For over 60 years, Summer Discovery has run pre-college summer programs for teens at leading universities in the US, UK, and beyond. Students live on campus, take real college-style courses, and explore new cities — all under expert supervision designed to give parents peace of mind. We've helped generations of students build independence, make lifelong friends, and get a real preview of university life before they apply. Read on to see what our families and students think.
Summer Discovery (summerdiscovery.com) has 80 customer reviews on Five Star Index, with an average rating of 4.0 out of 5.
Also known as
summerdiscovery.com
Website
summerdiscovery.com
Category
Education Services
Location
Stamford, Connecticut
Listed on Five Star Index
2026
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Most recent review: October 2026.
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Summer Discovery was an amazing experience for me. I made a lot of really great friends that I still keep in touch with. Everyday was packed with multiple activities. There was a great balance between class time and fun time. The only comment I have is that not every student was allowed to go to the activities due to limited spots. It doesn’t make sense for all of us to pay the same amount to be there but then activities are whoever signs up first. The sign up list would come out while we were in class when most of us weren’t on our phones and then the activity would be full by the time class ended. If you don’t go to the activities there is not a lot to do because we couldn’t leave the doors without an RC. In conclusion, go if you will do the activities.
Response from Summer DiscoveryAug 13, 2026
Thank you for taking the time to share your review with us. We’re glad to hear about the aspects of your experience that went well, but we are genuinely sorry to hear that other parts did not meet your expectations. We appreciate your honest insights, as they help us continue improving the experience for future students and families!
SS
Shishir S.
It organize a well program
It organize a well program, I would be more happy if we can see the work which students did during camp like presentation video with share with parents or invite them to view.
Response from Summer DiscoveryAug 13, 2026
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your feedback! We're thrilled to hear you had a great experience overall, and we truly appreciate your insights on where we can improve. Our team is always working hard to deliver exceptional experiences for our students and families, and notes like yours help us do just that. Thank you again for being part of the Summer Discovery family!
CJ
CJ
Disappointing for the price
The program put my son in a single room and then after the first night did not allow the kids to hang out in the common room of the dorm, but also required everyone to be inside in the evenings, so he spent most of his time alone in his very hot (no AC) dorm room. The rain and heat cancelled many of the afternoon group activities, but the kids also were not allowed to explore the campus or the town on their own. I was disappointed that such an expensive program seemed to lack communication with the kids as to what their options for socializing were. My son also said that the engineering program he participated in took place in one of the college classrooms, but that none of the maker space materials or tools were available to the Summer Discovery students. It didn’t seem as well run as some of the other comparable programs that work with their host colleges to ensure a quality experience for the students. This was a sub-par experience at a very expensive price. I would not recommend it.
Response from Summer DiscoveryAug 3, 2026
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We’re sorry to hear that your son’s experience did not meet your expectations. We understand your concerns regarding his room assignment and comfort, the limited opportunities for students to socialize, the cancellation of activities, and the lack of clear communication about alternative options. We also recognize your disappointment that the engineering course did not provide access to the maker-space tools and materials you anticipated.
Our team will be reaching out to learn more about your son’s experience and better understand your concerns. We appreciate your detailed feedback and will use it to help improve the residential, social, and academic experience for future students and families.
CU
customer
Amazing program!
Classes were great. Activities were awesome too!
Response from Summer DiscoveryAug 13, 2026
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your feedback! We're glad to hear you had such a positive experience with us. We truly appreciate your support and look forward to delivering great experiences for all our students and families!
VK
Veera K.
Needed more info given ahead of time
The activity’s planned were rlly fun! I wish the classes let us know what we needed to know ahead of time (if you understand what I mean) for example in the aerospace class, i’m going into 10th grade and I didn’t know physics or trigonometry so it was hard to follow along because when i signed up for the class it didn’t say I needed to know this ahead of time. I also wish there were more hands on projects.
Response from Summer DiscoveryAug 13, 2026
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your feedback! We're thrilled to hear you had a great experience overall, and we truly appreciate your insights on where we can improve. Our team is always working hard to deliver exceptional experiences for our students and families, and notes like yours help us do just that. Thank you again for being part of the Summer Discovery family!
D
..
l enrolled my son in this summer…
l enrolled my son in this summer program with very high expectations, especially considering that both he and his friend each spent approximately $24,000 to attend. Unfortunately, the experience fell far short of what we expected from a program associated with Yale.
One of the first concerns was the food. On orientation day, my son scanned the QR code for one of the meals and found an ingredient list containing around 60 ingredients. Because of this, he and his friend chose to order their own food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day instead of eating the meals provided by the program.
The housing conditions were equally disappointing. My son and his friend stayed together in one of the suites, and when they arrived, there was no air conditioning at all. They had to purchase fans themselves just to make the room bearable. The suite was also extremely dirty, covered in dust, and there was no room or suite cleaning provided by staff throughout their stay. The common areas became so messy that they found themselves asking other students to stop throwing trash around. We have photographs documenting these conditions.
Academically, my son enrolled in both the Business and Neuroscience courses. We were surprised to learn that neither instructor was a Yale professor, but rather teachers from other schools. The Business course was one of the primary reasons he chose this program, yet he came away feeling that he learned very little. Additionally, the two guest speakers were brought in over Zoom rather than in person. According to my son, the presentations were so unprofessional that even the Business instructor remarked that they would not be invited back in the future.
For the amount we paid, we expected a program that reflected the reputation of Yale. Instead, our son experienced poor housing conditions, food he did not feel comfortable eating, and an academic experience that did not justify the cost. We have photographs supporting the concerns regarding the accommodations, and we hope the program takes this feedback seriously so future students receive the quality of experience families expect when making such a significant investment.
Response from Summer DiscoveryAug 3, 2026
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We're sorry to hear your experience did not meet your expectations. Our team will be reaching out to learn more about your experience and better understand your concerns. We appreciate your feedback and will use it to continue improving the experience for future students and families.
XR
Xander R.
Dan’s expertise
What made my experience feel good was the fact that Dan was always there to help me whenever I was homesick. In addition, my teacher was very good for creative writing. The only tip I would give would be to add A/C to the dorms if possible. and also add some more activities to do outside
Response from Summer DiscoveryAug 13, 2026
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your feedback! We're thrilled to hear you had a great experience overall, and we truly appreciate your insights on where we can improve. Our team is always working hard to deliver exceptional experiences for our students and families, and notes like yours help us do just that. Thank you again for being part of the Summer Discovery family!
AM
A M.
Good location good staff pretty good…
Good location good staff pretty good food nice thoughtful activities but too expensive for the experience
Response from Summer DiscoveryAug 13, 2026
Thank you for taking the time to share your review with us. We’re glad to hear about the aspects of your experience that went well, but we are genuinely sorry to hear that other parts did not meet your expectations. We appreciate your honest insights, as they help us continue improving the experience for future students and families!