Applications Open! Enroll for Summer 2027 at 2026 Tuition Pricing Until Sept 30
Evaluate research on happiness, resilience, and wellbeing in this 3-week positive psychology program for high school students at UT Austin.
Rated 4.6 out of 5 for course experience by students surveyed across the broader program in 2026.
Course Description
Why do some people recover from setbacks more readily than others, and how do emotion, motivation, and relationships shape wellbeing? Students investigate these questions through developmental and positive psychology, examining biological, psychological, social, and environmental influences across the lifespan.
The course moves from foundational concepts to the ways psychologists build evidence. Students compare emotional intelligence, personality, temperament, happiness, gratitude, resilience, positive relationships, values, motives, and goals. They learn how curiosity becomes a researchable question, search for scientific articles, and organize findings in a literature review.
Quizzes, online discussions, and reflection papers ask students to analyze research rather than accept simple explanations for human behavior. They consider how positive psychology principles can inform personal growth, coping strategies, education, relationships, and mental health while recognizing the limits of broad claims. A final review brings the course’s major themes together and helps students identify questions they may want to pursue further.
This three-week high school course takes place at the University of Texas at Austin in Austin, Texas and is available to residential and commuter students. The program is developed by UT Austin and offered in partnership with Summer Discovery. Beyond class, students connect focused academic work with campus life, growing independence, and clearer direction about what they may want to study or pursue next.
What Will You Do?
• Compare theories of human development, emotion, personality, and wellbeing
• Evaluate scientific literature on happiness, gratitude, motivation, and human flourishing
• Turn a question into research questions and practice building a focused literature review
• Discuss how relationships, resilience, values, and goals influence wellbeing
• Write reflection papers connecting readings, lectures, discussions, and personal observations
• Apply positive psychology principles to coping strategies and real-world experiences
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Explain major concepts in developmental and positive psychology
• Evaluate research on happiness, gratitude, motivation, and human flourishing
• Apply positive psychology principles to personal growth, coping, and relationships
Students will leave with reflective writing, experience organizing psychological research, and clearer insight into questions they may want to pursue in psychology or related fields.
Why Positive Psychology Skills Matter
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Explain major concepts in developmental and positive psychology
• Evaluate research on happiness, gratitude, motivation, and human flourishing
• Apply positive psychology principles to personal growth, coping, and relationships
Students will leave with reflective writing, experience organizing psychological research, and clearer insight into questions they may want to pursue in psychology or related fields.
Who Should Attend?
This course is for high school students who have completed 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade and are curious about wellbeing, resilience, motivation, relationships, or human development. It may appeal to students considering psychology, education, public health, social science, or related fields.
Students should be ready to read scientific literature, join discussions, complete quizzes and reflection papers, and practice turning curiosity into research questions. The course emphasizes evidence, reflection, and respectful participation.
Why UT Austin?
Studying on UT Austin’s Forty Acres campus gives high-school students a substantive introduction to academic life in Austin, Texas. Courses draw from popular undergraduate fields and Austin specialties. Full-day academies offer concentrated study, while classes across the program take place in campus classrooms and laboratories and may include guest speakers and fieldwork around Austin.
The experience extends beyond class for both residential and commuting students. Residential students live in Jester Hall, eat at J2, a popular campus dining hall, and take part in activities that may range from a star party at PMA to time at Gregory Gym, Zilker Park, South Congress, or an Austin FC match. Students gain independence, meet peers, and leave with a clearer view of college life, possible directions for future study, and what it can feel like to be a Longhorn.
UT Austin Certificate of Completion
After successfully finishing this course, you will be awarded a certification completion for your accomplishment.
*This is a preview, not what you will receive