Intensives
Intensives gave me a chance to realize my passion: art, and that I want to pursue it in college. I realized I could paint for six hours a day and still want to continue even when school ended." –Upper School student
At UPrep, intensives are three-week terms during which students take one class full-time, earning the same credit as a one semester class.
Intensive courses are academic and include student-designed projects, internships and mentorships, day visits to organizations in town, and overnight travel nearby and far away.
Intensives promote student leadership, collaboration, and community engagement and de-emphasize homework, solitary study, and isolated subjects. Learning like this helps our students attain the knowledge, skills, and thinking dispositions needed to successfully navigate our rapidly changing world.
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Intensives Enable Interdisciplinary Study
Several intensives allow UPrep students to learn with a team of teachers who are experts in different subject areas, including:
- Deep Space Six: Science Fiction, Science Fact
- Entrepreneurship
- The Duwamish through Art and Science
- Creative Writing
- Environmental Ethics and Advocacy
For example, in the 10th grade Humanities intensive, co-taught by history and English teachers, students explore a modern global health issue through partnerships with local organizations and experts, in-depth research, and personal experiences, eventually writing literary journalism articles on their findings.
Off-Campus Experiences Make Learning Real
I love that UPrep teaches these valuable intensive courses, like Engineering. It's so important for students to bridge the gap between the classes they enjoy and the major they ultimately declare in college. As a guest speaker, I enjoy getting the chance to tell students the story of how my passion for engineering grew into a career at Boeing.” –Emily (Sylvester) Sanchez '09, UPrep alum
During intensives, students and teachers can take full advantage of the freedom of time and space afforded by all-day classes, allowing Seattle and other parts of the world to become their learning laboratories.
In 2020, for example, students designed prototype desks during the Engineering intensive, educated by their visits to the Microsoft Inclusivity Studio and Boeing's 777 factory.
Engineering intensive students tour Boeing's 777 factory.