Summer Scholars Program

The Jefferson Center Summer Scholars Program offers an opportunity for undergraduates to continue to study of the Great Books during the summer months. Under the guidance of a Jefferson Center faculty member, Summer Scholars will do a careful study of a single core text. Each week, they will read a small portion of the text and then meet with the faculty member and the other Scholars for a discussion. At the end of the summer, each Scholar will write a short paper. The setting is intended to be somewhat informal, so as to allow for more open-ended conversation and debate than is generally possible in class. It is hoped that this approach will enable students to develop an intimate familiarity with a specific work and a strong sense of their personal stake in the questions which it raises.  In order to participate, students must be in Austin for most of the summer. All students pursuing the certificate in Core Texts and Ideas are automatically eligible to enroll. Other undergraduates, including students from institutions other than the University of Texas, can apply to become Summer Scholars by special arrangement.