As admission to US universities, particularly the more selective ones, is getting more and more difficult, it is important that students choose to do something meaningful with their summer. Summer is also an opportunity to set yourself apart from the thousands of other applicants applying to the same universities you are targeting.
For those of you wanting to accelerate your study of biology or math, the summer after grade 9 would be a good time to do this – not the summer before entering grades 11 or 12. Leave the last summer or two prior to graduation for activities such as internships, research or to attend summer programs at university campuses that will both help you solidify the field you wish to focus on at university and get a taste of university life – maybe even on the campus of one of the ones you are targeting. Universities like students who demonstrate intellectual curiosity by engaging in learning during the summer. Some of them even ask in their applications how you spent the last two summers. Telling them that you took Social Studies 11 online and went to an SAT prep class is not going to impress them. That is not to say test prep is unimportant; it just does not have to take such a prominent role in your summer – you can do test prep along with other activities.
Keep in mind, that you can engage in more than one activity during a summer. For example, you can attend a 3 or 4-week summer program and have a 2-week summer job or internship. It is important not to overdo activities in the summer prior to entering grade 12 as this could be a summer for attending a shorter summer program (2-3 weeks on length) and spending time on completing university applications and writing essays to lessen our burden in the fall when school starts. IB students will likely be spending part of their summer on their Extended Essay.
Summer is a good time to do a variety of things such as the following:
- Put together a résumé of your activities and skills and look for an internship – this is valuable whether it is a paid internship or not. Job-shadowing is another option to help you narrow down your future career.
- Get a job. We’ve had students who were lifeguards, ran sports camps for little kids, or worked for a start-up company by helping out with a variety of tasks including programming or managing the company’s social media campaigns. Tutoring is another option.
- Be entrepreneurial. Whether you start a business designing websites for start-up businesses or for high school students wanting to showcase their many extracurricular engagements to universities or whether you start a dog-walking business or power washing business in your neighborhood, you learn from these valuable life experiences and you could save money to buy that new laptop for college.
- Send your résumé to several dozen university professors with a cover letter stating that your interests are within their area of expertise and you would like to take part in the research they are conducting. Of course, if you can work with them for a few weeks of the summer, that would be a wonderful experience, will be impressive to universities, and sometimes might even lead to you having your name on published research. This option requires perseverance and a tough skin, as unsolicited emails often go unanswered so start early and apply widely.
- Leave some time to research universities and take some notes for when you have to narrow down your list of campuses to apply to and also for when you have to write all those essays about why you want to attend each particular university or why you wish to study X there. This research can include some real and some virtual campus visits. If you visit in person, book both an information session and a tour.
- Community service is important so engage in service projects. One group of students put together a musical quartet and played at weddings and events and donated their income to a charity of their choice.
- There are a variety of summer programs that train you in leadership. This is a useful skill that will help you out in your high school life, during college, and later on with your career and personal life so it is worth investing in.
Regardless of what you choose to do, summer is a time for stepping out of your comfort zone and engaging in something interesting. Last but not least, you must leave a little time for rest and relaxation so that you can begin the next academic year refreshed and ready to tackle any and all challenges that come your way.