Tuition and Fees

Penn SAS High School Programs tuition rates and withdrawal policies may vary by program. Please review the rates and policies for the program(s) to which you plan to apply. Please note: All fees and tuition charges are subject to the approval of the University of Pennsylvania Board of Trustees and may change without notice. Penn employee tuition benefits do not apply to high school summer programs.

If you are a Philadelphia resident and attend a School District of Philadelphia public or charter high school, you may be eligible to attend Penn Summer Prep or a Penn Summer Academy free of charge with a Penn Summer Scholarship.

There is a $1,500 nonrefundable deposit for all programs. There is also a nonrefundable application fee of $75, payable by credit card through our online application system. See if you qualify for an application fee waiver.


2024 Penn Summer Prep tuition

Tuition for the 2024 Penn Summer Prep program is $5,700 and includes program fees and residential costs.

If you attend a School District of Philadelphia public or charter high school, you may be eligible to attend Penn Summer Prep free of charge with a Penn Summer Scholarship.

On-campus program fees include: Use of Penn academic facilities, on-campus housing, gym access, linens, three meals a day Monday–Friday, two meals on Sunday (no meals Saturday due to excursions/activities), extracurricular activities and trips, and student supervision.

On-campus program fees DO NOT include: Non-refundable $75 application fee, travel to/from campus, airport transfers, class materials, meals eaten off campus, medical expenses, laundry, souvenirs, and personal spending money.


2024 Summer Academies tuition

  • American Sign Language and Deaf Culture Academy (offered as remote learning only): $5,500
  • Biomedical Research Academy, Chemistry Research Academy, Coding Academy, Experimental Physics Research Academy, Global Culture and Media Academy, Mathematics Academy, Neuroscience Research Academy, Social Justice Research Academy: $9,700

If you attend a School District of Philadelphia public or charter high school you may be eligible to attend a Penn Summer Academy free of charge with a Penn Summer Scholarship.

On-campus program fees include: Use of Penn academic facilities, on-campus housing, gym access, linens, three meals a day Monday–Friday, two meals on Sunday (no meals Saturday due to excursions/activities), extracurricular activities and trips, and student supervision.

On-campus program fees DO NOT include: Non-refundable $75 application fee, travel to/from campus, airport transfers, class materials, meals eaten off campus, medical expenses, laundry, souvenirs, and personal spending money.


2024 Pre-College Programs tuition

Our 2024 Pre-College Programs tuition will be available in mid-spring. The online and residential program fees will stay the same for 2024.

Course units* Program fee Tuition General fee Total cost
1 $8,000 $5,012 $432 $13,444
1.5 $8,000 $7,518 $432 $15,950
2 $8,000 $10,024 $432 $18,456
2.5 $8,000 $12,530 $432 $20,962

On-campus program fees include: Use of Penn academic facilities, on-campus housing, gym access, linens, three meals a day Monday–Friday, two meals on Sunday (no meals Saturday due to excursions/activities), extracurricular activities and trips, and student supervision.

On-campus program fees DO NOT include: Non-refundable $75 application fee, travel to/from campus, airport transfers, class materials, meals eaten off campus, medical expenses, laundry, souvenirs, and personal spending money.

2024 Pre-College Online Program tuition

Course units* Program fee Tuition General fee Total cost
1 $2,600 $5,012 $432 $8,044
2 $2,600 $10,024 $432 $13,056

Application fee (non-refundable) – $75


See if you qualify for an application fee waiver.

Withdrawal policy

Summer Academies, Prep Program, and Pre-College Programs

A nonrefundable deposit of $1,500 is required to officially reserve a student's spot in the program. Program fees minus the nonrefundable deposit of $1,500 are refundable until May 15. There is no adjustment in tuition for late arrivals or early departures. All withdrawals must be in writing and emailed to hsprogs@sas.upenn.edu and penn@summerdiscovery.com.


*Academic credit is defined by the University of Pennsylvania as a course unit (c.u.). A course unit (c.u.) is a general measure of academic work over a period of time, typically a term (semester or summer). A c.u. (or a fraction of a c.u.) represents different types of academic work across different types of academic programs and is the basic unit of progress toward a degree. One c.u. is usually converted to a four-semester-hour course.