Curious about exploring a career path in journalism? The Princeton Summer Journalism Program (PSJP) can be a fantastic opportunity!
What exactly is the Princeton Summer Journalism Program? Glad you asked. (Well, we asked for you, but…)
PSJP is a FREE summer program at Princeton University for high school students who are in their junior year when the application opens (which is in December).
Participating in PSJP gives you opportunities to:
Learn from renowned professional journalists.
Spend time residing in Princeton’s campus dorms.
Meet other ambitious students from around the country.
Get college admissions counseling throughout your senior year.
But, not all high school juniors are eligible. Admissions for PSJP are competitive. And you may be wondering if or how attending a Princeton summer program could benefit your future college applications.
The guide below covers everything you need to know. Let’s dive in!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
(click to skip ahead)What is the Princeton Summer Journalism Program?
The Princeton Summer Journalism Program (PSJP) is a free journalism program for high school juniors from low-income backgrounds.
PSJP students engage in workshops and lectures—led by Princeton professors, professional journalists, and the program’s alumni—on current events, world affairs, and the field of journalism.
Students also receive support from a personal college adviser throughout the summer and their senior year of high school. The adviser helps with nearly every part of the college admissions process, from building a college list to making a final admissions decision.
Because of those things, the PSJP can be a fantastic opportunity if you both fit the eligibility requirements and consider journalism a potential career path.
But getting into this summer program is challenging!
The admission process is highly selective, admitting only up to 40 students per year. So below, we’ll talk through how and when to put together a stellar application.
(For a massive guide to 400+ extracurricular activities and how colleges view them, head here.)
Key PSJP program details
The Princeton Summer Journalism Program is a multi-week hybrid summer program with online lectures and workshops taught by renowned journalists throughout July.
Outside of class, students
complete weekly reading assignments
write original news articles
and work with a college adviser to begin preparing for the college application process.
The program also offers various activities for students to watch and learn from professional journalists. For example, students may go on tours of major news organizations, such as The New York Times and Huffington Post.
The program ends with all students residing in undergraduate dorms on Princeton’s campus for ten days. During that time, students get a taste of college life while attending in-person workshops and lectures led by Princeton professors and professional journalists.
The program culminates with the students publishing their original news articles in the PSJP’s annual newspaper, the Princeton Summer Journal.
PSJP’s focus on students from limited-income backgrounds
PSJP is a one-of-a-kind summer program for high school students from limited-income backgrounds who have excelled academically and consider journalism a potential career path.
Why does the program focus exclusively on students from limited-income backgrounds?
Because their mission is “to diversify the fields that impact our democracy through the exploration of the important connection between journalism and critical social and political events.”
What does the program consider to be a limited-income background? Check the “socioeconomic conditions” section of the eligibility requirements below.
Princeton Summer Journalism Program eligibility requirements
The Princeton Summer Journalism Program is highly selective. So, before you apply, make sure you meet the eligibility requirements:
Be a junior in high school at the time of application.
Live in the United States and plan to attend college here. Students living and attending school abroad are not eligible, even if they are U.S. citizens.
Have a minimum GPA of 3.5 out of 4.0 (unweighted).
Show an interest in journalism (experience writing for your school newspaper is not required).
Meet at least one of the following socioeconomic conditions:
The combined annual income of your parent(s)/guardian(s) plus child support payments, if any, does not exceed $60,000.
Your family’s economic circumstances qualify you to receive free or reduced-price school lunch.
Your family’s economic circumstances qualify you for an SAT or ACT fee waiver.
Will you be a first-generation college student (i.e., the first in your family to attend college)? PSJP acknowledges how challenging that can be and will give your application priority consideration. (And if so, be sure to check out CEG’s First Generation and/or Low Income Resource Center, for guidance on core elements of the college application process—it has important resources for all students, but especially for FG/LI students.)
PSJP application requirements and timeline
The Princeton Summer Journalism Program application process has three rounds. Here are the details and requirements for each round.
Round 1: December - February
December is when the application opens. The summer program starts the following July, during the summer before your senior year.
During this PSJP application round, you must:
Complete an online application (the application asks for information on your high school academic record and family’s financial status).
Write three short response essays and one longer article.
Provide contact information for one teacher who can write a recommendation letter.
Provide contact for your high school counselor, who will submit your academic transcript and profile information about your high school.
Round 2: March - April
This PSJP application round is when you’ll find out if you’ve been selected as a semi-finalist.
If selected, you must submit additional documents, including family income information and federal tax returns.
Round 3: May
This application round is when you find out if you’ve been chosen as a finalist.
If chosen, you’ll receive an invitation for an interview. The interview is the final round of the application process.
You’ll get a final admissions decision by late May.
PSJP costs
The Princeton Summer Journalism Program is 100% free. Yes, you read that correctly! PSJP is completely free of charge for all eligible students.
The program covers all the costs for the 10-day residential experience on Princeton’s campus: transportation to and from campus, housing, meals, and equipment needed for assignments.
However, the program does not cover the costs for any technology (e.g., laptop computer) that you may need during the virtual portion of the program. But please note: If this is a significant barrier, the program website states that it may be able to work with you to address this issue.
How does PSJP affect college admissions?
Attending the Princeton Summer Journalism Program does not guarantee you admission to Princeton or any other college (no summer activity does that).
But it can help.
College admissions officers may view your participation in PSJP as evidence that you’re both intellectually curious and prepared to handle the rigors of college.
It can also help demonstrate your interest in journalism if you consider pursuing journalism as your college major.
Additionally, you may decide to write about a meaningful experience during the program in one of your college application essays and/or include it in your college application activities section.
Still, selective high school summer programs (at Princeton or elsewhere) can only help if you’ve also made a compelling case for your admission throughout the other components of your college applications (e.g., personal statement, standardized test scores, high school transcript, etc.).
Also, don’t forget: PSJP participants get free access to a personal college counselor throughout the program and their senior year of high school. While participating in the summer program doesn’t guarantee any kind of college admission, having access to college counseling can definitely help!
Final Thoughts
The Princeton Summer Journalism Program can be an amazing opportunity if you are a high school junior, interested in exploring a career path in journalism, and from a low-income background.
However, it’s essential to remember that PSJP only admits up to 40 students per year. So, if you’re serious about applying:
Review the eligibility and application requirements shared in this guide.
Give serious time and focus to your application (the application opens from December to February).
Consider additional ways to make the most of your high school summers to avoid putting all your eggs in one basket (getting into PSJP is competitive).
Think you might prefer a summer internship instead? Check out this guide next: A guide to internships for high school students.
Special thanks to Ameer for writing this blog post
Ameer is a freelance writer who specializes in writing about college admissions and career development. Prior to freelancing, Ameer worked for three years as a college admissions consultant at a Hong Kong-based education center, helping local high school students prepare and apply for top colleges and universities in the US. He has a B.A. in Latin American Studies from the University of Chicago and an M.A. in Spanish Linguistics from UCLA. When he’s not working, Ameer loves traveling, weight lifting, writing, reading, and learning foreign languages. He currently lives in Bangkok, Thailand.
Top values: Growth / Diversity / Empathy
