Spring HSSP Program Details

Program Vitals:

Spring HSSP 2024 Details and FAQs

Times and Dates
Classes
Student Check-in
Sixth Graders and Below
Registration Process
Cost and Financial Aid
Email
Food
Directions and Parking
Attendance
Contact Information
General HSSP Info
Insurance

Times and Dates: Spring HSSP 2024 will run on Saturdays from March 2^nd to April 6th^th skipping March 16^th (for Spark). Classes run from 1:00 to 4:00 pm Eastern Time.

Classes: HSSP has a wide variety of classes for 7^th graders through high school seniors. The classes being offered vary from year to year, but range from "Intro to Desserts" to "The Art of Cryptography".

Student Check-In: Student check-in will begin at 11:30 am on the first day of the program and continue throughout the day. 

Eligibility: Students in grades 7-12 of all interests and levels may participate.

Special Needs: Special needs students are welcome at HSSP! If your child will need special accommodations, please see here.

I'm in sixth grade (or younger!):Our policy is that students must be in 7^th grade or older to attend our programs. (If homeschooled, please calculate your grade based on your expected graduation year.) Additionally, all students must be at least 11 years old or older to attend our programs. We do not make exceptions to this policy. Please understand that we have created this policy after much careful thought and deliberation. We have to take into account the needs of our teachers and students first and foremost. Older students may not be comfortable being in a class with another student many years younger than them. In addition, our teachers may not be prepared to deal with a much younger student in both their approach to the teaching material and supervision. Finally, there is a fairness issue. Many of our programs are very oversubscribed, and allowing a student to attend before 7^th grade gives them more years of our programs than any other student, even if they are completely mature and ready for the program.

Registration Process: During the first phase of registration, you'll be able to rank your class preferences for each time block. Afterwards, we'll run a lottery to match students to classes. All preferences entered before the first phase of registration ends will be treated equally. Students should receive an email notifying them that they can view their lottery results online. Students may then choose to add/drop classes online in a “First Come, First Serve” registration phase according to what remains open.

Students will have the option to add and drop classes during the first two weeks of the program. New students can register in this phase as well.

Cost and Financial Aid: Spring HSSP will cost $50, regardless of how many classes are taken. We accept payment online during the second phase of registration and on the first day of the program, in cash or check made out to MIT ESP. Generous need-based financial aid is available, and the request form will be available when you register online. If your family would have any problems paying for HSSP, we strongly encourage you to apply for financial aid.

Email: Email is the main way that HSSP coordinators and teachers communicate with students. Unfortunately, sometimes our emails are marked as spam, and don't go through. If you don't get a confirmation email, you should try the following:

1. Check what email address your ESP account is configured for. Sometimes, people mistype their email address, or type in their parents' email instead of their own. You can check here.
2. Check that the email was not caught in a spam folder.
3. If you still can't find the email, email us individually, and we'll send you a confirmation email. Also, make @esp.mit.edu an allowed source.
4. Performing step 3 will not guarantee that you get all of our emails - our emails keep getting caught in spam filters, and there is very little we can do about it. You should check this page on the website regularly to make sure you're up to date. We will announce sent emails on the website. Also, email spring-hssp@mit.edu to let us know that you're not receiving our emails, so we can see if there is anything we can do about this.

Food: HSSP does not provide student lunch. 

Attendance: It is important that you try to attend all 5 weeks. Many of the courses will build upon previous material, and so missing a week will put you behind. You must show up on the first day of classes, if you cannot show up to the first day of classes you must email us or risk losing your spot.

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Forms/Insurance Information

Media Release Form/Liability Waiver: Students and parents will need to sign a media release form and liability waiver, which will be made available soon. 

Disabilities and Special Needs: If your child has any physical handicaps, please inform us ahead of time so we can make suitable arrangements. If your child has any other special needs, please inform us. While we will work with your child to the best of our ability, our teachers are college students and are not trained in how to handle special-needs children.

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About HSSP

HSSP runs once a week, either on Saturday (Spring) or Sunday (Summer) for 5-8 weeks. Each day, there are two to three class periods. HSSP does not provide food for students, and your child may attend any or all of the class periods. This will not affect the cost of the program. HSSP has a wide variety of classes that vary from semester to semester. Our teachers are volunteers, so they may or may not teach a particular class again. If your child does not like his or her class, they may switch into any class that has openings and lacks application questions during the first two weeks of the program. After that, we do not allow any class changes or new registrations. In addition, if you are dissatisfied or cannot attend the program, you may obtain a full refund by the third week of HSSP. We do not offer any refunds past the third week.