University of Chicago Summer Session Young Innovators Climate & Energy Program

Classes are led by faculty from three research groups: the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC), the Becker Friedman Institute and the Climate Impact Lab. UChicago doesn't name individual instructors or publish a class size for this program.

Outside the classroom you also hear from Invenergy, the renewable and clean energy company that partners on the program. Its team members host a tour of the company's Chicago headquarters and sit on a panel about their work in different parts of the industry and what they've done with their STEM degrees.

Days start at 9:00 a.m. with lectures, discussion sections or workshops, and afternoons usually bring a campus tour, an outing to another part of Chicago or a hands-on activity tied to the subject. Evenings are given over to activities run by residential staff or free time with other students, and past Summer Session outings have included baseball games, museum trips and beach days. UChicago says each Enrichment program sets its own timetable, so read this as the usual shape of a day rather than a fixed plan.

Enrichment students move in the day before classes begin, usually a Sunday, and leave after noon on the last day. In 2026 this program ran from 12 to 17 July.

If you attend every day, you leave with a certificate, and that's the only formal record, because UChicago's one- and two-week programs carry no credit and no grade. While you're enrolled you can also join Admissions Academy, a series of workshops from UChicago's Office of College Admissions on application essays and how applications are reviewed.

Later on, rising seniors who completed a Summer Session program can apply to UChicago through Summer Student Early Notification, a binding option under Early Decision I that runs from 1 September to 15 October and returns a decision about three weeks after the application is complete.

You need to be in 11th grade and at least 15 years old, and UChicago aims the program at students interested in future careers in climate and energy policy. The listing sets no country or school-type limit, test scores are optional, and you can show your English through the application itself or an optional TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo score. UChicago doesn't publish how many students it takes, but the 2026 session filled, with a waitlist for later applicants.

• Transcript

  An unofficial transcript covering all your high school grades so far, plus a current grade report if recent courses aren't on it.

• Two essays

  Up to 500 words on why you chose this program and how it ties to your interests and plans, and up to 300 words on how your perspective or background would add to the program and what you hope to gain from your peers.

• Recommendation

  One letter from a teacher in a related subject, and a counselor or teacher can also send an optional nomination through a separate form.

• Writing sample

  A typed English essay or research paper carrying your teacher's grade and comments, since lab notes and math sets aren't accepted.

• Parent confirmation

  UChicago won't review your application until a parent or guardian answers its confirmation email.

The 2026 program fee was $3,000 for the week, plus a $75 application fee, and UChicago hasn't yet published the 2027 fee. If you're admitted, a $1,000 deposit within a week holds your place and counts toward the fee, and the balance is due within four weeks of admission. The deposit and application fee are never refunded, and in 2026 the rest of the fee could only be refunded on a written request made by 4 May 2026.

UChicago says dining-hall meals are paid for, but travel to Chicago, spending money for outings and your own U.S. health insurance, which one-week students must have, are extra. Students from outside the U.S. may need a tourist visa, so check that cost with official sources.

Need-based aid can bring the fee down to nothing. If you apply only to one-week Enrichment programs, UChicago covers the amounts below as funds allow. You have to ask for aid in the application, Enrichment-only applicants don't upload financial documents, and applying for aid waives the $75 fee. UChicago describes this support for domestic students and doesn't cover travel from outside the U.S. for this program.

Residential assistants, who are current UChicago undergraduates and recent alumni, live on the same floor as students, and the Residential Director and assistant directors can be reached by students and families 24 hours a day. Students must be inside the residence hall from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. and sign in with their RA every night in a 15-minute window from 9:45 p.m., and repeated curfew violations can end in dismissal.

• Building security

  Residence halls are staffed around the clock, entrances are secured, and students show their UChicago ID at the front desk to get in.

• Medical care

  UChicago's Medical Center is on campus, residential staff are available 24/7 in an emergency and will contact parents, and parents sign a release authorizing treatment if they can't be reached.

• Arriving

  For Enrichment programs, a staff member meets students at a prearranged spot at the airport and takes them to the shuttle, though staff can't meet anyone at the gate.

• Zero tolerance

  Having, using or even being around alcohol or drugs leads to immediate dismissal.

• Leaving campus

  Students can go out before curfew without staff but should tell residential staff where they're going, and a night away needs a parent's curfew release form and an adult to collect them.