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Alternate Routes to High School Success
Page 3 of 5
By GreatSchools Staff
Summer Programs
Another option for your advanced student is to find appropriate, challenging programs she can attend during the summer. Many programs located on college campuses provide high school students with challenging academics and a taste of college life.
Center for Talent Development at Northwestern University offers three-week courses in both Chicago and Cleveland (Case Western Reserve University). Fourth through 12th-grade classes are offered in Chicago while 7th to 12th-grade classes are offered in Cleveland. Residential and commuter options are available.
The National High School Institute at Northwestern University is the nation's oldest and largest university-based summer program for outstanding high school students. Programs are offered in journalism, debate, theatre arts, music, film and video production, at the Evanston, Illinois campus. Students gain practical college-level experience in their chosen field and live in college dorms.
Duke TIP (Duke University Talent Indentification Program) includes residential, educational summer programs designed to meet the intellectual and social needs of gifted students in grades 7-12. Programs are held on college campuses across the country and in field locations around the world. Financial aid is available for most programs. Students learn highly challenging material at a rate suited to their advanced abilities. Students enroll in a single course for three weeks of in-depth study. Classes of approximately 16 students are taught by highly qualified instructor/teaching assistant teams. Outside the classroom, a carefully selected residential staff supervises students during meals, free time, and social and recreational activities. Program participants experience college classroom instruction and residence hall living. Campuses include Duke University, Duke Marine Lab, Appalachian State University, Davidson College, University of Kansas and Texas A&M.
Duke TIP also offers a summer field study program with challenging adventures in science and the humanities for motivated students in grades 9 to 12. Each field study involves travel to a location that is ideal for research and creative exploration. In each field study, 16 to 20 students participate, with a minimum of three staff members who remain with the students throughout the entire course. Courses include: "Astronomy, Physics and Astrobiology"at the PARI Observatory in North Carolina; "Field Ecology and Mountain Geology"at the Mountain Lake Biological Station in Virginia; "China: A Leader in the Global Economy,"in Beijing; "Tropical Medicine and Ethnobiology"in Costa Rica.
The Great Books Summer Program offers students in grades 6 to 12 the opportunity to read and discuss selections from classic and contemporary literature in one- or two-week residential programs with college professors and top faculty at Amherst College and Stanford University. College and graduate students serve as counselors. There is ample time for recreation, too, and students have access to the college pool and other facilities during their stay.
Harvard University Summer Secondary School Program grants high school students the opportunity to take college-level classes at Harvard as well as college-prep workshops in writing the college application essay, financial aid, time management and taking effective notes. Although attending this summer program certainly does not guarantee admission to Harvard, students do have the opportunity to meet admissions staff and attend a talk by a Harvard admissions officer. There's also ample time for exploring Cambridge, engaging in athletic and cultural activities, and visiting nearby colleges.
