<p>My student went to a few similar programs, with varying degrees of “selectivity” in the summers between high school. We both agreed that they were essentially “interest” activities for wealthy students, (some of which help subsidize scholarships for others at least) and I agree that you should look at it in that light. Adcoms know them as “resume padders” for the wealthy, and the “time and interest” commitment is minimal. So decide it as you would a vacation with family or similar. Is the cost, itinerary etc worth it to you? If you want to have an experience that has much more “admissions and life/work effect” maybe this type of activity would help you decide to focus in some way on a next activity that would have that “cred”. The things that “count” will involve personal investment: time, heart, study, work etc of significance, (not necessarily, and often better if it doesn’t particularly involve $$).</p>