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Test perception and memory while keeping a gratitude journal in this 2-week psychology academy for high school students at UT Austin.
Rated 4.5 out of 5 for classroom experience by students who took this course in 2026.
Course Description
Why can two people interpret the same event differently? How do memory, emotion, personality, and social context influence behavior? Students investigate these questions through the scientific foundations of psychology and apply course concepts to observations, experiments, discussions, and reflection.
The academy begins with the scientific method, a Big Five personality activity, and a nature-versus-nurture discussion. Students then test perception and memory through illusions, biases, heuristics, and a memory experiment. They compare classical and operant conditioning, examine stress responses and the neurobiology of emotion, and consider how development shapes the way people think and act.
A daily gratitude journal connects positive psychology to mental wellbeing. Later work explores therapy and growth, attachment, groupthink, conformity, the bystander effect, signature strengths, and careers in psychology. A visit to the Blanton Museum gives students another setting for applying observation and interpretation. Quizzes and reflection papers help them explain evidence, revisit assumptions, and connect ideas across the academy.
This two-week full-day academy for high school students 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?
• Set up and maintain a daily gratitude journal
• Use the Big Five framework to examine personality and individual differences
• Test perception and memory through illusions, biases, heuristics, and an experiment
• Compare conditioning, stress responses, neurobiology, and emotion
• Analyze attachment, groupthink, conformity, and the bystander effect
• Apply observation and interpretation during a visit to the Blanton Museum
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Explain major findings in development, perception, cognition, memory, behavior, and neuroscience
• Apply psychological principles to relationships, resilience, and wellbeing
• Compare psychological explanations using evidence from activities, experiments, and discussion
Students will leave with a completed gratitude journal, reflection writing, and a clearer sense of how psychology may connect to future study or a possible career.
Why Psychology Skills Matter
Psychology skills help students examine behavior without settling for the first explanation that comes to mind. Using the scientific method, comparing theories, and distinguishing observation from interpretation build careful reasoning that supports research, writing, and discussion.
The field also asks students to consider context. Development, personality, memory, emotion, relationships, and social influence can work together in complicated ways. Learning to weigh those factors helps students communicate with greater precision, question assumptions, and approach human behavior with both curiosity and care.
Who Should Attend?
This academy is for high school students who have completed 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade and want a broad introduction to cognition, memory, emotion, development, personality, relationships, or mental wellbeing. It may appeal to students considering psychology, neuroscience, education, public health, or related fields.
Participants should be ready to keep a daily journal, take part in experiments and discussions, write short reflections, and examine sensitive topics respectfully. The academy emphasizes evidence, reflection, and active 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