At the most selective US colleges, deferrals often end up as rejections, which is why we encourage most rejected applicants to see that decision as preferable. We hope other top colleges follow Yale’s lead on this—deferrals can be cruel!
Read more about Yale rejecting more applicants than it defers in the early round here.
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Beginning January 19, 2023, join DEC’s Hudson River Estuary Program for the Women in Science Virtual Speaker Series! Take part in four free webinars throughout January and February. Meet and learn from scientists, community leaders, and environmental educators who work at the intersection of research, education, and environmental and social justice. Engage in discussions about data literacy, sea-level rise and sediment accumulation, wetland restoration, oysters, and field-based research.
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Students choose an issue or question in science, technology, engineering, math, or health and then write an engaging 500-word explanation.
For this contest, The Learning Network invites you to bring that same spirit of inquiry and discovery to finding a STEM-related question, concept or issue you’re interested in, and, in 500 words or fewer, explaining it to a general audience in a way that not only helps us understand, but also engages us and makes us see why it’s important.
Contest Dates: Jan. 18 – Feb. 15, 2023. Learn more here!
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Whether you’re exploring which degree is right for you, determining where to apply, or looking for ways to increase your chances of acceptance, Poets & Quants has tons of FREE events that can help clarify your next steps. Head to Poets & Quants for more information and to register.
Top Entrepreneurship MBA Programs: January 10
Educate, inspire, spark, and embrace YOUR entrepreneurial spirit with Poets&Quants top-ranked MBA programs! Our unique content-based format gives real insight into the value of the MBA on the road to entrepreneurship. Discover ways you can use your degree as an incubator for a startup!
Online MBA Admissions Event: January 24 & 25
You’re thinking about an MBA and like the flexibility, pacing, and price tag of online program options offered by many of the top business schools. This event will offer insight into different programs, help you understand the learning experience, and get advice to stand out in the application process.
CentreCourt Full Time MBA Festival: February 7 & 8
CentreCourt will host three events throughout the year to help full-time MBA seekers explore programs that align with professional and personal goals. If you want insider insights from leadership from top programs this is the event for you!
CentreCourt Business Masters Festival: March 14 & 15
This event series is for those exploring a Masters in Management, Finance, Business Analytics or other specialized business degree. Through discussions with alumni, current students, admissions and career development teams, we invite you to join in to explore the benefits of specialization and to help determine which is the best fit for you, your skillset, and your career aspirations.
PreMBA Virtual Networking Festival: May 11 & 12
Are you starting a graduate business degree in 2023? It’s never too early to forge important connections, become savvier about your internship and career options, and get a head start on your business school pivot. Meet with top employers and network with your peers from business schools all over the globe!
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Everyone should read the Georgia Tech admissions blog.
Read rick Clark’s recent post here. For juniors, this section for seniors is important. Read it now, and read it again this summer when you finalize your college list.
Be reminded that your chances of being admitted to a school with an admit rate below 20% do not go up 20% by applying to 20% more of those schools. Trade out “dream school” for IRL colleges. Apply to a group of schools (you figure out the number but generally more than 2 and less than 10) where you know you will be thrilled to get in and excited to go.*
*and we might add: where you can actually get in! Thanks always, Georgia Tech, for keeping it real!
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There are tons of interesting and fun summer programs out there! However, the ones we most often suggest are those that help you explore your academic interests. As part of your college application, they help demonstrate your intellectual curiosity and commitment to an area of study (typically, the one you might pursue in college).
The following programs are some of our favorites for students interested in science/science research.
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Scholars Program
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Scholars Program offers stipend-paid internship opportunities for undergraduate and graduate-level university students pursuing STEM degrees, as well as upper-level high school students; select locations also offer internships to university students pursuing education-related degrees and K–12 professional educators. The selected interns gain valuable hands-on experiences working with full-time AFRL scientists and engineers on cutting-edge research and technology and are able to contribute to unique, research-based projects.
Anson L. Clark Scholars Program
Through this seven-week, intensive research program, 12 juniors and seniors will have the opportunity to participate in hands-on research in a variety of areas at Texas Tech University with faculty. Scholars receive room and board, and at the successful completion of a project report, they will earn a $750 stipend. In addition to research, scholars will participate in activities, seminars, and field trips.
Garcia Program, Stony Brook University
This is an intensive seven-week program for gifted high school students which combines formal instruction with independent research and allows students to design original research projects with guidance from Garcia Center faculty, students, and staff. Students can continue during the academic year in the Mentor Program, which allows them to plan a research schedule with a faculty mentor throughout the year. Pre-arranged transportation and class schedules are coordinated with local school boards to enable students from a large geographical area to enroll in the program. Almost three hundred high school students have participated in this program since its inception.
Research Science Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Each summer, 80 of the world’s most accomplished high school students gather at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for the Research Science Institute (RSI). RSI is the first cost-free to students, summer science & engineering program to combine on-campus coursework in scientific theory with off-campus work in science and technology research. Participants experience the entire research cycle from start to finish. They read the most current literature in their field, draft and execute a detailed research plan, and deliver conference-style oral and written reports on their findings. RSI scholars first participate in a week of intensive STEM classes with accomplished professors. The heart of RSI is the five-week research internship where students conduct individual projects under the tutelage of mentors who are experienced scientists and researchers. During the final week of RSI, students prepare written and oral presentations on their research projects.
NASA & CalTech Jet Propulsion Lab
NASA Office of STEM Engagement (OSTEM) paid internships allow high school and college-level students to contribute to agency projects under the guidance of a NASA mentor.
COSMOS, University of California (Multiple Campuses)
COSMOS is an intensive four-week summer residential program for students who have demonstrated an aptitude for academic and professional careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects. Talented and motivated students completing grades 8-12 have the opportunity to work with renowned faculty, researchers and scientists in state-of-the-art facilities, while exploring advanced STEM topics far beyond the courses usually offered in California high schools. Through challenging curricula that are both hands-on and lab intensive, COSMOS fosters its students’ interests, skills, and awareness of educational and career options in STEM fields.
Simons Summer Research Program, Stony Brook University
Established in 1984 as an outreach program for local high school students, the Simons Summer Research program now attracts applicants from all across the country to the Stony Brook campus: Simons Fellows are matched with Stony Brook faculty mentors, join a research group or team, and assume responsibility for a project. The Simons Fellows conclude their apprenticeship by producing a written research abstract and a research poster. In addition to learning valuable techniques and experiencing life at a major research university, Simons Fellows attend weekly faculty research talks and participate in special workshops, tours and events. At the closing poster symposium, students are presented with a $1,000 stipend award. Learn more here.
SSP is not a “camp.” It is a unique immersion experience with a strong culture that has evolved over more than half a century. It is talented young people discovering their limits, then overcoming them through collaboration. It is the shock of not being the smartest person in the room, followed by the joy of realizing that’s not a problem, it’s an opportunity. In high school, teenagers learn about science. At SSP, they do science. That’s different! SSP is research, not coursework. Participants collaborate in teams of three. Everyone learns from – and teaches – everyone else.
SIMR is an 8-week summer internship program open to high school juniors and seniors. The program consists of hands-on research under the direct guidance of a one-on-one mentor at a top class lab within the Institutes of Medicine at Stanford University as well as select departments. Students applying to the program can choose from our eight areas of research (institutes). After being accepted, they are then assigned to a specific institute based on their choices.
Non-“Program” Ideas We Love
Khan Academy Modules
Free Online Classes from Top Colleges & Universities
Lab Internship/Shadow
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The chance to help students (and parents!) tackle the process of applying to college. It means a lot to us!
Seniors: if you recently applied or are in the process of applying to college, my guess is you didn’t do it alone. Say thank you to the people who helped you make it happen, such as parents, guidance counselors, teachers, “other” letter of recommendation writers, admissions officers who hosted special events at your high school, friends who read your essays, and test prep tutors, just to name a few!
Why do I think this is important? An attitude of gratitude is—according to positive psychology research—strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness. Harvard agrees.
Also super grateful for our entire team and their dedication to supporting students and families. Happy Thanksgiving!
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The college admissions process is a constantly changing landscape!
Join Isaac Foster and Brittany Maschal for a virtual panel discussion designed to inform you about steps your family can take during high school to best prepare for the college admissions process.
This event is free. Click here to register. A Zoom link will be emailed out to registered guests prior to the event.
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We get this question a lot, and it’s a good one! Here’s what the Common App has to say:
You are allowed to submit your application before your counselor or teachers submit their school forms whether they choose to do so online or on paper. The Common Application system allows recommendations to be submitted even after the application has been submitted.
Before you submit your application, please follow up with your teachers and counselors to ensure they will be able to complete and submit a recommendation prior to the school’s stated application deadline.
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What does it take to get admitted to a state university in Florida?
Join JRA Associates for a webinar at 7:00 PM Eastern on September 7, 2022.
This session will specifically address Florida’s State University System (SUS). You can sign up here. Here’s what you’ll learn:
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