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Build, test, and deploy an AI application in this two-week academy for high school students on UC San Diego’s campus.
Course Description
An AI model can deliver a confident result and still get something wrong. Build a system, test what it does, and find out where its decisions need more evidence.
In this course you will learn Python fundamentals through demonstrations, whiteboard challenges, and coding labs. Explore how modern AI systems connect models, tools, and agents. Train decision trees and investigate bias, then work with neural networks and computer vision to build an image classifier. Use visual explanations called saliency maps to examine which parts of an image influence a prediction.
Experiment with natural-language processing, word embeddings, and semantic search—ways to examine how AI systems represent and find meaning in text. Explore multimodal tools, large language models, and prompt engineering, then build an AI agent that can call tools to carry out defined tasks.
Work in a small group to choose a problem where AI could benefit people, while building and deploying your own application. Investigate the data, test the models, consider responsible-use questions, and revise your work. At Demo Day, show your live app and explain both what it can do and where it falls short. This two-week full-day Summer Discovery academy for high school students takes place on UC San Diego’s campus in La Jolla, California.
What You Will Do
• Use Python to explore and manipulate a real-world dataset
• Train a decision tree and conduct a bias audit
• Build and stress-test an image classifier
• Explore embeddings, semantic search, and prompt-engineering strategies
• Create a tool-calling AI agent and application workflow
• Build, deploy, and present an AI for Social Good app
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Train and evaluate introductory machine-learning models using Python
• Build an AI agent or application with defined tools and responsible constraints
• Develop, deploy, and present an evidence-tested AI project
You’ll leave with your live AI application, Demo Day presentation, and a certificate of completion.
Why AI Literacy Skills Matter
Building AI requires students to understand what happens between data and output. Training, testing, evaluation, and interpretation show why a model can appear accurate while still failing on important cases. Bias audits make the consequences of data choices visible.
Application design adds responsibility. Students define a useful problem, select tools, consider security and ethics, and test whether the system serves real people. These skills combine coding with research, communication, and judgment, foundations that matter across fields increasingly shaped by AI.
Who Should Attend?
For students who have completed 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade.
If you use AI tools and want to move from asking questions to building a system of your own, this academy connects coding with real decisions about data and model behavior. You’ll work with Python, evaluate models, collaborate on a social-good problem, and deploy an app. Optional preparation materials support Python and AI basics; be ready to debug, test ideas, and rethink a result when the evidence changes.
Your Summer at UCSD
UC San Diego’s coastal campus in La Jolla brings together ocean views, landscaped grounds, and an active research university. The Pacific Ocean is nearby, and the setting connects academic exploration with Southern California’s beaches, culture, and creative energy.
Outside class, students can make new friends, take part in campus activities, and experience a different daily routine from home. Shared summer experiences offer room for fun, growing independence, and discovering what it feels like to spend time in a university community.
After successfully finishing this course, you will be awarded a certification completion for your accomplishment.
*This is a preview, not what you will receive