Summer Discovery UC Berkeley

Academies take up the whole teaching day, and you stay in the same academy for the full program. Summer Discovery's sample residential day has class from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. and again from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., with a long lunch in between, then activities you sign up for from 3:30, dinner at 6:00 and an 8:00 p.m. event on or off campus. You're back in the residence hall by 10:30 p.m., on your floor by 11:30 and in your room by midnight.

The three-week M.E.T. academy is more intense, with 6 hours of class a day over 12 class days and no class on 5 July. Weekend outings at Berkeley include the Foodie Land Night Market, the University of California Botanical Garden, Tilden Regional Park and Lake Anza, along with game nights on campus.

It depends on the academy. Two of them, developed with UC Berkeley's Interdisciplinary Social Science Program, name their lecturers: Dr. Crystal Chang of Berkeley's Department of Political Economy teaches Global Social Entrepreneurship, and Dr. Darren Zook, a senior lecturer in political science at Berkeley, teaches Cybersecurity, AI, and Global Politics. The M.E.T. academy is hosted by Berkeley's College of Engineering and Haas School of Business, and its students also meet technologists, product managers and current M.E.T. students.

For the other academies, Summer Discovery describes its instructors as accredited in their field and says enrichment classes are taught by university instructors, graduate students, area professionals and secondary school teachers, but it doesn't say who teaches which course. Classes are for high school students only, with no college students mixed in.

Every student gets a Summer Discovery Certificate of Completion and a letter of recognition for each course, plus whatever their academy produced, such as built robots, code and a team capstone proposal in Engineering and Robotics, or a prototype and venture pitch in the M.E.T. academy. An individual performance report appears in your online account a few weeks after the program, and Summer Discovery mails it to your school only if a parent asks in writing.

The medical research academy goes further, pairing you 1:1 with a research mentor through Polygence for 10 virtual sessions after campus, and Summer Discovery says finished projects can be submitted to journals or shared at symposiums. Summer Discovery lists no college credit for these academies, and the certificate comes from Summer Discovery rather than the university, so treat it as something to describe in applications, not a qualification.

Most academies are open to students in grades 9 to 12, and Summer Discovery admits qualified applicants first come, first served, so the real hurdle is applying before your academy fills. The application asks you to self-report your GPA and give your school counselor's full name and email, because Summer Discovery contacts them directly, and decisions usually come within 3 to 5 business days. The Inside the Lab chemistry research academy is for grades 10 to 12, and Summer Discovery says it rarely makes age exceptions.

The M.E.T. academy is the exception. It's selective and for rising juniors and seniors, who must have completed Trigonometry and one lab science with an A or B and hold at least a 3.0 GPA. Berkeley M.E.T. looks for a strong interest in where technology meets business, along with creativity, leadership and concern for your community. Its admission rounds are:

• Early round

  Apply by 16 December 2026, with first decisions by 15 January 2027.

• Round 1

  Apply by 27 January 2027, with decisions by 15 February 2027.

• Round 2

  Apply by 10 March 2027.

A standard two-week academy costs $7,499 if you live on campus or $4,399 as a commuter. The Research Academies with Polygence, which add expert mentoring during the school year after the two weeks on campus, cost $10,249 residential or $7,249 commuter, and the three-week M.E.T. academy is residential only at $10,499. The residential price covers tuition, a residence hall room, two or three meals a day, afternoon, evening and weekend activities with their transport, and a blanket and pillow.

On top of that come the $100 application fee, which is never refunded, plus flights, airport transfers, linens, laundry, meals off campus, medical bills and spending money. The Engineering and Robotics Academy and the Medicine Academy: Clinical Practice & Career Exploration each add a $195 course fee. Students who live outside the US pay an international registration fee of $379 residential or $239 commuter, which includes US medical insurance, plus airport transfers for residential students. Paying by credit card adds 3.5%, while an eCheck from a US bank costs nothing extra.

Once you're accepted, a $1,900 deposit holds your place if you enroll before 31 January 2027, rising to $2,500 from 1 February, and the balance is due on 1 April 2027. Canceling gets more expensive as summer approaches, so it's worth settling plans early.

Residential students live on floors with a Resident Counselor, a teacher, graduate student or college senior aged at least 20, and Summer Discovery keeps a 10:1 student-to-staff ratio for high school programs, with staff on duty around the clock. The full rules are on Summer Discovery's safety and security page.

• Curfew

  Students are back in the residence hall by 10:30 p.m. and in their rooms by midnight, with daily sign-ins and nightly room checks.

• Movement

  Students stay inside a mapped home area, never leave campus without staff, and older students may move around campus in groups at set times.

• Health

  Students have 24/7 access to medical care, staff go with them to appointments and tell parents afterward, and staff hold all medication apart from inhalers, allergy injectors and some diabetes medication.

• Staff checks

  All staff pass criminal background checks and training for working with minors.

• Conduct

  Harassment, bullying or fighting can lead to dismissal with no refund, and the family pays for the trip home.