The College of Liberal Arts is planning to offer a new pre-college summer program for high school students that will help them explore their interests and prepare for college.

The three-week program, offered through a company called Summer Discovery, will allow high school students to take courses taught by UT faculty in subjects such as law, psychology and philosophy. Students can also meet with academic and career advisers to explore possible careers and gain skills to help them transition to college. The full program will cost each student $4,999, which includes housing at the Callaway House.

“There are summer camps all over the University for [radio-television-film], business [and] communications,” said Marc Musick, senior associate dean of student affairs in the College of Liberal Arts. “For years, we’ve thought that Liberal Arts has something to offer, and we’ve finally been able to partner with Summer Discovery and make
it happen.”

Musick said the college decided to offer the new program to attract more students to the University by giving them a chance to experience a taste of college life.

“Since students will get to actually take classes, but it won’t go on their grade report, they’ll find out what it’s like to do college-level work in a way that’s interesting and not as stressful,” Musick said.

The University expects to enroll about 85 students in the program this summer, according to Musick.

“Since [the program] is new, it’s been hard to get people excited and get the word out, but we’re hoping to get a lot of Texas students,” Musick said. “As time goes on, we expect that enrollment over the years will grow.”

Bob Musiker, executive director of Summer Discovery, said pre-college summer programs help students transition to college more effectively by providing academic guidance and boosting students’ confidence. 

“Beyond the academics, they learn time management, cooperative living and living with a roommate,” Musiker said. 

John Paul Napleton, international relations and global studies sophomore, said the summer program he went to in the McCombs School of Business helped prepare him for college.

“The program not only gave me a taste of what the business school is all about, but also gave me a great group of friends,” Napleton said. “It most definitely played a major influence in my decision to attend UT and excited me for the college experience.”