Your designated driver? 
I was a TA in astronomy at Duke TIP in '95 and '96. Aside from the actual classes, the kids get a good early acquaintance with the college experience. Living in dorms with new total strangers, being responsible for staying on schedule, etc. Sometimes there were dances or other social activities.
Of course there was the occasional drama that 7th-9th graders can generate, but all around it was a lot of fun, and if it’s anything like it was back when I was involved, I’d say go for it.
And yes, it’ll be hot and humid, and the dorms aren’t air conditioned. At least they weren’t back then.
[sub]and I had to ignore the fact it was at Dook…[/sub]
I also got the CTY materials, but AIRC (and I don’t know if this is still true) CTY was almost entirely math and science, while TIP had a lot of more verbal programs, which is what I was interested in. Although Macroeconomics always kicked everybody’s ass in Ultimate Frisbee.
I know some people who did TIP, and they’ve all got some pretty good memories of it.
I myself did five summers at CTY, 1997-2001, and I have absolutely nothing bad to say about the program. I was unbelievably socially awkward during those years and generally hated school because of it, but loved CTY. One of my closest friends today is a girl who was in my dorm in my first year of the summer program. You learn a lot in the academic program, but I know I learned even more outside of the classroom.
Obviously I can’t speak for the Duke program, but dances are (or at least were) a huge thing at CTY (and despite the program’s best attempts to keep it from happening, my first ‘real’ kiss occurred at a CTY dance).
ETA: I did five years worth of non-math programs at CTY; there were plenty of courses.
Because of the similar program at Northwestern, I got to attend summer classes for 6 years, including computer science, mythology, creative writing, psychology, sociology, graphic design, and journalism. It was a lot of fun, and I made a lot of friends with similar interests. Living in the college dorms and attending classes on campus also made for a very easy transition when I started college after high school (with enough credits to make me a sophomore, already!).
I loved it, and it’s definitely worth checking out.
In my vast experience of TIP programs (meaning one summer in 1998), they’re way big on the dances too. I imagine it’s easier to supervise a horde of teenagers by stuffing them all into one room and sending the bigger RAs to guard the doors.
I also have some decent memories from my stint at TIP. It wasn’t exactly life-changing (there were a surprising number of geeky smart kids in my school) and I didn’t keep going back for years and years because I had other obligations to keep me busy all summer, but even just the once was a good experience for me.
Its for real. My kids went through it-at least through the testing.
In my opinion, it is a very good program for the few very brightest kids, marginally helpful for the majority of kids that get invitations. That is for the full summer school, activities, etc. What is worth it for everyone is the practice test. While it doesn’t “count” toward college, it is known and recognized by admissions officers. I am glad we had our kids take the ACT test in eighth grade. It gave the kids some experience in the test and gave us a baseline.
According to Mrs Shibb, The Girl got a notification today that she did well enough on the test (top 5% of 7th graders who took the test) to qualify for their summer program. Not sure if we can afford it or she will want to go, though.
Anyone else?
I did the TIP program at Western Kentucky University for four summers. Although I went on to attend the University of Kentucky – where I learned Duke University is the most evil place in the world, if not the galaxy – I have fond memories of the program and highly recommend it.
My daughter qualified last year. She went to the local high school and took the SAT. She scored high enough in English and was invited to the summer camps. We were very interested until we realized they cost in the $5k range…a little out of our budget!
I have been involved in gifted programs for 30 years as a specialist in gifted education here in Australia. I have also been to America to speak at conferences, and will be back this October, so I am familiar with programs there, such as John Hopkins. I have seen remarkable impact on students when they get to experience programs with other kids like them. Just to find there are other kids like them, and that they don’t have to hide the fact that they are bright and love learning can be life changing. The social aspects, as indicated above, are almost as important as the academic ones, if not more so!
I’d certainly take it seriously, and if the test results are high, then look at other programs as well. It will give you information with which to make decisions about your child’s needs.
Duke TIP is real. I participated twenty-five years ago. You got the oppourtunitly to take the actual SAT or ACT. There is a fee, because those test require a fee. Duke then selects the top X applicants and offers them a summer program at Duke. I have no idea what the summer program is like, because while I did well enough to get an athletic scholarship, I didn’t do well enough to get into the program.
At the very least, it gives your kid a good flavor what the SAT will be like when he takes it for real.
For those who live in the Hillsborough county school district in Tampa, there is a program for those who can’t afford to send their kid to Duke. My son (a student at Webb) did take the SAT but did not score high enough for the Duke summer program but he did qualify for the summer program at University of Tampa for those who did qualify for the Duke Talent Search.
HTH
Same story here. I didn’t know there was fun summer-camp stuff on the line 
I remember being told I scored well ( :shrug: ), but never heard anything about it afterwards.