Dive into NYU Precollege Summer Courses

The second you step into your Precollege classroom, you connect with faculty members who are leaders in their respective fields. They’re prominent researchers, artists, and engineers. They’re business leaders, scientists, and musicians—and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. NYU faculty are quite literally changing the world and they bring that experience directly to you.

In Kathleen Zhang’s Fundamentals of Music Technology, students dive into—you guessed it!—the fundamental concepts of music technology. They explore musical instrument digital interface (MIDI) sequencing and the basics of digital audio. What’s more, Zhang’s students experiment with sound recording, mixing, and sound synthesis.

“High school students are exposed to music technology applications in their creative and day-to-day lives,” says Zhang. Her research interests lie in immersive audio recording and reproduction as well as spatial audio and music cognition. “In my course, our precollege students arrive ready to engage with the technical, conceptual, and philosophical foundations of the field. We then apply them to hands-on studio projects.”

Similarly, in Seth Kugel’s DIY YouTube for Journalists, you learn how to use a platform you may be familiar with–YouTube–in an entirely new way. And you learn from a pro: Kugel’s own YouTube channel has nearly 600,000 followers. He’s also written for The New York Times and is the author of two books.

“Most YouTube creators prioritize engagement over in-depth research and fact-checking,” explains Kugel. “But a growing number of serious journalists are combining real reporting with entertainment and finding an eager audience. Students learn how to mix professional journalistic standards and YouTube style. They then create a YouTube channel about a topic that interests them.”

In New York City, the sky really is the limit. Consequently, with NYU Precollege, you take a behind the scenes look at some of the city’s most iconic institutions.

“Reporting New York Stories is an incredible opportunity for precollege students to discover the real New York City through a reporter’s lens,” says professor Lambeth Hochwald. “We swipe our OMNY cards and visit all the boroughs. We access behind-the-scenes experiences at cultural hotspots, businesses, tourist destinations, and restaurants. It’s a high-energy few weeks of jotting down notes and impressions, interviewing New Yorkers, uploading to our Instagram accounts, and focusing on story structure and style.”

Additionally, you can learn from local musicians and attend performances in Music of New York. You can explore New York City’s fashion scene in Style NY: Covering the Fashion Industry, or perfect your interview skills in NYC Backstage: The Art of the Interview. Or, if you’re interested in New York City’s real estate scene, the School of Professional Studies offers numerous precollege courses on the topic.

“From fashion writing to sports journalism, the NYU Precollege curriculum is ripe with a variety of interesting topics for students to explore with Manhattan as their backdrop,” says professor Jessica Minkoff, who teaches the Style NY course. “It’s truly unforgettable and prepares them for a successful undergraduate future.”

From engineering and design at NYU Tandon School of Engineering to physiology and psychology at the College of Arts and Science and dramatic writing at the Tisch School of the Arts, we really could go on and on. But don’t just take our word for it, start exploring these courses today!

“Through NYU Precollege, students learn as much outside the classroom as inside it,” says Kristin Balicki, director of university programs. “They develop the skills in independence and time management that come with being an undergraduate student on campus and in the city.”