer college program still looks great. I ended up writing my common app essay about the experience!
I def recommend it. You take real college classes with their real professors and with other college students (I was in class with actually people who attend the college). Still you get to learn the area (campus, Palo Alto), and San Francisco.
I took more classes than the usual student (most people took 2 or 3), but since art and tennis aren't really academic i thought it was fine and I don't regret it!
I also attended the camp. It was one of the greatest experiences I've ever had. Students were awesome, academics was world-class (you really get to work your butt off and learn how you would do at such a premier university), and rules weren't so strict (you get to travel a lot and most of the time, the program paid for us, so the cost wasn't so expensive if you consider that). Personally, I believe that high school grades and the SAT are what the adcoms use to evaluate if you can handle the college work. If you can actually do the college work and do well, then how would that not help at all? Say, two students have identical stats, but one got a GPA of 4.00 at Stanford for the summer, but the other has nothing, then surely, the one who is able to thrive at college level will be favored. Any thoughts?
I agree Themust. The only thing I was saying is that whether you do summer college at Stanford or Yale, will not affect your admisssion at Stanford. Both camps would look great. Still, doing summer college looks good regardless. What year did you go btw? I went summer 2008
I think that is a valid argument and a logical conclusion (but I'm not in admissions) .
This son did John Hopkins CTY down @ Loyola Marymount two summers in a row: Biology, then Game Theory, 3 weeks solid per subject. Then last summer does 9 weeks making .60 cents/hr., 12 hr days, working as a ranger/camp counselor for the Boy Scouts at a remote camp out at the Oregon coast. Guess what he wants to do next summer - it isn't sitting in a classroom in Palo Alto...not sure if that's going to make a killer resume, but hey, it definitely is his passion.
Well honestly, we really didn't spend much time in class. Say for example you take 2 classes that meet 2 times a week for 2 hours. You could have 1 class a day for 2hours and no class on friday. The rest of the time you have for whatever you like: going to the gym, hanging out with friends, swimming, studying, visiting Palo Alto/San Francisco, going to the movies, and whatever else you like. There are 2 dances and plenty of restaurants around. Still if he has something else he is passionate about and really wants to do he should definitely go for it, but I dont want you to have the idea that the whole time your there you just go to class and study, study, study (well if you want to you can).
I'm going to have to go ahead and play the Devil's Advocate here.
I had a nice chat with my Stanford Admissions Officer after my acceptance and he said that one of the things that he liked about my app was that I worked over my summers, blue and white collar, instead of attending summer camps like Stanford's. Now, I'm sure Stanford runs a great program and that the experience/instruction is outstanding, but I wouldn't call it a resume booster. It just shows that you have a couple thousand dollars ready to spend and that you're willing to send your privileged child to camp for a few weeks. Not to mention, piles upon piles of applicants to these schools will have attended similar camps, making him blend further into the flock.
It sounds to me like if this Boy Scouts camp is his passion then he should go for it. It would certainly make him stand out and if he's going for that "scouting theme" for his app, it would bolster efforts on that front.
Not at all being a Devils' Advocate...I like your point...I saw the difference in my 16 yr old after nine wks as a ranger. He had to do a real interview for this job, and ended up handling issues, learning skills, that just wouldn't have arisen in a college camp. Annd let's not forget that the "priveleges" you correctly refer to can extend to other areas, i.e., paying thousands to fly somewhere else in the world to build houses for needy or learn about third-world issues first-hand. Laudable goals, but need big bucks to pull it off. In the end, it's up to admissions to sort it out.
