# How to Write Summer Program Essays and Ask for Recommendations

*September 26, 2026 — by Extracurricular Hub*

What selective summer programs actually ask you to write, who they want recommendations from, and how to handle both, with real prompts, word limits and deadlines from MITES, Clark Scholars, YYGS, RSI, COSMOS and more.

At selective summer programs, two things you still control in the weeks before the deadline carry a lot of weight: what you write and who writes about you. Grades and activities are mostly set by then. The essays and recommendations are where a reader finds out who you are, and they are also where strong applicants lose points by rushing.

This guide uses the real requirements of programs whose application pages we checked on September 26, 2026. Programs change their prompts every cycle, so treat the examples as a map of what to expect, and read the current application before you write a word.

### Step One: Read What the Program Actually Asks For

"Write an essay" means very different things from one program to the next. Here is what a few of them ask for:

| Program | What you write | Limits |
| --- | --- | --- |
| MITES Summer | 6 short answers, including one on why MITES fits you | 300 words each; the fit question allows 400 |
| Clark Scholars (Texas Tech) | Research interests, an optional second interest, your goals, and your most fulfilling service experience | 2,000 characters each, 1,500 for service, spaces included |
| Yale Young Global Scholars | One essay, one shorter response, two "fast take" answers | 400 words, 200 words, 280 characters each |
| Research Science Institute | Essay responses about your goals in science, technology, engineering or math | Set in the application |
| Iowa Young Writers' Studio | A statement of purpose plus a writing sample | 1-2 pages; sample up to 10 pages |
| Naval Academy Summer Seminar | One essay on why you want to attend, your activities and awards | 1,000 characters |

Two details in that table are easy to miss. First, some programs count **characters, not words**. Clark Scholars says its limits include spaces, and 1,000 characters is roughly one solid paragraph. Second, some programs publish their prompts before the application opens. Clark Scholars posts its prompts early so students can draft ahead, and MITES shares past short-answer prompts as examples. Use that head start.

### How to Write the Essays

#### Answer the exact question

Reviewers read many responses to the same prompt, and an answer that drifts into your general life story reads as a recycled essay. Clark Scholars, for example, asks you to describe your research interests "being very specific," because your answer helps match you with a research professor. So name the field, the question and what you have already read or tried. Specific answers are easier to match and easier to remember.

#### Give each short answer its own job

When a program asks several short questions, MITES among them, it is trying to see different sides of you. Before you draft, list the prompts and assign each one a different story, activity or idea. If two answers would use the same example, change one. A reader should finish your application knowing several distinct things about you.

#### Show the work behind the interest

"I love biology" tells a reader nothing they can check. "I spent the spring counting bird species at the pond behind our school and noticed the numbers dropped after the parking lot was repaved" gives them a real person with a real question. Look for moments where you did something because you were curious: a project, a book you kept thinking about, a problem you couldn't let go of. That is the evidence programs want.

#### Write "why this program" answers about the program

MITES asks why you are a good fit for its programs "in particular," and many programs ask a version of the same question. A good answer names something only this program offers, such as a course, a research track, a mission or a format, and connects it to something you have already done. If your answer would work for any program by swapping the name, it isn't finished.

#### Treat a writing sample as the main event

For creative-writing programs, the sample often matters more than the statement. The Iowa Young Writers' Studio asks fiction, poetry and creative-writing applicants for up to ten pages, and asks for writing that is "vivid and interesting." Send your strongest pages rather than your longest ones, and have a teacher or writing mentor read them before you submit.

#### Leave time for two real drafts

Plan to write a first draft, put it away for a few days, then cut it to the limit. Most first drafts get better when they get shorter. Ask one adult who knows you to read it for clarity, not to rewrite it: reviewers want to hear a teenager, not a parent or a consultant.

### Recommendations: Know What Each Program Wants

Recommendation requirements vary just as much as essays, and several programs no longer take traditional letters at all:

| Program | How many | From whom | Format |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| MITES Summer | 3 | A math or science teacher, a humanities teacher, and a counselor or administrator | Online forms; MITES says it does not accept letters |
| Clark Scholars | 3 | At least two teachers; the third can be a teacher, research mentor, principal investigator or volunteer organization | Online questionnaire, not a written letter |
| Yale Young Global Scholars | 1 | A recommender who completes the YYGS form | Form only; no written letters |
| Research Science Institute | 2 (up to 3 accepted) | Math or science teachers, or a research supervisor if you did a project of 4 weeks or longer | Letters |
| Summer Science Program | 1 required, a second "highly preferred" | A math or science educator at your school; a second can be any adult outside your family | Recommendation form |
| Iowa Young Writers' Studio | 1 | An English teacher or other writing instructor or mentor | Letter the recommender uploads |
| COSMOS (California students) | 1 required, 2 strongly recommended | Teachers | Submitted with the online application |

Some programs don't want recommendations at all. The Naval Academy Summer Seminar asks applicants not to mail letters of recommendation or other items it doesn't require, and the [MIT Jameel Clinic AI & Health bootcamp](/extracurriculars/mit-jameel-clinic-ai-health-bootcamp) makes them optional. When a program says no, sending one anyway doesn't help, and Clark Scholars says outright that it won't accept supplemental material beyond what it asks for.

### Choosing Your Recommenders

- **Match the program's category first.** If SSP wants a math or science educator, your favorite history teacher can't fill that slot, however well they know you.
- **Pick someone who has seen you work.** A teacher from a class where you asked questions, came to office hours or did a project will write something concrete. A good grade in a class where you never spoke up gives them little to say.
- **Prefer this year's teacher when you can.** SSP says it prefers a teacher you are working with in the current year.
- **Use a research mentor when the program asks for one.** RSI tells applicants who have done at least four weeks of research at a university or lab to ask that research supervisor.

### How to Ask, Step by Step

1. **Ask early.** Give a recommender at least three to four weeks. Winter is crowded: teachers are finishing college letters for seniors at the same time.
2. **Ask in person, then follow up in writing.** A short conversation after class, then an email with the details, is the most respectful combination.
3. **Send a one-page summary.** Include the program's name and what it is, the recommender's deadline, how they will submit (a form link, an upload, or a portal email), two or three things you did in their class that you're proud of, and why you're applying.
4. **Check the mechanics.** Some programs email your recommender automatically once you enter their name; MITES and Clark Scholars both work this way. Others, like the Iowa Young Writers' Studio, send nothing, and it is your job to get the recommender to the upload page.
5. **Watch both deadlines.** MITES has a student deadline of February 1, when you must have named your recommenders, and a recommender deadline of February 15. Last cycle the Iowa Young Writers' Studio's letter upload closed on February 6, 2026, five days after the student deadline.
6. **Follow up once, politely.** About a week before the deadline, check the program's status page and send a short reminder if the recommendation hasn't arrived. MITES says it is the applicant's responsibility to make sure recommenders submit on time.
7. **Say thank you, and report back.** A handwritten note costs nothing. Tell your recommender how it turned out, whatever the result: they will likely write for you again.

#### A short email you can adapt

*"Hi Ms. Rivera, thank you for agreeing to recommend me for the Summer Science Program. The form comes from SSP by email, and the deadline is [date]. I've attached a one-page summary with the program description and a few things from chemistry this year I'm proud of, like the titration project. Please let me know if anything else would help. Thank you!"*

### A Simple Timeline

- **Six to eight weeks before the deadline:** read the application, list every prompt and every required recommender, and pick your recommenders.
- **Four to six weeks before:** ask your recommenders and send each one your summary. Start first drafts.
- **Two to three weeks before:** revise to the limits and get one adult reader's comments.
- **One week before:** check that recommendations have arrived, proofread everything, and submit early. MITES encourages students to submit as soon as every section is complete, to avoid last-minute website traffic.

Dates for summer 2027 are appearing now. Yale Young Global Scholars, for example, lists an Early Action deadline of October 15, 2026 and a Regular Decision deadline of January 6, 2027, and COSMOS applications for California students run from January 6 to February 5, 2027. Our [summer 2027 deadline guide](/blog/summer-program-application-deadlines) tracks what programs have confirmed so far, and the [summer planning guide](/blog/summer-planning-guide-high-school-students) lays out the months around them.

### Where to Go Next

Browse [summer programs](/extracurriculars/summer-programs) to build your list, and save the programs you choose to the [Activities Builder](/activities). The same skills carry into college applications: see [how to write activity descriptions](/blog/how-to-write-activity-descriptions-college-applications) and [how to write about your activities in essays](/blog/write-activities-college-essays). Not sure which programs fit? Take the [Find My Fit quiz](/find-my-fit).

## Sources

- [MITES: Apply to MITES Semester and MITES Summer](https://mites.mit.edu/discover-mites/apply-to-mites/prepare-your-application-mites-summer-and-mites-semester/) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [Clark Scholars Program: Application Details](https://www.depts.ttu.edu/clarkscholars/ApplicationDetails.php) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [Clark Scholars Program: Essay Prompts](https://www.depts.ttu.edu/clarkscholars/documents/essayprompts.php) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [Yale Young Global Scholars: Required Application Components](https://globalscholars.yale.edu/required-components) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [Yale Young Global Scholars: Application Dates and Deadlines](https://globalscholars.yale.edu/application-deadlines) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [Research Science Institute: Apply to RSI, Center for Excellence in Education](https://www.cee.org/programs/apply-rsi) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [Summer Science Program: FAQs](https://ssp.org/faqs/) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [Iowa Young Writers' Studio: How to Apply, Summer Residential Program](https://iyws.program.uiowa.edu/how-to-apply/summer-residential-program) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [COSMOS: Application and Payment Basics](https://cosmos-ucop.ucdavis.edu/app/main/page/application-and-payment-basics) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [U.S. Naval Academy Summer Seminar](https://www.usna.edu/Admissions/Programs/NASS.php) (checked September 27, 2026)
- [MIT Jameel Clinic AI & Health Summer High School Bootcamp](https://jclinic.mit.edu/events/high-school-summer-bootcamp/) (checked September 27, 2026)

Last reviewed against these sources on September 27, 2026.

## Frequently asked questions

### How long should a summer program essay be?

Exactly as long as the program allows, and no longer. Limits vary a lot: MITES short answers are capped at 300 words, YYGS asks for one 400-word essay and one 200-word response, Clark Scholars counts characters including spaces (2,000 for most prompts), and the Naval Academy Summer Seminar essay has a 1,000-character limit. Check the current application for your program.

### Who should write my recommendation for a summer program?

Whoever the program names. Research programs usually want a math or science teacher: SSP requires one from a math or science educator at your school, and RSI asks for two teachers or a research supervisor. A writing program like the Iowa Young Writers' Studio wants an English teacher or writing mentor. MITES asks for one math or science teacher, one humanities teacher and a counselor or administrator.

### How early should I ask for a recommendation?

Ask at least three to four weeks before the recommender's deadline, and earlier in December and January, when teachers are also writing college letters. Check whether the program has a separate recommender deadline: MITES, for example, asks students to name recommenders by February 1 and gives recommenders until February 15.

### Can I reuse my college essay for a summer program?

You can reuse a story, but rarely the essay itself. Summer program prompts usually ask something narrower, like your research interests, why this program fits you, or a specific experience, and they have much tighter limits than a college essay. Answer the question in front of you.

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Last updated: 2026-10-05.
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