Summer Challenge: How to Apply
Admissions
If you are entering your sophomore, junior, or senior year of high school in fall 2026, we invite you to apply. Admission decisions take into consideration your high school grades, previous courses, and personal statement.
The application must be submitted by the prospective student, not by a parent, guardian, counselor, agent, or other party. Please use the information below to prepare your application. Applications will be saved automatically and can be revisited and edited before being submitted.
Application instructions
Submit the online application. The following items are required to submit the online application.
- High school transcript: Your full high school transcript must begin in 9th grade and include your fall 2025 grades (a minimum of your quarter 1 grade report, trimester 1 grade report, or semester 1 progress report is required). Applicants currently in 9th grade must submit a transcript from their 8th grade year in addition to their fall 2025 grades. Transcripts do not need to be official; we will accept screenshots of an academic portal as long as the student’s name is visible.
- Personal statement: You will be required to submit a personal statement of 500–750 words describing why you want to attend the Summer Challenge program.
- International documents: International students must upload a copy of your current valid passport with the application. We also require proof of English language proficiency, such as scores from the TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo, if English is not your native language. For English proficiency test score requirements, please see Information for International Students.
- Application fee: A $75 nonrefundable application fee, paid by credit card, is required at the time of submission of the online application.
Applications are only reviewed for admissions after all of the materials listed above are received and verified by our office.
You can check the status of your application at any time through your Applicant Portal. After submitting the application, you can currently make the following changes in your Applicant Portal:
- Upload additional materials – Be sure to email us at summerhs@bu.edu when you provide new materials after you submit. Doing so alerts our team to verify your new materials and minimizes delays in receiving your decision.
- Update your permanent or mailing address
- Change your email address
- Change your password
If you need to request a major change, please contact us at summerhs@bu.edu.
Note: Email is the primary form of communication during the admissions process. Please be aware that parents or guardians are copied on all correspondence from our office. Therefore, you should ensure that both parent or guardian and student email addresses are entered correctly on the application, and inform our office immediately if there is a change in either email address.
Email: summerhs@bu.edu
Fax: 617-358-0646
Mailing Address:
Boston University Summer Term
Summer Challenge Program
200 Riverway, Suite 214
Boston, MA 02215
Application deadline
We stop accepting applications when all seminars are filled. Seminars fill quickly and students who apply early are more likely to receive the session and seminar selections of their choice.
Admission decisions are made on a rolling basis. Once our office verifies that your application is complete, it will be reviewed for admissions. We will contact you if any additional or corrected materials are needed to complete your application.
We begin reviewing applications at the beginning of January. Within three weeks of your application being verified as complete by our office, you will be notified of an admission decision.
Contact us
If you have any additional questions or comments, please contact us.
