From the blog of Marilee Jones, former dean of admissions at MIT:
Let’s get real. If left to their own devices, how many teenagers would actually choose to spend their free time traveling a world away to do something for a few brief weeks for people in deep need who will go on living whether the student was there or not? Companies that sponsor these summer enrichment programs are many and are flourishing, feeding off the anxiety of frantic parents who will pay any price to give their children what they consider to be a leg up on the competition for top colleges. The joke is on the parents, though, because college admissions officers know that all it takes is money to participate in these activities and put them in the category of SAT prep classes in the summer. No advantage. Too bad.”
A little harsh, maybe. But mostly true.
There is nothing wrong with a student attending a summer program where you learn, grow, help people, have fun or all of the above. Many programs, from free to exorbitantly expensive, can be great experiences if you genuinely want to do them and aren’t sacrificing money your family doesn’t have to attend. But don’t do it just to put it on your resume and then try to sell it on college applications as a noble endeavor. That’s where summer programs fall flat.