So, what goes on at Hopkins during the summer?
I initially planned to write this blog entry about what I've been doing this summer ever since my visit to California (as briefly mentioned in my previous blog entry). I spent about a week at home in Connecticut, and then I came here to Baltimore a little over three weeks ago. Thus, this blog entry would've primarily discussed what I've been doing for my (predominantly) Baltimorean summer. In thinking about what I've done so far in Baltimore, I couldn't help but think about conversations I've had with some of my Hopkins friends this summer about what generally happens at Hopkins during the summer. I thought that describing some of the things we've discussed in those conversations would provide a nice introduction to my blog entry about my Baltimorean summer. Then, however, I realized that the "introduction" itself could make up an entry of its own. Ergo, I decided to write this blog entry to give some background information as to what happens at Hopkins during the summer--and that I'd write another blog entry in one or two weeks to describe what I've actually done at Hopkins this summer.
Nice flow of thought, huh?
By the way, in addition to this summer, I spent last summer in Baltimore. With that said, I have about 13 to 14 weeks' experience under my belt as the basis for this blog entry. Without further adieu, here's my little guide to a summer at Hopkins! In no particular order...
CLASSES: A university isn't a university without classes. Yes, courses at Hopkins are primarily taught during 13-week semesters during the fall and spring. However, a good number of courses are taught at Hopkins during the summer as well! Like Intersession courses, summer courses are optional. Unlike Intersession courses, however, summer courses are "regular" graded courses that are usually three or four credits each. In addition, unlike Intersession courses, summer courses aren't included in the tuition for the regular school year. (However, there's some financial aid available for eligible students.) Usually, students choose to take summer classes either to clear up room in their schedules for the upcoming school year or to retake classes they've already taken. There are also some students who are working for the University in a job that pays for one summer classes; for instance, a friend of mine is working as a "Pre-College" RA this summer and thus is eligible to take a summer course for free--so he decided to take a computer science course for fun. Just like during the regular school year, Hopkins students live in various housing options on campus and off campus. By the way, while all of the students that I've encountered who are taking summer courses here at Hopkins are other Hopkins students, there apparently are some students visiting from other colleges who are taking summer courses here as well. I just haven't met any of them so far. Many other colleges and universities also offer summer courses for their students as well as visiting students from other institutions; I myself took two semesters' worth of introductory biology lecture and lab courses at Fordham University two summers ago.
PRE-COLLEGE SUMMER PROGRAMS: In addition to Hopkins students and students from other colleges, students availing of the summer courses here include "Pre-College" students. As far as Hopkins is concerned, "Pre-College" students are high school students who are at least 15 years old. There are two categories of "Pre-College" summer programs here: one allows high school students 16 years and older to take selected summer courses here at Hopkins, and the other is a "Discover Hopkins" program for high school students 15 years and older. "Pre-College" students who aren't commuters live in the dorms on campus, and their RAs are Hopkins students--such as my aforementioned friend.
CTY SUMMER PROGRAMS: If you're a high school student reading this blog entry, you probably know what the Johns Hopkins CTY (i.e., the Center for Talented Youth) is. In case you don't know what CTY is, it's an institution of Hopkins that identifies academically talented elementary and middle school students nationwide through standardized tests; qualified elementary, middle, and high school students (high school students are qualified through the scores of standardized tests they took in middle school) are then allowed to take a variety of specially designed summer courses and programs that are offered online or at one of a few college campuses throughout the nation--including Hopkins. (By the way, if you've participated in the Duke Talent Identification Program (TIP), it's like the Johns Hopkins CTY.) It goes without saying that non-commuter CTY students are also housed in the Hopkins dorms, and that their RAs are Hopkins students.
LEADERSHIP CONFERENCES: I remember receiving numerous brochures in the mail when I was a high school student for various one-, two-, or even three-week leadership conferences for middle school and high school students. (One example is LeadAmerica.) While I never participated in them, I now have a slight idea as to how they work, since some of these conferences are held here at Hopkins. As with the two aforementioned categories, participating students are housed in the dorms here on campus.
LACROSSE CAMPS: Enough said. I don't know many details about the lacrosse camps that are run at the Hopkins campus. I just know that I see swarms of elementary, middle, and high school students practicing lacrosse around campus during the day--and that, truth be told, I couldn't help but feel a little uneasy when I find myself walking through campus and run across a group of high school lacrosse players who are twice my size.
CAMPUS TOURS: They happen during the regular school year as well, but lots of them happen during the summer! My first visit to Hopkins was actually during the summer before my senior year of high school, and I took a tour of the Homewood campus at that time. I think that a summer tour of Hopkins is like taking an hour-long walk in a large park and getting tanned in the process. Seriously, if you haven't visited Hopkins yet...it's one beautiful campus.
INTERNSHIPS, JOBS, ET CETERA: Besides taking summer courses, Hopkins students are here for the summer to take advantage of paid/unpaid internships either at the Homewood campus or the medical school, or to work in various jobs either at the Homewood campus or the medical school (ranging from being an RA to a summer office assistant to a research technician). In addition, there are Hopkins students who don't work in internships or jobs affiliated with the University, but with other organizations and companies in Baltimore--so they, too, join the ranks of Hopkins students living in on-campus and off-campus housing during the summer.
EVERYTHING ELSE: Just because there's a significantly smaller number of courses taught at Hopkins during the summer doesn't mean that everything else has to stand still! To ensure that life goes smoothly at the Homewood campus of the Johns Hopkins University, you still have people such as librarians answering students' and other library patrons' questions, security guards making sure that the campus is safe 24/7, custodial staff cleaning up campus, administrative officials of various departments keeping track of paperwork, financial aid officers finalizing students' financial aid packages, admissions officers answering prospective students' application-related questions and helping out with the transition for incoming freshmen, academic advisors answering incoming freshmen's questions about registration and returning students' questions about scheduling...and more. Oh yeah, and let's not forget about the professors who teach the aforementioned summer courses, as well as the professors who continue doing research and/or attend various meetings on campus during the summer.
With all that said, it would be a gross understatement to say that Hopkins is quiet during the summer. It is far from that! Granted, the hustle and bustle around campus is different from that of the fall and spring semesters--but hustle and bustle is hustle and bustle.
N.B. I found all of the images illustrating this blog entry via Google Image Search.
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