Princeton University Summer Journalism Prgm for HS Students

Below is a copy of an email we received re: an excellent opportunity for journalism students:

All-expenses-paid summer program from under-resourced financial backgrounds
that will take place for 10 days in August on the campus of Princeton University.

The program is entering its eighth year; during the past seven
years, more than 140 students from high schools across the country have been selected to participate in the program. They were taught by journalists from *The New York Times, The Washington Post, The philadelphia Inquirer, The Miami Herald, The New Republic* and* The New Yorker*; they covered Yankees, Mets, Jets and Liberty games and held a press conference with New Jersey’s secretary of state; they met with Princeton University’s president and dean of admissions; they received counseling on their college applications from our staff, which consists of Princeton University alumni and undergraduates; and they published their own newspaper.

We hope that you will consider nominating some of your students to participate in this exciting program for aspiring young journalists.

Below is a quick list of instructions and pointers for having your students
fill out the applications:

Please feel free to nominate as many students as you have who are interested. We will happily accept several students from the same school, so there is no need to worry about your own students competing for slots in the program.

The application process will take place in two parts this year. For the
first part, students should fill out the application found online at http://www.princeton.edu/sjp, and then email it to jpapplication@gmail.com as a Microsoft Word attachment.

Before emailing us the application, students should name the document using the following format:

Lastname.Firstname.doc. So, if the student’s name is Mary Jones, the title of the document will be Jones.Mary.doc. In addition, the student should type his or her name and high school in the body of the email and put only the name of the Word document (e.g., Jones.Mary.doc) in the subject line of the email. We must receive the application by 11:59 p.m. on February 20, 2009. No extensions will be given for any reason.

In the second round of the application process, finalists will be interviewed by the program directors-either in person or over the phone-and
they will be asked to provide printed copies of the following items via U.S. mail: an official transcript; the first page of the 2007 income-tax
return form (the 1040 or 1040EZ form) of their custodial parent(s)/guardian(s), or a signed statement by their parent(s)/guardian(s) saying that their
income is below the level at which they would be required to file income tax returns; a recommendation letter from a teacher; and clips from their
high school newspaper or other publication (optional).

To be eligible for the program, students must meet the following
qualifications:
– They must currently be juniors in high school.
– They must live in the continental United States.
– They must have at least an unweighted 3.5 grade point average (out of
4.0).
– They must have an interest in journalism.
– The combined income of their custodial parent(s)/guardian(s) plus
child support payments, if any, must not exceed $45,000.*

Note: This program is for students from underresourced financial backgrounds. If the combined income of the custodial parent(s)/guardian(s)
plus child support payments, if any, exceeds $45,000 and a student still
wishes to apply, he or she may attach a letter explaining why his or
her family qualifies as financially underresourced.*

If you have questions, the best way to reach me is via email at sjp@princeton.edu. Please note that applications should be sent to sjpapplication@gmail.com, which is a GMAIL address.
Questions should be sent to sjp@princeton.edu, which is a PRINCETON address.

All application materials-as well as additional information about the
program-are available at www.princeton.edu/sjp.

A final word: We know that the process of applying to any selective program
can be stressful, not to mention a lot of work-for students as well as their teachers. But, over the years, the students we have had come through
our program have told us that, ultimately, the work they put into their
application was worth it. And I can attest to this personally-since I
am a graduate of the program.

Sincerely,

Tasnim Shamma
Program Staff Associate
Princeton ’11
SJP ’06 Alum/SJP ’08 Intern
www.princeton.edu/sjp