By David Shepley

Summer break presents a crucial time for high school students to build their intellectual and personal narratives into a stand-out portfolio of experiences worthy of US university admissions. Although summers offer respite from intense school-year academic and extracurricular involvement, students must begin to approach their breaks as a necessary opportunity to channel their efforts constructively towards their future.

That said, high school summers should not be viewed as the end of fun, passion, and exploration. Rather, students can celebrate their free time by incorporating commitment, challenge, and purpose into their schedules.

Top US universities, including Stanford, Johns Hopkins, and the Ivy League, among others, offer applicants endless academic possibilities, manage cutting-edge research departments, and host students and faculty from every corner of the globe. Students with summer experience are well positioned to understand their interests and pursue them at these institutions. Hale consultants encourage students in Dubai to approach their summers from the following angles:

Enrolling in courses through a university summer program;

Participating in an experiential program that incorporates academic growth with personal development; or

Seeking real-world experience through a business venture, an internship, or a volunteer position.

Academic Summer Program

Many students pursue rigorous summer programs to enrich their education by developing skills, improving academic performance, and exploring a new academic field or diving deeper into a topic not available in school. Taking summer classes allows for sharpening academic interests beyond general subjects into specializations while exploring different career paths.

Pursuing advanced coursework distinguishes the “economics” student from the student interested in “the role of public policy in shaping international trade”. Universities seek students who are intellectually curious, which is demonstrated through committed, rigorous academic experiences. Additionally, summer courses provide intensive preparation for further university study in the future.

Experiential Summer Program

Experiential programs similarly offer opportunities to develop academic interest, though they also prioritize personal development through physical, mental, and cross-cultural experiences. These programs favor environmental, global, and media interests and explore niche topics through “field work” with an applied focus that places character development at the forefront.

Within this realm, students will find programs that focus on community service, others on team-building and leadership, and still others on film-making and photography. They will find programs that, for example, incorporate media with environmental research, economic development, and cultural ambassadorship.

Self-Starter Summer Experiences

Finally, students can develop their intellectual and personal narratives by pursuing self-starter opportunities. These include volunteer initiatives, social-impact or for-profit businesses, or internships with NGOs and private companies. Such experiences promise to address personal development through real-world exposure and intellectual growth by applying academics to industry.

This is recommended for students particularly interested in business, entrepreneurship, technological advancement, and economic development. Academic research falls into this category as well and is often organized through faculty mentors, personal networks, or on behalf of an NGO or academic institution. Gaining these educational experiences depends on a student’s local network, resume, ideas, and ultimately initiative.

Conclusion

Through all these forms of summertime engagement, students will discover that intellectual and personal journeys develop hand-in-hand, though for each activity, emphasis differs. Learning is more than just classroom study and SAT or ACT scores. Overall, students should pursue what aligns with their current interests, curiosities, and goals and to embrace their summers as opportunities for exploration. Each summer will reveal new questions to explore or research areas to pursue, ultimately strengthening a student’s direction of interest.

- Hale Education Group