Precollege programs--effect on college admissions/has anyone participated in one?

Question

I'm a high school junior this year. I'm valedictorian of my class of 500, and thus, I'm looking to apply to and attend a top college.

This summer, I was planning to work as a day camp counselor--same thing I've done for the past 3 years. But seeing as this is the "college crunch time," my parents and I are beginning to think that perhaps I should take some sort of for-credit precollege program instead. I know of many schools that offer them (Harvard, Brown, Yale, etc), and my mom said she'd reimburse me for not earning a salary this summer.

However, I'm trying to figure out if I really want to dedicate my summer to more school. Has anyone attended one of these programs, and if you did, what were your thoughts? Also, does anyone know how much they'd truly affect college admissions?

Answer 1

Wow, you have a nice mom...

Those programs do usu. teach you something. They're also really expensive and won't always count as college credit w/o you going through some trouble at the school you matriculate in (they will usu. serve as a means of placing you in a more advanced class at college). Many of the people who attend them are, well, not so well-rounded or socially-adept to put it nicely.

If you enjoy your camp job and think you're getting something out of it (other than just the money), do that instead. It'll be work experience which is going to be more-than-fine with any admissions office and should potentially provide you with some skills you can never learn in a classroom. And it shows that you do other things in your life than sit a classroom all-day (that isn't meant as an insult, just that you've already proved you excel in academics).

And um, if you #1 out of 500 people, that's going to count a whole lot more than what you did with your summer (as long as you don't do anything really silly).

If you have free time during the summer, consider studying for the SAT/ACT. While you may have already done this, if you haven't, it should prove to have a positive effect on your scores. Your tests scores are also going to be given considerable weight when you apply.

Answer 2

The factor with pre-school systems is that anyone can attend it and there is not any selective approach concerned. Essentially, an applicant who has no longer attended this kind of application isn't at a drawback. That mentioned, adding it for your software could do you no damage and in case you reap a few revel in from it, you might even point out it for your essays. This will exhibit admission officials that you've got the critical perception for the distinctive field, on this case -- biomedical engineering. If you'll be able to attach it again in your ambition of fitting a physician, then fine activity that could deliver you an side. But you could want the critical GPA, SAT rankings, extracurriculars and so on. as good to make it to the highest med faculties. Good success along with your packages!

Answer 3

I attended a precollegiate program at Berkeley for gifted students and took courses in calculus (as a soph. in HS), writing, and social science. It helped me to get an idea of the college experience and basically a foot in at Berkeley. I was later accepted to Berkeley but they didn't give as much free money as UCLA so I opted for UCLA. I believe that the program somewhat helped me to get into UCLA and more importantly, the reason why they gave me more money. In an Ivy League, it could be somewhat of an advantage in a competitive applicant pool and you probably need all the advantages you can get with those schools. It's worth it if the school pays for the program but otherwise, just work on good grades and a high SAT score along with extracurriculars.

Answer 4

You should probably take summer classes at a community college like your basics that would be a lot easier than a precollege program offered by Ivy League schools. That way you can enjoy your summer and work and go to class at the same time.

Answer 5

I really recommend it. Especially with the Ivy League schools. I did this and met a TON of useful contacts at the school. It'll look good on your college application, and even better if you apply to the school where you took the program at. Like I mentioned earlier too, you'll meet a lot of people, talk to some students who are in the program you're interested in, and meet some professors, and meet a lot of contacts within the department that will be VERY helpful to have later on the road.