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Notre Dame Now Accepting Summer 2023 Pre-College Program Applications

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Applications for Summer 2023 programming on University of Notre Dame’s campus, online, and abroad are now live – even though it’s only October 2022!

High school freshmen, sophomores, and juniors are eligible to apply for these programs, which introduce participants to college life, give students a chance to earn college credit, and provide Notre Dame a valuable revenue stream. With that said, financial aid and grants are also available.

The selection of programs is quite impressive, and now that the shadow of the pandemic has lifted, I encourage students who are interested to take a serious look at Notre Dame’s impressive international offerings in Italy, South Africa, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. Yet, the Indiana-based and online programming offerings are intriguing as well since they seem to be taught by Notre Dame faculty. The most important consideration of students making summer plans is to engage in challenging opportunities in which they have real interest. Sometimes that interest is new and can’t be explored during the school year. Other times that interest is ongoing and the opportunity represents a new way to pursue it relative to the way the student has pursued it so far. In either case, the student will get more out of the experience if he or she is truly invested in the content the program is going to explore, and Notre Dame certainly provides a lot of content that would be interesting to a lot of students.

Related: How to Avoid Bad-Pre-College Programs

Often the most selective summer programs fill up by December of January; therefore, if certain summer programs with Notre Dame or other universities are of interest to you, remember the oft-repeated maxim, “the early bird gets the worm,” and don’t wait to apply tomorrow – do it today. Good luck.

Notre Dame Accepts Only 17% Early Action As Record Number Apply

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University of Notre Dame saw the number of students who applied via its Restrictive Early Action (REA) plan skyrocket this fall. A record 9,683 students applied to Notre Dame Restrictive Early Action in 2021. In 2020 7,744 students applied to Notre Dame Restrictive Early Action. That represents an over 25% increase in just one year.  Those applying to Notre Dame Restrictive Early Action have until May 1 to deposit and were able to apply to other colleges with Early Action programs but they were not allowed to apply concurrently via other colleges’ binding Early Decisions plans.

Yet, despite far larger numbers of REA applications to review, Notre Dame only accepted two more students REA in 2021 than it did in 2020; Notre Dame accepted 1,673 REA applicants in 2020 versus 1,675 REA applicants in 2021. This means that Notre Dame’s Restrictive Early Action acceptance rate dropped from roughly 22% to 17% in just one year, which helps bolster Notre Dame’s place in the realm of hyper-selective U.S. universities.

Meanwhile, a full 30% of REA applicants were accepted without submitting scores from the ACT or SAT. This is a huge change from just two years ago when scores from either the ACT or SAT were required of all admitted applicants. A full 46% of REA applicants to Notre Dame in 2021 applied without submitting test scores.

Unusual among many other selective U.S. universities, Notre Dame also shared that of those students accepted Restrictive Early Action in 2021 there are roughly even numbers of Asians/Pacific Islanders (12%), International students (12%), and Black students (10%).

Notre Dame released REA admissions decisions on Thursday, December 16, 2021, at 6:42 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, in a nod to the university’s founding year of 1842. Of the admitted student pool, 1,204 high schools are represented, including 43% public, 40% Catholic, and 18% private. A full 26% of accepted students indicated intended majors in the College of Arts and Letters, 22% in the College of Engineering and School of Architecture, 24% in the Mendoza College of Business, and 28% in the College of Science.

Typically, Notre Dame admits between 1,600 and 1,800 in its REA pool and a larger number in its Regular Decision pool, which this year has an application deadline of January 1, 2022. Last year, 1,768 students who were deferred during the REA round eventually earned admission during the Regular Decisions admissions cycle. This year, 1,599 REA applicants were deferred.

 

Best Summer Programs in Europe for High School Students

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For many high school students, summer is a time to disconnect from school year stress. For many parents of high school students, summer is a time fraught with anxiety over whether their teens are “making the most” of their time away from school. How sad! Whether your are a student or a parent, please don’t sweat summer.

Even if you are a student or parent who has no money to your name, there are plenty of ways high school students can stay active and engaged over the summer while developing their interests and building important life skills.

Yet, if you do have some dollars to spare, there are some wonderfully enriching summer programs for high school students out there – and I mean way out there – in Europe. My three current favorites are detailed below.

These programs will give curious, adventurous, intellectual, and inquisitive high school students the chance to burst out of the often-banal high school classroom and into the “old world” in order to engage in an amazing experiential learning opportunity that will be both perspective-expanding and a chance to take a deep dive into preexisting interests. This is so important because no matter what a student does over the summer, it should present value added to both the student and to colleges the student may want to apply to later.

Before we start the countdown, an important disclaimer: exploring pre-existing interests deeply over the summer in Europe seems like a win-win to me; however, the following list won’t be for everyone, and it shouldn’t be. The most important thing for students and parents to remember is that students should pursue their passions deeply over the summer. If they can’t afford to take part in the programs below, that’s fine! They still should develop skills and knowledge over the summer that can only come through some sort of immersive summer experience. Again, I detail some closer to home and dirt-cheap options here.

But, without further ado, for the purposes of why we are here today, let’s hop on the plane to Europe!

#3. TASIS: The American School in Switzerland Summer Programs

Student taking part in TASIS summer program in Lugano, Switzerland

In 1956, M. Crist Fleming founded The American School in Switzerland, the first American boarding school in Europe, in order to apply the American independent school tradition to Europe. All these years later, the school has grown leaps and bounds, and other TASIS schools operate in England and Puerto Rico. TASIS’ summer course options in Switzerland really wow me.

Students pick one class from a diversity of options, which means that a diversity of students will be intermingling on this lovely southern Swiss campus for the duration of your stay. Class options offered recently include Intensive Italian, Fine Art Portfolio, Lean Startup Masterclass, Architecture & Design, and Fashion & Textile Design . My favorite option, however, is La Cucina Italiana: Italian Cooking, in which students learn to cook authentic Italian food after choosing ingredients at local Italian markets, touring Italian cheese and meat factories, practicing knife skills, and learning how to perfectly balance spices.

Why I love this program: As a former “undecided” student as I began my college career, TASIS’ diverse offerings speak to the undecided teen in all of us, and the overall program certainlys attract a diverse mix of summer students from all over the world. Students need more opportunities to simply try something new and meet peers with diverse interests, and TASIS’ Switzerland summer program certainly allows for that in a location that can’t be beat. If you can’t get inspired to learn more about yourself and the world around you while on TASIS’ Lugano campus, you can’t get inspired anywhere. Another upshot of this program is that all high school students, no matter their grade level, are able to take part.

Who it’s perfect for: Students taking part in this program should have the desire to immerse themselves in one course and maybe one sport (sports cost extra but include Milan Academy Scuola Calcio, Olimpia Milano Basketball, and Crossfit) in the unsurpassed setting that is Lugano, Switzerland, which is also a wonderful jumping off point for educational European excursions near and far. Students who are undecided on their path in college and beyond will find something to try at TASIS over the summer and have the chance to do so in an environment that seems almost too perfect and made for life-long memories. Students whose interests align with one of the course offerings are in the unique position to build upon this preexisting interest in the company of peers who may have very different academic and personal interests but who share an interest in spending time in the pre-Alps over the summer.

Learn More: Click here.

Alternative worth considering: TASIS also has intriguing summer options for high school students in England, France (see more below), and Puerto Rico.

#2. University of Notre Dame: Pre-College Program in Ireland

High school students taking part in Notre Dame’s pre-college program

It shouldn’t be so surprising that the Fighting Irish run a summer travel tour seminar worth one college credit for rising high school seniors in Ireland. Notre Dame’s Pre-College Program in Ireland allows rising high school seniors to explore “bustling Dublin,” “bucolic Connemara,” edgy Belfast, and so much more during a twelve-day jaunt through the Emerald Isle.

“Guided by Notre Dame faculty and local scholars, students will embark on an exploration of Irish culture, history, and landscape through what Notre Dame’s O’Connell House calls ‘learning through the soles of your feet.'”

Why I love this program: It’s pretty immersive in terms of ground covered and it’s pretty cool that students live and learn at the Kylemore Abbey Global Center, which is right next to a castle, during the last leg of the program.

Who it’s perfect for: Students taking part in this program should have demonstrated academic achievement in high school and some sort of preexisting interest in Ireland, Irish Heritage, Irish History, Catholicism, Protestantism, place-based learning, European culture and/or History, 20th Century History, European History, the British Isles, castles, and/or the Northern Ireland Peace Process in order to get the most out of this experience and in order to have it align with other activities they’ve pursued in the past.

Learn More: Overview and More Details

Alternative worth considering: Notre Dame also has a summer program for rising high school seniors in Rome.

#1. The New School: Parsons Paris Pre-College Studies

Sunset in Paris, France

If you are an artist, there are few better places to visit for inspiration than Paris, France. Did you know that Parsons School of Design, part of The New School in New York City, has a campus in Paris where rising high school juniors and seniors – they must be sixteen by the time the program begins – have a variety of summer art course options from which to choose? The immersive courses of study at Parsons Paris last just over three weeks in July and cover topics ranging from “Explorations in Drawing,” “Fashion Design Process,” and “Fashion Photography: History and Process” to “Graphic Design Workshop,” “Introduction to Design and Management,” and “Fashion Illustration.”

Why I love this program: This program is for serious artists; each class meets daily from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., so it’s for those who are energized by developing their craft. All Parsons Paris Summer Intensive Studies courses are not only educational in their own right; each course counts for three college credits and may also be used by students to develop a portfolio for their upcoming college admissions process. Students also have the chance to take part in excursions, including crepe tastings.

Who it’s perfect for: Students taking part in this program should have demonstrated artistic achievement in high school and some sort of preexisting interest in Art generally or specifically fashion, fashion merchandising, drawing, graphic design, photography, and/or art history in order to get the most out of this experience and in order to have it align with other activities they’ve pursued in the past.

Learn More: Overview

Alternatives worth considering: If you don’t need to be in France, but want a lot of what Parsons Paris’ summer courses offer, Parsons also has a pre-college/intensive summer programs for high school students at its main campus in New York City. Meanwhile, if you would love to spend several weeks intensely pursuing your passion for art in France but don’t need to be in cosmopolitan Paris, TASIS (mentioned more above) has an intimate one-of-a-kind at program in the south of France called Les Taipes, which accepts an extremely limited number of students each summer.