Summer Discovery Georgetown University

Georgetown develops the courses, and Summer Discovery says the faculty are hand-selected by the university. Its staff description lists university instructors and distinguished visiting instructors, with some enrichment courses also taught by graduate students, local professionals and high school teachers.

The course pages don't name individual instructors, so you won't know ahead of time who will teach you. Summer Discovery doesn't publish class sizes either, beyond saying most classes are small and interactive.

Each Georgetown course runs in either a morning or an afternoon slot, which the course listing shows before you book. In Summer Discovery's sample residential day, used across its campuses, morning classes run from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. and afternoon classes from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., with a long lunch in between. From 3:30 p.m. you choose activities, dinner is at 6:00 and evening activities start around 8:00, on or off campus.

Curfew comes in stages: back in the residence hall by 10:30 p.m., on your floor by 11:30 and in your room by midnight. Weekends at Georgetown bring trips such as the National Zoo, Major League Baseball games, Shenandoah National Park and the Smithsonian, plus day trips to Baltimore. Commuters are dropped off at 8:30 a.m. and picked up at 6:00 p.m. on weekdays, eat lunch in the dining hall and join the afternoon activities, although Summer Discovery notes those times can vary by campus.

Summer Discovery says you finish with a Certificate of Completion, a letter of recognition for each course you take and an official Georgetown transcript. You also keep the course's final project, which on the sample pages ranges from a personal healthcare career pathway in Careers in Medicine to forensic documentation and lab analyses in Forensic Investigation.

None of this is described as college credit, and the idea that the letter strengthens college applications is Summer Discovery's claim, not a college's. It's best treated as evidence of an interest you've explored rather than an academic qualification.

Summer Discovery staffs its programs at 10 students per staff member for high school and 8 for middle school, and every staff member has to pass a criminal background check and training for working with minors. Resident Counselors are at least 20 years old and live on your floor, staff do nightly room checks, most residence halls use key card entry, and you wear your ID on a lanyard at all times.

You can't leave campus alone. You get a map of a set home area and may move around it in groups of three or more at set times, a privilege staff decide on. A Wellness Coordinator is available 24 hours a day, staff take students to medical appointments, and all medication, over-the-counter pills included, is held and handed out by staff, apart from inhalers, allergy injectors and some diabetes supplies.

Two rules are worth reading before you book. Summer Discovery requires full disclosure of medical and psychological conditions, including counseling or behavior medication in the past 24 months, and leaving something out can lead to dismissal. A dismissed student is sent home at the family's expense with no refund. More detail is on Summer Discovery's safety and security page.

For summer 2027, two weeks cost $7,599 living on campus or $4,299 as a commuter, and four weeks cost $11,599 or $6,999, with the same prices for middle and high school. The residential price covers classes, a residence hall room with linens, three meals a day on weekdays and two on weekends, activities and trips every afternoon, evening and weekend, and transport to them.

On top of that comes a $100 application fee that is never refunded, plus flights, meals off campus, medical costs, laundry and spending money. Some courses carry their own supplement, such as $95 for Forensic Investigation, and international students pay a registration fee of $379 if residential or $239 if commuting, which covers US medical insurance and, for residential students, airport transfers. Paying by credit card adds 3.5%, while an eCheck from a US bank account costs nothing extra.

The deposit is $1,900 if you enroll before 31 January 2027, rising to $2,500 from 1 February and $3,500 from 1 April, and the balance is due by 1 April 2027. Canceling gets expensive quickly:

• Before 1 February 2027

  Full refund apart from the $100 application fee and any travel protection plan you bought.

• 1 February to 1 April 2027

  You lose an amount equal to the deposit you paid.

• 1 April to 1 May 2027

  The fee is $3,500 or the deposit you paid.

• 1 May to 1 June 2027

  The fee is $4,500.

• After 1 June 2027

  Nothing is refunded.

Applications go through Summer Discovery's online portal, where you create an account first.

1. 1

   Choose Georgetown, your session length, residential or commuter, and the courses you want before you start the form.

2. 2

   Submit the application with the $100 fee, ideally by 15 December 2026, the early-season deadline that Summer Discovery says guarantees your first choice.

3. 3

   Wait for a decision, which usually comes within five business days because applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, so applying early leaves more courses open.

4. 4

   Once accepted, enroll online and pay the deposit to hold your place.

5. 5

   Register for courses, which typically opens in November, then pay the balance by 1 April 2027 and complete the roommate profile and health forms before arrival.