Summer@Brown is Brown University's pre-college program, offering students in grades 9–12 the chance to experience Ivy League academics on Brown's campus in Providence, Rhode Island (or online). With more than 230 courses drawn from Brown's Open Curriculum, students can choose from a wide range of subject areas, subject to the selected course’s prerequisites.
Historical programme formats and 2026 costs:
| Format | Length | Residential | Commuter/Online |
|---|---|---|---|
| On-campus | 1 week | $3,748 | $3,096 |
| On-campus | 2 weeks | $5,786 | $4,482 |
| On-campus | 3 weeks | $8,372 | $6,416 |
| Hybrid (2 wks online + 3 wks on-campus) | 5 weeks | $10,858 | $8,902 |
| Online | 2 weeks | — | $3,364 |
| Online | 3 weeks | — | $4,656 |
| Online | 4 weeks | — | $5,554 |
| Online | 6 weeks | — | $6,520 |
Academic areas:
- Biological & Natural Sciences
- Business, Economics & Legal Studies
- Course-Based Research Experiences (CREs)
- Engineering & Technology
- Literature, Writing & Communications
- Medical & Health Sciences
- Physical Sciences & Math
- Political Science, Philosophy & History
- Psychology & Social Sciences
- Visual, Creative & Performing Arts
What makes Summer@Brown distinctive:
- No formal grades — students receive a Digital Certificate of Completion; 2-week+ courses also receive a Course Performance Report
- Brown's Open Curriculum philosophy: students explore the course catalog subject to age/grade eligibility, prerequisites, English proficiency and available places
- Daily schedule includes 3 hours of class + 2–3 hours of independent study, plus workshops, activities, and events morning to night
- Students learn time management and independence in a setting that mirrors first-year college life
Historical 2026 financial aid:
- Sibley Scholarships — need-based awards available to qualified admitted students who are US citizens, dual citizens, permanent residents, refugees/asylees, DACA recipients residing in the US, or undocumented full-time US residents (international students are not eligible), awarded on a first-applied, first-awarded basis until funds are exhausted; apply for aid as soon as the admission application is submitted, since funds can run out before the scholarship's own annual deadline
- Additional employee-dependent scholarships available for Brown University staff families
Historical 2026 application timeline:
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Sibley Scholarship | March 12, 2026; apply after submitting admission application, before funds run out |
| Application deadline | May 15, 2026 (final decisions by May 22, 2026) |
| Overall course availability begins | June 15, 2026; individual sessions differ |
| Detailed schedule’s last listed session ends | July 24, 2026; not a universal attendance span |
Cycle check, November 4, 2026: Brown’s Apply page explicitly says Summer 2026 applications are closed. It confirms January 14 opening, May 15 application cutoff and May 22 final decisions, with rolling decisions and the possibility of earlier capacity closure. Admission does not itself enroll a student in a course. The instructor page anticipates Summer 2027 programmes, but its spring 2027 application statement concerns the teaching award, not student admission. Student 2027 application dates, session dates, prices and eligibility were not verified. All prices, dated age/grade requirements and application milestones above are historical 2026 information.
The detailed 2026 calendar gives these separate choices; a student attends the selected session, rather than the whole June–July availability window:
| Format and length | Historical 2026 alternatives |
|---|---|
| On campus, 1 week | June 21–26; July 5–10; July 12–17 |
| On campus, 2 weeks | June 21–July 2; June 28–July 10; July 12–24 |
| On campus, 3 weeks | June 21–July 10; July 5–24 |
| Hybrid, 5 weeks | June 22–July 24 |
| Online, 2 weeks | June 22–July 2; June 29–July 10; July 13–24 |
| Online, 3 weeks | June 22–July 10; July 6–24 |
| Online, 4 weeks | June 22–July 17 |
| Online, 6 weeks | June 15–July 24 |
The programme snapshot instead describes overall June 15–July 25 availability. The one-day end difference is left attributed to the two official pages. The snapshot’s narrower description of on-campus/hybrid offerings also differs from the detailed calendar’s explicit online rows.
The historical Sibley Scholarship cutoff was March 12, 2026; applicants could request aid after submitting the admissions application, without waiting for admission, although awards required admission. Funds could run out before the cutoff. Sibley recipients still owed a US$500 deposit and uncovered materials, insurance, spending and travel costs. The separate PPSD scholarship required its form by April 24, 2026 and offered full programme scholarships for eligible admitted district students, subject to programme availability. That does not establish full travel and all other attendance-cost coverage.