Academic Connections

Academic Connections is committed to providing a pre-college summer experience that is academically enriching to a diverse population of high-achieving, college-bound high school students motivated to explore the offerings of UC San Diego – a top five, internationally ranked public institution. Students work with the brightest UC San Diego graduate students to examine the world around them as inquisitive academic scholars.

Courses are selected to represent some of the most exciting fields of research UC San Diego has to offer in the physical and social sciences, engineering, arts and humanities. All courses are challenging and place emphasis on active learning and putting knowledge to use in independent and creative ways. Gifted high school students from around the world choose UC San Diego Pre-College programs to prepare for success and experience college-level academics. 

Register for Summer 2025 Now! Offering commuter classes:

Commuter Courses: July 7 - July 25, 2025

• 101 College Writing for Success
• Analyzing Adaptations: Books and Beyond
• Apocalyptic Speculations: An Exploration of the Climate Crisis through Speculative Fiction
• Digital Media Literacy
• Disease Detectives: Introduction to Public Health and Epidemiology
• Fundamentals of Data Science
• Intersectional Identities and the Sociological Imagination
• Introduction to Creative Writing: Short Fiction
• Introduction to Human Emotion: An Emotional Approach to Critical Thinking and Critical Writing
• Neuroscience: From Brain to Behavior 

Each student that completes the program can earn six units of UC San Diego Extended Studies pre-college credit. 

Scholarships are available for select courses through a partnership with the Inamori Foundation.