Academic Connections International (ACI)
Are you a secondary school student, aged 16-18 years old, who would like to see what it’s like to study at a top U.S. university?
Academic Connections International (ACI) is a summer 3-week UC San Diego academic and residential immersion program which gives you the opportunity to take one academic course while also experiencing many other aspects of university life in America’s Finest City, San Diego. Study at UC San Diego with American teenagers, live in the dorms, and participate in a variety of field trips and activities around San Diego. Prospective ACI students must have strong academic records and advanced English proficiency.
What this program includes:
- On-campus housing with American students
- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner at campus cafeteria
- UC San Diego academic instruction each week
- An opportunity to take various chaperoned field trips to local sites
- Access to laboratory equipment as part of class work
- Guest speakers
- Project supplies
- Transportation to and from scheduled field trips during the program
- Constant adult supervision
The following courses are examples of the specific courses offered during Academic Connections International (ACI):
- A Poetic Writing Practice: Analyzing, Writing and Reading
- All that Glitters: The Sociology of Fashion
- Animal CSI: Virus Hunters
- Audiovisual: Music’s Place in Film, Television and Art
- Body Language: How Cells Use Hormones to Communicate
- Bugs or Features? Exploring the Cognitive Biases, Fallacies, and Heuristics
- Critical Embodiment: Art, Process and Ecologies of Scholarship
- Critical Thinking
- Experiments in Music Composition and Theory
- Foundations of Creative Writing
- History and Practice of Hip-Hop
- Itchthyology: An Exploration into Fish Diversity
- Innovative Writing Across Media: An Introduction to the College Workshop (Bilingual - English/Chinese)
- Introduction to Bioinformatics
- Introduction to Cognitive Science
- Introduction to Computer Programming - Python
- Introduction to Fluid Mechanical Engineering: From a Straw to an Airplane
- Introduction to Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
- Introduction to Microeconomics
- Language and Identity for Bilingual Writers (English/Spanish)
- Medial Matters: Stereotypes and Social Change in Popular Media
- Neuroscience: From Brain to Behaviors
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography: Introduction to Marine Biology
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography: Introduction to Paleontology
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography: Marine Invertebrates
- The Metropolis and Me: A History of Immigration, Race, and Space in Southern California
- and more!
Click here for a complete list of the courses offered during ACI. You will enroll in one course of study for three weeks. You will be asked to select your top three course choices. Payment deadline is 30 days before the beginning of the program. However, your course selection will be confirmed only after you pay the total amount. To increase your chances of enrollment in your preferred courses, early payment is highly recommended.
2019 ACI Dates:
- Summer 2019: July 7 - July 27 (3 weeks)
ACI has no official deadline, but spaces fill up very quickly. Students arriving directly from overseas, should plan to arrive on July 6th, 2019.
Admission Requirements:
Below, please find the minimum acceptance requirements for Academic Connections International (ACI). We carefully review the background and qualifications of each applicant to ensure that all students who are admitted to the program have a successful experience. Please submit all admission requirements and upload all supporting documents using the online application. Please do not submit an incomplete application. If you have any questions about the admissions proces, please feel free to email ipadmission@ucsd.edu.
Note: Please do not organize flights or pay your tuition until you have received an official acceptance to the ACI program.
Language Proficiency Requirement:
To be accepted to ACI, you must provide a completed English Recommendation Form from a secondary school English instructor, attesting you have a proficiency level equivalent to an internet-based TOEFL score of 80 or Advanced Cambridge level.
Additional Admission Requirements:
- 2019 Academic Connections International Application
- Copy of transcripts in English for the two most recent years of academic studies. Students must have a strong academic history.
- English Recommendation Form from a secondary school English instructor, attesting to a proficiency level equivalent to the internet-based TOEFL 80 or Advanced Cambridge level.
- Tuberculosis (TB) Questionnaire, Shuttle Service, Optional Housing, and SAT Workshop Form. These forms are included in the application and must be submitted after the student has been officially accepted to the ACI program.
Program Schedule:
- 3 weeks
- Monday – Friday classes, with evening and weekend activities
- Schedule varies depending on course chosen
- This program does not qualify for an I-20, and an F-1 student visa is not needed
Cost (in U.S. dollars):
- Application fee: $200 (nonrefundable)
- Tuition: $6,300 (this price includes tuition, activities, on-campus meals and housing in dormitories with American students, and chaperones on all field trips and in residence with the students at all times)
- International Student Service fee: $175
- UC San Diego medical insurance: $135
- San Diego airport pick-up fee: $75*
- Transportation to San Diego airport for departure: $75* (*available only to ACI students, as needed)
- Additional housing for July 6, 2019: $85 (shared bedroom)
- SAT Workshop included with the fee of the program.