On-Campus Courses by Session
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Session 1 Courses (June 27 - July 9, 2027)
Courses are subject to a minimum enrollment of 10 students each, and will be confirmed by March 1, 2027.
Course Description
The two-week Business Foundations course is designed to provide you with exposure to some areas of what we call “business.” We start by discussing (and practicing) foundational concepts – in areas such as finance, accounting, and spreadsheet modeling. From there, we embark on a public company valuation project while, in parallel, discussing and applying ideas, frameworks, and methodologies from areas such as economics, marketing, strategy, and (more) finance and accounting.Through the valuation project, we will explore how companies think about clients and customers, how they make money and finance themselves, how they think about competition, innovation, and new projects, and how those decisions affect their value. In addition, we will examine some best practices about corporate and personal communication. The project will culminate with a presentation of project findings and analyses. Finally, we will seek to explore how some of the concepts we cover can be applied to our daily lives and decision-making.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing this course, participants will:
- Have a solid grasp of concepts in areas such as accounting, finance, economics, and
strategy. - Be conversant in the ways businesses evaluate and make decisions about undertaking
new projects – and how to finance them. - Understand the effects of compounding, (financial) leverage, and risk on expected
returns. - Be able to apply financial analysis methodologies on issues of personal finance.
- Be able to discuss where business ideas come from, and the differences between
breakthrough and disruptive innovation. - Have experience practicing teamwork and collaboration on a real-life problem.
- Feel more confident about creating and delivering persuasive presentations.
- Have a view of potential career areas in business.
Course Description
What does it take to build a future in STEM? This two-week precollege program, led by Dr. Ansley Booker of Dartmouth NEXT, invites students to explore the wide range of careers and pathways in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Through engaging seminars, hands-on workshops, and behind-the-scenes field trips, students will experience Dartmouth’s cutting-edge labs, medical centers, sustainability initiatives, and makerspaces. Along the way, they’ll learn from Dartmouth faculty, researchers, and alumni who are pushing the boundaries of innovation in medicine, engineering, data science, and beyond.
The program goes beyond exposure—it provides a roadmap. Students will gain practical tools for career readiness, from understanding the steps toward graduate school or research opportunities to connecting with mentors and building a professional network. The experience culminates in a closing symposium where each student presents a personalized “STEM Futures Pathway Plan,” reflecting the insights and inspiration gathered throughout the program. By the end of the two weeks, participants will not only discover what’s possible in STEM but also envision their own next steps with clarity and confidence.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Identify a wide range of STEM disciplines and career pathways through exposure to Dartmouth faculty, researchers, and alumni.
- Explain the steps involved in pursuing STEM careers, including higher education pathways, research opportunities, and professional development strategies.
- Engage with cutting-edge STEM research and innovation in fields such as medicine, engineering, sustainability, and data science.
- Develop foundational skills for career readiness, including networking, mentorship-seeking, and effective communication of personal goals.
- Reflect on their own interests and strengths to envision a personalized trajectory within STEM fields.
- Create a “STEM Futures Pathway Plan” that integrates academic exploration, career goals, and actionable next steps.
Tangible Outcomes
- Reflective Journaling: Capture daily insights and track evolving career interests, forming the foundation for the final project.
- Closing Symposium: Present a personalized “STEM Futures Pathway Plan” to peers and faculty, articulating both inspiration gained and concrete next steps.
Hands-On Activities
To achieve these outcomes, students will:
- Seminar Sessions: Participate in interactive talks led by Dartmouth faculty, alumni, and guest experts on STEM careers, innovations, and emerging fields.
- Hands-On Workshops: Experiment in makerspaces, medical labs, and sustainability centers, engaging directly with tools and techniques used by STEM professionals.
- Field Trips & Site Visits: Go behind the scenes at Dartmouth labs, research centers, and innovation hubs to observe cutting-edge science in action.
- Career Pathway Panels: Hear from alumni and professionals who represent diverse trajectories in STEM, followed by Q&A networking opportunities.
- Mentorship Activities: Pair with Dartmouth graduate students or researchers for guided conversations about academic and career journeys.
- Skill-Building Sessions: Learn practical skills in resume building, science communication, and how to prepare for college-level research.
Course Description
This immersive laboratory course introduces students to the exciting world of biomedical research by exploring the journey from basic scientific discovery to clinical application. Through hands-on laboratory experiences, interactive seminars, and visits to Dartmouth's research facilities, students gain firsthand exposure to the scientific methods that drive advances in modern medicine.
Participants explore topics including cell biology, genetics, neuroscience, and experimental design while learning the laboratory techniques used by biomedical researchers. Along the way, students examine how discoveries move from the research laboratory to patient care through preclinical studies, clinical trials, regulatory approval, and implementation in healthcare settings. The course culminates in a collaborative research presentation on an emerging topic in medicine.
By the end of the course, students will understand both the scientific and human dimensions of biomedical research while gaining valuable experience in scientific inquiry, collaboration, and communication.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing this course, participants will:
- Demonstrate fundamental laboratory techniques (e.g., pipetting, microscopy, data recording)
- Explain how biomedical research contributes to advances in diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease.
- Discuss the ethical issues and regulations surrounding human and animal research in medicine.
- Collaborate with peers to independently research a topic in biomedicine.
- Synthesize this information into a set of core findings and communicate those findings logically in visual and oral formats.
- Reflect on potential academic and career pathways in medicine, clinical research, and biomedical science.
This immersive course introduces students to the engineering design process by combining scientific inquiry, creative problem-solving, and hands-on prototyping. Students investigate real-world challenges while learning how engineers design, test, evaluate, and refine solutions within practical constraints such as cost, sustainability, durability, safety, and user needs.
Working collaboratively, participants develop prototypes through multiple design iterations while applying principles from materials science, experimentation, and engineering analysis. Students conduct controlled testing, collect and interpret data, and use evidence to improve their designs. Throughout the course, they also explore entrepreneurship by considering product feasibility, customer needs, manufacturing considerations, and value propositions.
By the end of the program, students will have experienced the complete engineering design cycle while developing technical, analytical, and communication skills that prepare them for future STEM coursework and innovation.
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Apply the engineering design process to identify problems and develop creative solutions.
- Design, construct, test, and refine functional prototypes using evidence-based decision-making.
- Analyze the performance of materials through experimentation and comparative testing.
- Interpret experimental data to improve engineering designs and justify design decisions.
- Incorporate user feedback, cost considerations, and sustainability into product development.
- Communicate engineering solutions effectively through written documentation and presentations.
Session 2 Courses (July 4 - 16, 2027)
All courses are subject to change.
Course Description
Civil wars are the most common form of conflict across the world, causing death, destruction, and humanitarian crises. Their impact on politics, economics, and international stability can extend far after the war ends. How can the international community address this pernicious problem? What determines whether interventions to stop the fighting are successful?
In this course, students will learn about the tools the global community uses to solve disputes and debate potential solutions to ongoing conflicts. We’ll start by looking at the intersection of foreign policy, strategy, and negotiation—what do countries want and how do they get it? Then we’ll dive into theories of conflict resolution and how the United Nations plays a role as a peacemaker across the world. The course culminates with an exciting, hands-on UN Security Council simulation, where students will tackle issues related to real-world conflicts, develop informed solutions, and put their negotiation skills to the test.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing this course, students will:
- Understand important concepts related to negotiation and how they are applied both in instances of civil war and within international organizations like the UN
- Learn about the causes of civil war onset and termination, and the effectiveness of conflict resolution strategies
- Apply their knowledge of conflict resolution identify potential solutions to three conflicts covered in our simulation
- Apply their knowledge of negotiation to identify ideal scenarios, trade-offs, coalition-building opportunities in our simulation
- Have facility with finding and evaluating a variety of sources for research in international affairs
- Develop written communication skill from drafting resolutions and oral communication skills by presenting and debating during our simulation.
Tangible Outcomes
The tangible outputs are mostly group-based and most have an (non-material) experiential component. Students put together briefings (slide deck, 2-page policy memo) in teams on an ongoing civil war in Africa. Students also write draft resolutions in their UN Security Council simulation.
Hands-On Activities
In the first week, each afternoon is a structured research session in which the instructor demonstrated useful research skills/tools alongside our subject librarian. This provided an opportunity for students to dig into meaningful research, both individually and in groups, while also having access to support from the instructor and Dartmouth's History and Social Sciences librarian.
Guest Speakers
- Wendel Cox, History Librarian.
- Victoria Holt, Director of Dickey Center, former State Department official in Office of International Organizations and Peacekeeping.
- Elizabeth Shackleford, Dickey Policy Director, former State Department official with experience in Somalia and South Sudan.
- Peter Jenkins, Dickey Center Internship Coordinator.
Field Trips
Students will spend time in the library and visit the Dickey Center for International Understanding.
Benefits for Future Study
Understanding negotiation is important for everyone. It's perspective-taking. It's thinking about trade-offs. It's identifying opportunities for constructive compromise. The substance of the negotiations are some of the deadliest conflicts and largest humanitarian challenges happening today. About a third of the students go on to major in Political Science or International Relations, and some have shared that they are joining the Model UN Team at their school.
Course Description
This interdisciplinary course introduces students to the technologies, ethical questions, and policy decisions shaping the transition toward a more sustainable future. Through perspectives from climate science, engineering, economics, philosophy, medicine, and public policy, students explore practical solutions for reducing carbon emissions at both the individual and societal levels.
Participants calculate their own carbon footprints, analyze environmental data, debate climate policy, and investigate renewable energy technologies through case studies and collaborative projects. Throughout the course, students examine how scientific innovation, public policy, and individual action intersect to create meaningful environmental change while developing evidence-based strategies for decarbonization.
By the end of the course, students will understand both the complexity of climate challenges and the opportunities available to future leaders working toward a more sustainable world.
Learning Outcomes
- Analyze personal and societal sources of carbon emissions using scientific evidence.
- Evaluate renewable energy technologies and strategies for decarbonization.
- Interpret environmental data related to climate change, air quality, and sustainability.
- Examine ethical, economic, and policy perspectives surrounding climate action.
- Design evidence-based strategies that promote sustainability at local and global scales.
- Communicate environmental solutions through research, discussion, and collaborative presentations.
Course Description
How do our brains shape the way we think, feel, and behave? In this two-week precollege course, students will explore the fascinating fields of psychology and cognitive neuroscience. Through interactive lectures, lab demonstrations, and hands-on activities, students will investigate topics such as memory, learning, decision-making, and emotion. They will also examine how researchers use cutting-edge tools—like brain imaging, cognitive testing, and behavioral experiments—to understand the mind.
Alongside faculty and graduate student mentors, participants will gain insight into the scientific process, from forming research questions to interpreting data. The course will also connect theory to everyday life: How does attention influence performance in school or sports? Why do we sometimes make irrational decisions? What does brain science tell us about mental health? By the end of the program, students will have a deeper understanding of both the brain’s complexity and the methods used to study it—and will leave with skills and perspectives useful for any future path in science, medicine, or the humanities.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain core concepts in psychology and cognitive neuroscience, including memory, attention, perception, and emotion.
- Describe the scientific methods used to study the brain and behavior, including experiments and neuroimaging techniques.
- Analyze real or simulated data to draw conclusions about psychological phenomena.
- Apply psychological and neuroscience concepts to everyday situations, from decision-making to stress management.
- Evaluate ethical considerations in brain and behavior research.
- Reflect on their personal interest in psychology, neuroscience, or related fields as potential college and career pathways.
Tangible Outcomes
Capstone Project: In groups, design and present a mini research proposal on a question of their choice in psychology or cognitive neuroscience.
Hands-on Activities
- Lab Demonstrations: Observe how EEG (brainwave recording) or fMRI (through case studies and datasets) are used to study the brain in action.
- Memory & Attention Experiments: Participate in simple experiments (e.g., Stroop test, working memory tasks) to experience psychological research firsthand.
- Case Studies: Examine real-world examples where brain science intersects with mental health, education, or law.
- Small-Group Data Analysis: Work with sample neuroscience data sets to practice drawing scientific conclusions.
- Guest Lectures: Hear from Dartmouth researchers studying topics like decision-making, child development, or neural disorders.
- Field Trip / Lab Tour: Visit Dartmouth’s neuroscience labs and psychology research centers for behind-the-scenes exposure.
Course Description
Most entrepreneurship curricula collapse ""entrepreneur"" into a single archetype — the founder. This course pulls that apart. Students spend roughly three days inside each of three modes: Starting a company from a blank page, Building an existing venture through growth and operations, and Acquiring a small business through search-fund or ETA-style playbooks. Each mode is anchored by hands-on work (a napkin-to-pitch sprint; a growth-lever case; a small-business diligence exercise) and a conversation with a practitioner who lives that path — a founder, an operator, and a searcher.
Students leave with a much sharper sense of which entrepreneurial path fits their temperament, not just whether entrepreneurship is ""for them.""
Learning Outcomes
- Distinguish the risk, capital, and skill profiles of founding, operating, and acquiring
- Evaluate a small business as an acquisition target using basic qualitative and operational screens
- Identify personal fit across the three modes using a structured self-assessment
- Practice the core artifact of each mode: a pitch, a growth plan, and a diligence memo
- Speak fluently with industry practitioners about their day-to-day work
Section 3 Courses (July 11 – July 23, 2027)
All courses are subject to change.
Course Description
The two-week Business Foundations course is designed to provide you with exposure to some areas of what we call “business.” We start by discussing (and practicing) foundational concepts – in areas such as finance, accounting, and spreadsheet modeling. From there, we embark on a public company valuation project while, in parallel, discussing and applying ideas, frameworks, and methodologies from areas such as economics, marketing, strategy, and (more) finance and accounting.Through the valuation project, we will explore how companies think about clients and customers, how they make money and finance themselves, how they think about competition, innovation, and new projects, and how those decisions affect their value. In addition, we will examine some best practices about corporate and personal communication. The project will culminate with a presentation of project findings and analyses. Finally, we will seek to explore how some of the concepts we cover can be applied to our daily lives and decision-making.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing this course, participants will:
- Have a solid grasp of concepts in areas such as accounting, finance, economics, and
strategy. - Be conversant in the ways businesses evaluate and make decisions about undertaking
new projects – and how to finance them. - Understand the effects of compounding, (financial) leverage, and risk on expected
returns. - Be able to apply financial analysis methodologies on issues of personal finance.
- Be able to discuss where business ideas come from, and the differences between
breakthrough and disruptive innovation. - Have experience practicing teamwork and collaboration on a real-life problem.
- Feel more confident about creating and delivering persuasive presentations.
- Have a view of potential career areas in business.
Course Description
In this course, you will learn more about how DNA can influence traits - including ones that can lead to serious health issues. From sickle cell anemia to schizophrenia, we’ll study how human diseases can be caused by variation in our genetic makeup and how our genes and our environment can interact to influence our traits. In this course, we’ll discuss what we do and don’t know about the relationship between genetics and disease and think about the possibilities of personalized medicine, with treatments tailored to your specific genetic profile. We’ll also cover the social and ethical implications of genetic research and talk about the risks and benefits of genetic testing and genomics.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Identify and explain different types of inheritance patterns for genetic diseases.
- Describe how genes and the environment can interact to influence a person’s traits.
- Explain the concept of personalized medicine and how genetic information can be used to tailor medical treatments to an individual’s specific needs.
- Read and understand primary research literature in the field of human genetics.
- Discuss potential benefits and risks of genetic research and its impact on society.
Tangible Outcomes
Students do a final presentation on a disease of their choice in a themed symposium.
Hands-on Activities
- Visit to the Genomics Shared Resource Lab at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center
- Lab simulations
Guest Speakers
Guest speakers from past iterations of this course have included: Prof Charleston Chiang, Associate Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences and Quantitative and Computational Biology, Keck School of Medicine at USC
Benefits for Future Study
This could be useful for students going into biology or genetics research, into a variety of medical careers, or into science policy work.
Course Description
This course introduces students to comparative anatomy and physiology by examining how structure and function have evolved across the animal kingdom. Through laboratory investigations, dissections, anatomical models, evolutionary case studies, and selected historical examples, students discover how biological systems solve common challenges in diverse species.
Participants compare skeletal, muscular, circulatory, respiratory, nervous, and digestive systems while exploring the evolutionary relationships that connect organisms. Emphasis is placed on understanding adaptation, physiological function, and the relationship between anatomy, ecology, and survival. Students will also consider how anatomical and physiological knowledge has developed over time, how cultural and social contexts have shaped the study of the body, and how scientific ideas about anatomy and evolution are communicated to different audiences.
By the end of the course, students will appreciate both the remarkable diversity of life and the shared biological principles that unite living organisms, while gaining a broader understanding of how scientific knowledge is created, interpreted, and communicated.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing this course, participants will:
- Compare major anatomical systems across vertebrate species.
- Explain how physiological systems support survival in different environments.
- Analyze evolutionary adaptations using comparative evidence.
- Interpret anatomical structures through laboratory investigations.
- Apply evolutionary principles to explain similarities and differences among organisms.
- Describe selected historical and social influences on the development of anatomical and physiological knowledge.
- Consider how cultural perspectives have shaped the ways humans study, represent, and understand bodies.
- Communicate scientific findings and anatomical concepts using appropriate biological terminology for both scientific and general audiences.
Course Description
This course serves as an introduction to modern techniques in data science and the fundamentals of artificial intelligence. Students develop computational and inferential thinking while learning core programming skills and the principles behind machine learning. Working with real-world datasets, students build data visualizations, train and evaluate basic AI models, and consider the ethical implications of AI systems. The course culminates in a final project applying AI techniques to a data-driven project.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing this course, participants will:
- Construct simple scripts for processing, analyzing, and visualizing data
- Apply elementary (supervised and unsupervised) learning techniques
- Understand the function and structure of neural networks
- Conduct exploratory data analysis on a data set of their choice
Course Description
For two weeks, the class will work as an engineering consulting firm to address one client request: design a clean, reliable, and affordable energy plan for a town. Students will form four teams, each responsible for one of four subsystems, demand, supply, reliability & storage, and mobility, and the teams must make their designs work together. Using real data and energy systems models built in spreadsheets (with optional Python), students explore real questions engineers face. How much power does a town need hour by hour? What mixes of solar, wind, fossil fuels, and batteries keep the lights on? What happens during a heat wave or a natural disaster? A short lecture each day will introduce concepts that scaffold to each team's design tasks, and the rest of the day will be dedicated to guided group work.
The course is grounded in the real-world energy transition. Students will tour energy infrastructure on campus, hear from practicing engineers, and use what they learn to shape their models. Daily cross-team check-ins will demonstrate show how one change can ripple through the system. Students will stress-test their plan against outages and affordability metrics, learning how energy systems planning serves real people. The course will end with the class presenting one integrated plan to a panel of guests.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing this course, participants will:
- Explain how an energy system works, from generation through delivery to end use.
- Build and test simple models to size and compare energy technologies using real data.
- Evaluate tradeoffs among cost, reliability, emissions, and fairness, and show how model assumptions change results.
- Collaborate in an hybrid team to integrate separate subsystem designs into one coherent plan.
- Communicate technical findings clearly to a non-technical audience.
Session 4 Courses (July 18 – July 30, 2027)
All courses are subject to change.
Course Description
This innovative course introduces students to the emerging field of environmental neuroscience by exploring the relationship between the brain and the natural world. Through scientific inquiry, outdoor observation, and interdisciplinary research, participants examine how environmental factors, including light, pollution, climate, water quality, and even space travel, influence cognition, mental health, and neurological function.
Students investigate current neuroscience research while participating in experiential learning activities that connect classroom concepts with real-world environments. Discussions emphasize how environmental stewardship, sustainability, and public health intersect with neuroscience, encouraging students to consider the long-term effects of environmental change on human well-being.
By the end of the course, students will have developed a deeper understanding of how neuroscience extends beyond the laboratory and into the environments where we live, work, and learn.
- How does syncing with the sun impact our circadian rhythms and mental output?
- How are water and air pollution correlated with disease states, such as Alzheimer's?
- How can space travel give us insight into how our brains interact with the natural world around us?
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain the foundational principles of environmental neuroscience and how brain function is influenced by natural and built environments.
- Analyze case studies that link environmental conditions (light, air, water, pollution, and space) to neurological processes and disorders.
- Identify and describe key brain structures (e.g., suprachiasmatic nucleus, hippocampus) and their role in environmental adaptation and health.
- Evaluate scientific research on environmental impacts on cognition, mood, and neurological disease.
- Apply neuroscience concepts to real-world environmental challenges, considering both individual well-being and societal health.
- Reflect on how sustainability and environmental consciousness directly shape human brain health across generations.
- Design and conduct observational or experiential exercises using natural settings to investigate relationships between environment and mental states.
Session 5 Courses (July 25 – August 6, 2027)
All courses are subject to change.
Course Description
This nine-day seminar introduces high school students to the world of finance, investment, and alternative asset management, blending foundational concepts, interdisciplinary perspectives, and real-world career exposure. Students begin with the core building blocks — savings, investment, compounding, diversification, risk and return — before exploring how markets function, why they may or may not be efficient, and where opportunities arise for alternative investments such as private equity, venture capital, and hedge funds. Through case studies, interactive group exercises, and guest speakers, students will see how allocators like endowments and pensions decide where to put capital, how asset managers develop and employ their investment strategies, and how various disciplines such as economics, statistics, psychology, history, and government play an important role in markets and the day-to-day activities of those who work in the finance industry. The course will conclude with frank career reflections, preparing students to think critically about their own interests and the attractions and considerations of the various potential career paths they may choose to pursue.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Define the core concepts of hedge funds and private equity, including their purposes, structures, and strategies.
- Differentiate between hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, and other investment vehicles.
- Explain how hedge funds and private equity influence companies, industries, and the global economy.
- Analyze simplified case studies of investment decisions and their outcomes.
- Reflect on personal interest in finance and identify pathways for pursuing business or economics in college.
Hands-On Activities
Possible hands on activities include:
- Case Study Discussions: Analyze famous examples (e.g., a turnaround via private equity, a hedge fund shorting a stock) through guided readings and group debate.
- Capstone Mini-Project: In small groups, design a pitch for a mock private equity or hedge fund strategy, summarizing goals, risks, and potential impacts.
Guest Speakers
Guest Speaker Q&A: Hear from Dartmouth alumni, Tuck Business School Faculty or local professionals in finance who can demystify the industry and share career pathways.
Course Description
This immersive course strengthens students' Spanish communication skills by combining language acquisition with persuasive speaking, debate, and public presentation. Using Dartmouth's internationally recognized Rassias Method®, students build confidence through energetic conversation, interactive drills, and real-world communication scenarios designed to encourage spontaneous speech and meaningful cultural engagement.
Throughout the course, participants develop persuasive communication skills while exploring topics related to business, law, politics, leadership, and community engagement. Students practice debates, presentations, negotiations, and collaborative discussions that expand both their linguistic abilities and intercultural understanding.
By the end of the program, students will communicate with greater fluency, confidence, and cultural awareness while gaining practical language skills that can be applied in academic, professional, and global settings.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Communicate confidently in spoken Spanish using persuasive language and culturally appropriate expressions.
- Construct and defend arguments during presentations, debates, and discussions.
- Respond spontaneously to questions and counterarguments in real-time conversations.
- Apply advanced vocabulary related to leadership, negotiation, and professional communication.
- Analyze persuasive communication strategies across diverse Spanish-speaking contexts.
- Demonstrate increased fluency, confidence, and intercultural competence through immersive language practice.
Course Description
In this hands-on course, students develop the entrepreneurial mindset by learning how innovators identify problems, generate creative solutions, and build ventures that create economic, social, and environmental value. Through design thinking, customer discovery, rapid prototyping, and collaborative problem-solving, participants experience the innovation process from idea generation to final pitch.
Working in teams, students explore emerging technologies, sustainability challenges, and global issues while designing solutions that address real-world needs. Along the way, they learn how entrepreneurs evaluate opportunities, test assumptions, communicate their vision, and adapt through feedback and iteration. Emphasis is placed not only on developing successful ideas but also on cultivating resilience, creativity, leadership, and ethical decision-making.
By the end of the program, students will have developed the confidence to think entrepreneurially, communicate innovative ideas effectively, and approach future academic and professional challenges with curiosity and initiative.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Apply design thinking and entrepreneurial problem-solving frameworks to real-world challenges.
- Identify opportunities for innovation by analyzing community, market, and societal needs.
- Develop creative solutions through ideation, prototyping, testing, and iteration.
- Collaborate effectively while demonstrating leadership, communication, and adaptability.
- Construct and deliver a persuasive venture pitch supported by evidence and strategic reasoning.
- Evaluate the broader social, environmental, and ethical implications of entrepreneurial innovation.
Course Description
This immersive course introduces students to the full continuum of medicine—from prevention and wellness to emergency response and acute care. Through interactive simulations, case studies, clinical demonstrations, and conversations with healthcare professionals, participants gain a comprehensive understanding of modern healthcare systems and the many professions that contribute to patient outcomes.
Students investigate topics including preventative medicine, nutrition, epidemiology, emergency medicine, trauma care, public health, diagnostic reasoning, and patient communication. Along the way, they practice clinical problem-solving through simulated patient scenarios while exploring how physicians, nurses, emergency responders, therapists, researchers, and public health professionals collaborate to deliver high-quality care.
By the end of the course, students will have developed a deeper appreciation for medicine as both a science and a service profession while gaining insight into the teamwork, critical thinking, and compassion that define healthcare.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain the continuum of healthcare from disease prevention to emergency medicine.
- Analyze patient case studies using clinical reasoning and evidence-based decision-making.
- Describe the roles of healthcare professionals across diverse medical specialties.
- Apply principles of public health and preventative care to improve community well-being.
- Demonstrate effective communication and teamwork during simulated clinical scenarios.
- Explore educational and career pathways within medicine and the health professions.
Course Description
Can you have a real relationship with an AI? Would a child born on Mars experience being human in the same way we do? If we could edit the genes of future children, should we? Where does the human body end when technology becomes part of it? And if humans increasingly redesign their bodies, minds, environments, and even descendants, what might eventually come after Homo sapiens?
Human, Rewired explores some of the most provocative scientific and technological developments of our time through an unexpected lens: anthropology. Anthropologists have long studied how humans create culture, families, communities, rituals, identities, beliefs, technologies, and systems of power. This course turns that anthropological gaze toward us and toward a future that today’s students may inhabit.
Over nine days, students move from human evolution and earlier technological transformations to neuroscience, artificial intelligence, digital relationships, life beyond Earth, genetic engineering, prosthetics, brain-computer interfaces, human enhancement, and possible post-human societies.
The course is grounded in a central anthropological insight: Technology is never adopted in a vacuum. It enters existing worlds of culture, kinship, identity, inequality, belief, and power. Students therefore consider emerging technologies not simply as scientific achievements but as forces capable of changing relationships, institutions, bodies, identities, opportunities, and definitions of what it means to be human.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Understand foundational scientific principles behind human evolution, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, human spaceflight, genetics, prosthetics, and brain-computer interfaces.
- Explain how earlier technologies have changed human behavior, societies, and environments.
- Analyze how technological change can reinforce, reduce, or create new forms of inequality
- Conduct structured ethnographic observation of familiar environments, digital communities, and technological interactions.
- Evaluate contested questions from multiple cultural, scientific, and ethical perspectives.
- Construct and defend an evidence-based vision of a plausible future human community.
Course Description
This interdisciplinary course explores the rapidly evolving relationship between human creativity and emerging technologies. Combining art, design, computer science, and digital media, students investigate how AI is reshaping creative industries while developing their own original projects using cutting-edge creative technologies.
Through hands-on workshops, collaborative design challenges, and multimedia projects, students experiment with generative AI, digital illustration, image generation, video production, music creation, interactive media, and creative coding. Along the way, they examine the ethical questions surrounding authorship, intellectual property, bias, and the future of creative work while learning how artists and designers collaborate with, not simply rely on, artificial intelligence.
Rather than replacing creativity, students discover how AI can expand imagination, accelerate design, and open entirely new forms of artistic expression. By the end of the course, participants will have produced a portfolio of original creative work while developing the technical skills and critical thinking needed to become thoughtful creators in an AI-driven world.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain how artificial intelligence is transforming creative industries including art, design, music, filmmaking, and digital media.
- Create original multimedia projects using AI-assisted creative technologies and digital design tools.
- Apply principles of visual storytelling, user-centered design, and creative problem-solving throughout the design process.
- Evaluate ethical issues surrounding generative AI, including authorship, copyright, bias, and responsible innovation.
- Collaborate to design interdisciplinary projects that combine technology with artistic expression.
- Present and critique creative work while reflecting on the evolving relationship between human creativity and artificial intelligence.
Session 6 Courses (August 2 – August 14, 2027)
All courses are subject to change.
Course Description
What happens when writing leaves the classroom and enters the wilderness? Creative Writing in the Great Outdoors invites students to use the natural environment as both inspiration and classroom. Across meadows, forests, rivers, and mountain trails accessible from Dartmouth's campus, students will explore how place shapes imagination, storytelling, and voice. Through daily writing exercises, group workshops, and guided explorations, participants will practice poetry, narrative nonfiction, and short fiction while connecting with the rhythms of the natural world. The course emphasizes reflection, experimentation, and the development of a sustainable creative practice—one that integrates observation of the self, the group, and the environment. By the end of the course, students will leave with a portfolio of original work and a deeper appreciation for the intersection of creativity, community, and wilderness.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Generate original creative writing inspired by the natural environment.
- Apply literary techniques (imagery, metaphor, narrative structure, voice) to poetry, nonfiction, and fiction.
- Demonstrate skills of observation, reflection, and sensory detail in their writing.
- Engage in peer workshops, providing and receiving constructive feedback on creative work.
- Reflect on the relationship between environment and creativity, including how natural settings influence human expression.
- Assemble a small portfolio of revised creative pieces that represent growth over the course.
Tangible Outcome
Final Showcase: Present selected works in a closing reading at the Lodge, highlighting the integration of nature and creative voice.
Hands-On Activites
To achieve these outcomes, students will:
- Outdoor Writing Sessions: Write daily in natural settings around Moosilauke Lodge (by rivers, in meadows, along trails), guided by prompts that emphasize sensory detail and reflection.
- Genre Exploration Workshops: Experiment with poetry, short fiction, and creative nonfiction through structured exercises.
- Hiking & Reflection: Participate in guided hikes, using physical movement and immersion in nature as a spark for creative thought.
- Peer Workshops: Share drafts in small groups and practice the craft of giving and receiving feedback.
- Reading Circles: Engage with selected works of nature-inspired writers (e.g., Mary Oliver, Barry Lopez, Robin Wall Kimmerer) to connect contemporary voices to their own practice.
Course Description
Drawing from positive psychology, neuroscience, sociology, and behavioral science, this course explores the scientific study of happiness, resilience, and human flourishing. Rather than focusing solely on mental illness, students investigate the factors that allow individuals and communities to thrive.
Through interactive discussions, psychological research, reflective journaling, and experiential activities, participants examine topics including gratitude, purpose, motivation, relationships, mindfulness, emotional intelligence, optimism, and resilience. Students critically evaluate common misconceptions about happiness while exploring evidence-based practices that promote long-term psychological well-being.
By the end of the course, students will understand the science behind happiness while developing practical strategies for supporting their own well-being and contributing positively to the lives of others.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain major theories and research findings in positive psychology.
- Analyze factors that contribute to psychological well-being and resilience.
- Evaluate scientific evidence supporting practices that promote flourishing.
- Apply evidence-based well-being strategies to everyday life.
- Reflect on personal values, relationships, and life goals through guided activities.
- Communicate psychological concepts using scientific evidence and critical thinking.