University of Chicago Summer Session Career Insight: Business and Entrepreneurship

Class runs Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Central time with a lunch break, and UChicago labels the course discussion intensive, so most class time is seminar-style discussion. Mornings belong to UChicago professors, lecturers and researchers, who cover entrepreneurship, finance, leadership and economics through lectures, discussions, readings and activities. In the afternoons, staff from the university's Career Advancement office connect you with practitioners and help you work out which business careers might suit you. Over the two weeks you'll write individual reflection essays and build a final project with a small group.

Outside class, the residential staff run daily activities around campus, Hyde Park and the city, many of them free or low-cost, and past ones have included baseball games, museum outings and beach trips. Commuters eat lunch with everyone in the dining hall and can join evening and weekend events too. In 2026 the session opened with a two-day orientation on 13 and 14 June, and there's no class on Juneteenth (19 June).

You leave with a certificate if you complete the course requirements and attend every day, since UChicago won't issue one to a two-week student who misses a day. The course carries no college credit and no grades, and participants aren't registered students of the university.

Two extras come from UChicago's own admissions office. Enrolled students can join Admissions Academy, a series of workshops on topics such as essay writing and how an admissions committee reviews applications. And in your final year of high school, having completed the course makes you eligible for Summer Session Early Notification, a binding Early Decision I route for applying to UChicago between 1 September and 15 October. Because it's binding, it only makes sense if UChicago is clearly your first choice.

Any high school student currently in 9th, 10th or 11th grade can apply, provided they're at least 14, and the course draws students from across the US and abroad. Everything is taught in English with no ESL support, and UChicago admits only students who show a superior level of English, either through the application itself or with a test such as TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo. International students don't need a student visa for a two-week program, though some may need a tourist visa.

UChicago doesn't publish an acceptance rate or cohort size. The 2026 course filled, after which applicants could only be considered from a waitlist, so it's worth listing backup choices on your application, as UChicago advises, in case your first choice is full.

In 2026 the course cost $5,890 for residential students, covering tuition, campus housing and dining hall meals, or $4,100 for students from the Chicagoland area who commute. On top of that come the $75 application fee, travel to Chicago, any required course materials and spending money, plus an extra fee if you use UChicago's shuttle from O'Hare. Two-week students also need their own valid US health insurance, and international families should budget for visa costs.

Need-based aid is partial only and isn't guaranteed. In general it goes to families with household income of $125,000 or less, it's awarded first come, first served, and it can't be added after an admissions decision, so apply for it with your application. Applying for aid also waives the application fee. Chicago Public Schools students can apply for the separate CPS-UC Summer Scholarship, which places them as commuters.

Once you're admitted, you have a week to pay a $1,000 deposit and four weeks to pay the balance. The deposit and application fee aren't refunded if you withdraw, only if UChicago cancels the course and you don't choose another one. In 2026 the rest of the fee could be refunded on a written request only until 4 May, which was before the 15 May payment deadline for students admitted on 17 April, so check the refund cutoff before you commit.

Applications go through UChicago's Summer Session application portal, which UChicago says opens in December for the 2027 cycle.

1. 1

   Pick your programs

   Choose up to four programs in ranked order, with one course under each, knowing you'll be offered a place in only one.

2. 2

   Gather your documents

   Upload an unofficial transcript covering every high school year so far (9th graders add 8th-grade grades) and a typed English essay or paper showing your teacher's grade and comments. UChicago also asks for Additional Academic Information on economics-related courses, so check whether this course needs it.

3. 3

   Write two essays

   One of up to 500 words on why you chose these courses and how they fit your plans, and one of up to 250 words on your most rewarding academic project.

4. 4

   Line up a recommendation

   Enter the name and email of a teacher in a related subject, who then receives a secure link to submit the letter.

5. 5

   Flag aid or commuting

   If you need aid, complete the Financial Aid section and upload your family's financial documents, which also waives the application fee. Everyone else pays $75. If you want to commute, say so on the Supplement page.

6. 6

   Get a parent's confirmation

   UChicago emails your parent or guardian after you submit and won't review your application until they reply and at least one recommendation has arrived.

7. 7

   Meet a 2027 deadline

   Submit by 13 January 2027 for the priority round, with decisions in mid-March, or by 3 March 2027 for the regular round, with decisions in mid-April.

Under-18s are housed separately from older students (in Woodlawn Residential Commons in 2026), with RAs, many of them UChicago undergraduates or recent alumni, living on the same floor and a residential director and assistant directors available 24 hours a day. Every night you sign in with your RA and then stay inside the hall from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., and curfew violations can end in dismissal. A parent can release a student for a late dinner or a weekend away with an adult by filing a Curfew Release Form in advance. Halls have a 24-hour front desk, secured entrances and ID checks on entry.

The University of Chicago Medical Center is on campus, staff contact parents in any emergency, and parents sign a medical treatment release after admission. If a student has to leave for health reasons, a parent must collect them within 48 hours at the family's cost. UChicago also has a zero-tolerance rule on alcohol and drugs, and students found even in their presence are subject to immediate dismissal.