Why You Should Apply to Princeton’s Summer Programs for High School Students
As a high school student, the advantages of enrolling in a Princeton summer program are invaluable. These programs, hosted by an Ivy League university, offer unparalleled opportunities to engage with faculty, delve into diverse subjects, and collaborate with peers from all over the world. Participating also enhances your college admissions profile by showcasing initiative and commitment while providing a unique connection to one of the world’s top universities. From sports camps to journalism, you can find a plethora of prestigious programs to spend your summer at Princeton!
What summer programs are available to high school students?
Princeton Laboratory Learning Program (PLLP): This 5–6 week residential free program offers a full-time and immersive research experience, providing a unique chance for you to actively contribute to ongoing projects in the sciences and engineering fields.
Princeton Summer Journalism Program (PJSP) : This free, multi-week, hybrid summer intensive journalism program takes a liberal arts approach, encompassing discussions on humanities, arts, culture, social events, and history, enriching students’ contextual understanding of journalism.
Princeton University Preparatory Program (PUPP): This free year-long program selects PUPP Scholars during their freshman year of high school teaching them collaboration, presentation, listening, and debating skills, and offers a transformative six-week Summer Institute at Princeton in the following summer.
Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) High School Summer Internship: This 8–10 week free residential summer internship for graduating high school seniors offers hands-on experience in experimental or computational projects in plasma physics.
Program in Algorithmic and Combinatorial Thinking (PACT): This 4-week paid residential program covers discrete mathematics and algorithmic principles, while also exposing students to the various fields within computer science.
W.E.B DuBois Scholars Institute: This 5-week paid residential scholars institute offers three distinctive academies - engineering, leadership, and pre-med/biological sciences. It is designed to stimulate intellectual curiosity, foster critical thinking, and provide an immersive exploration of specific disciplines.
Princeton Sports Camps: These paid residential camps (usually 1–5 days) cater to a wide array of sports, covering baseball, basketball, cross country, fencing, field hockey, football, ice hockey, lacrosse, rowing, rugby, soccer, squash, softball, strength and conditioning, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field, volleyball, water polo, and wrestling.
The James Madison Seminar on the Principles of American Constitutionalism: This 1-week paid residential seminar for upper-level high-school students and college freshmen explores the fundamental questions surrounding equality and liberty in American political life.
Are Princeton Summer Programs prestigious?
Princeton’s Summer Programs are highly competitive and prestigious. Every year, the Princeton Laboratory Learning Program receives over 700 applicants to fill a cohort of roughly 40, accepting approximately 6% of applicants.
While statistics are not available for other programs, cohorts tend to be 40 students. Each program’s association with Princeton University provides it with the elevated status and name value of the university itself.
Who is eligible to participate?
Each program's specific eligibility requirements are different but, in most cases -
students must be enrolled in a U.S. high school
have a good academic record (GPA > 3.5)
be at least 16 years old.
International students enrolled in a U.S. high school can also apply. Note that Princeton does not sponsor visas for its summer programs.
Students must be freshmen (PUPP), juniors (PJSP), or graduating seniors (PPPL), for specific programs. However, other programs are open to high school students from any year. PSJP and PUPP explicitly state that they prioritize students who are of low-income backgrounds with limited opportunities for academic advancement, however, PUPP scholars must attend one of the 5 partner high schools listed here.
What is the application process?
Students will be required to fill out an online application. They will need to submit details on academics and family finances, their guidance counselor’s contact information, an unofficial high school transcript, and recommendation letters from a high school teacher and counselor. In addition, students may be required to complete short and long answer questions. These questions will involve describing themselves and why they are interested in the program.
Most summer programs have their application deadline in February. Some programs have multiple application rounds which run through April and May. Semi-finalists are typically expected to submit additional documents, like federal taxes, family income information, and samples from a high school newspaper or publication if available. Finalists usually go through a video interview with those involved in the program.
What is the timeline & structure?
Princeton Summer programs run from June to August, spanning anywhere between one week to ten weeks on campus. The PUPP program is a year-long program with weekly meetings in students’ high schools culminating in a 6-week on-campus summer institute. PJSP is a hybrid program, where students partake in classes online and spend ten days on the Princeton campus. Sports camps run between 1–5 days with a specific check-in and check-out time.
Most programs immerse students in in-depth research guided by faculty members, post-doc students, and other campus members. Students are expected to work alongside Princeton college students in laboratories, conducting experiments, and learning to interpret experimental data. Students are then expected to write a research paper that may or may not be published, but will be presented at the end of the program.
Princeton’s PUPP, PJSP, PPPL, and PLLP are free-of-cost merit-based summer programs. PACT costs $1850, W.E.B DuBois Scholars Institute costs $2600, and The James Madison Seminar on the Principles of American Constitutionalism is $250. Princeton’s sports camps can range from a day camper fee of $160 to an overnight camper fee of $875.
What you need to know to get accepted and complete Princeton Summer Programs
To be accepted into Princeton Summer Programs, applicants typically need to demonstrate a strong academic record, showcasing excellence in relevant subjects and a genuine interest in the specific program they are applying for. Most programs require the submission of application materials, including transcripts, recommendation letters, and sometimes essays or personal statements. Successful applicants often have a well-rounded profile that highlights not only academic achievements but also extracurricular involvement and a passion for the subject matter of the program.
Upon acceptance, completing Princeton Summer Programs requires active participation, commitment to the program’s schedule, and a willingness to engage in collaborative learning environments. Outside of their research, students are expected to contribute actively to ongoing projects, attend seminars and guest lectures, and take advantage of mentorship opportunities. Networking with peers and mentors, as well as fully engaging in the program’s academic and extracurricular components, enhances the overall experience and contributes to successful participation.
Why should you attend a Princeton Summer Program?
You will boost your college application profile: Princeton’s Summer Programs are selective, most of them offering limited seats (around 40 every year). Conducting research at the college is also considered prestigious, with Princeton being one of the country’s leading research academies. Participating in a summer program at Princeton would drive a strong, positive impression in the mind of an admission officer.
You can explore Princeton’s campus and offerings: If you’ve wondered what it would be like to go to Princeton as a student, you can experience it over the summer! With most programs, you will get to be on campus for a few weeks, attending classes, going to the dining hall, and living in the dorms while still in high school. This is a major advantage for when you’re deciding whether you like Princeton and you would like to apply for the college because you have an idea of what the facilities and community are like.
You have the opportunity to attend Princeton at no cost: For many Princeton students, going to classes and living on campus are costs to be paid for, but for a PSJP, PUPP, PLLP, and PPPL attendee, expenses will be completely taken care of. Many residential college programs may require participants to pay in full or partially for the summer experience, but these programs want their students to not be limited by financial circumstances.
You get to work on actual research conducted by the university: If selected, most of Princeton’s Summer Program embed their participants into a research team led by a faculty member that includes postdoc, graduate, and undergraduate Princeton students and other staff. This can also potentially mean a longer association with the laboratory if you add value! It also means building a pretty strong network.
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