Acadia Institute of Oceanography's Advanced Sessions are pre-college summer courses offered to students age 15-19 who have completed one year of high school science, preferably biology or chemistry.
These two-week sessions are of a more analytical nature, and students are expected to prepare laboratory reports and analysis of their field work. Acadia Institute of Oceanography, located in Seal Harbor, Maine, offers high school students the chance to explore their collegiate and career options during the advanced sessions.
The caliber of Acadia Institute of Oceanography's students is so well respected that College of the Atlantic, in Bar Harbor, Maine, offers $10,000 annual scholarships to any AIO student who is accepted into their program with a recommendation from one of the Directors (for a total of $40,000).
Two separate sessions are offered each summer, during the months of July and August. The first advanced session is available for college credit from the University of Maine Machias. The tuition of the non-credit Advanced Program is $2,850. Students who are applying to receive college credit for the Advanced Program session will incur additional fees. The sessions begin on Sunday after 12 noon and end on Friday between 9 am and noon to allow us time to deep clean before the next group arrives. Covid-19 protocols will be in place. And students who do well in the program are invited to apply for one of our winter programs in Belize and Florida.
Example of a Typical Day in the Advanced Program at Acadia Institute of Oceanography
- 9:00 - 1:00: Water testing boat trip, Shark Dissection
- 2:00 - 5:00: Beach Profile and Sediment Sorting
- 5:15 - 5:45: Mini seminar based on a marine topic
- 7:00 - 9:00: Rec Time/Lecture: Ocean Evolution
AIO's overnight summer programs are housed in the vintage 1931 Durham Schoolhouse. A classic American red brick schoolhouse, the building has been carefully restored and updated to offer clean and comfortable accommodations. Three of the large classrooms have been converted into open dormitories and students sleep on bunk beds. The schoolhouse also includes a lecture hall, recreation room, a research wet laboratory, library, director's office, nurse's office, dining room, bathrooms, and showers. The academic schedule of the overnight summer programs with AIO is designed to allow for time each day for recreational activities such as hiking in Acadia National Park, swimming, group games, and visits to local laboratories and museums. And there is plenty of free time to read, write letters, socialize and relax