| COSMOS (The California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science) is a 4-week program for talented high school students hosted by the University of California, Irvine. COSMOS students apply to a specific “cluster”, with each cluster addressing advanced topics in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, including a variety of engineering disciplines, pharmaceutical sciences, and computer science (to name a few).
History - The California State Summer School for Math & Science (COSMOS) is made possible by the California State Legislature, through Assembly Bill 2536, Statutes of 1998.
- COSMOS provides a residential academic experience for our rising generation of scientists, engineers, and mathematicians.
- COSMOS offers an exciting learning experience that features hands-on experimentation.
- Students attend from high schools throughout the state, and they go on to graduate from prestigious universities such as the UC campuses and other California institutions such as Stanford and USC, and from other top national institutions including Princeton, MIT, Yale, Cornell, etc. It is an enrichment program; no credit is given neither are there exams or grades. UC Irvine’s inaugural program was held in 20
Application Requirements
- Students can only apply to one of the four University of California’s COSMOS campuses — UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC San Diego and UC Santa Cruz.
- While each campus employs the best practices in STEM education, the curriculum of each program builds on the unique teaching and research expertise of its faculty and host campus.
- Each campus can only accommodate around 200 participants, so selection is competitive.
- A typical COSMOS student has a GPA of 3.5 or above. Students must have achieved academic excellence and be a high achiever at their school.
REQUIRED MATERIALS
- Completed online application, including one personal statement
- Two teacher recommendations (one required, second recommendation suggested) **STEM teachers preferred, others accepted
- Uploaded high school transcript(s) (9th graders must also submit a copy of their 8th grade report card) *Upon acceptance, students will be expected to mail in an official transcript
- Parent/guardian e-Signature(s) in the parent portal
- Application fee ($40)–payable online with a credit card* or check
- We consider the following factors when making admissions decisions: Grades, especially in math and science courses
- Math/science teacher recommendations
- Response to one personal essay question
BASIS OF ADMISSION
- 3.0 gpa* minimum; transcripts; emphasis on science/math grades (Do not send test scores, student resume, certificates of achievement of other affidavits of merit; these items will not be considered)
- Personal Statement
- Teacher recommendations (plan to ask your teacher well in advance if they would complete a COSMOS recommendation on your behalf)
- The applicant’s interest, motivation, leadership, and school or community involvement
- APPLICATION TIP: your essays are a key component of the application. Use good grammar and punctuation (texting language is inappropriate). Invest time in your essay answers! Proofread!
What they learned
- ”In the COSMOS Summer Program, I was able to make valuable connections that I will cherish in addition to having the opportunity to interact with passionate faculty members to fully engage myself in not only learning academics, but presenting and reasoning skills. I’m so glad I was given the opportunity to attend this program, and I truly enjoyed every minute of it, having lots of fun while innovating with my peers!” -Aditi
- ”I really enjoyed UCI COSMOS. I appreciated learning about things I had never learned about before as well as meeting new people who have similar interests as me.” -Sophie
- ”I found COSMOS to be challenging academically and a lot of fun. Being with like minded and skilled individuals helped me to put goals in focus.” -Thomas
- ”This month passed by so quickly and I am amazed at how much we were able to accomplish in such a short amount of time. COSMOS not only helped me learn so much, but also introduced me to new pathways and incredible peers.” -Kailin
- ”I dove headfirst into the COSMOS experience, taking notes in lecture and brainstorming project ideas and doing lab write-ups late into the night. I learned about genetic mutations that cause cancer and how to model them mathematically.” – Julia
- ”My four weeks here were spent with joy. I had several professors to learn from and a special faculty guest lecture each Wednesday that introduced topics that I had never touched upon before at school.” -Selena
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