Summer Sessions is hosting a Summer Resource Fair next week to let students know the academic and personal resources that they can access from June through September.

Omega Lee, executive director of Summer Sessions, said the fair aims to highlight the ways that students can stay involved on campus throughout the summer.  

“We want summer to feel like a fourth quarter for students, and during this fourth quarter there are many things happening that students might not otherwise know about,” Lee said. “The fair would ideally give students an idea of who’s on campus during the summer and find them some contacts so that they can continue to build a sense of community.”

Summer Sessions, a unit of Undergraduate Education, offers more than 700 undergraduate courses over two, six-week sessions and the Special Session.

Danniele Biala, Summer Sessions program and policy analyst, said that although the content and curricula of academic courses offered over the summer remain the same as courses offered during the school year, there are some unique advantages of taking summer courses.

“Due to smaller course sizes, students have the opportunity to get into the class that has a long waitlist, such as a prerequisite course that they can’t get into during the academic year,” Biala said. “There’s also an opportunity for students to really connect with faculty, get to know their professors and hyper-focus on really hard classes,” Biala said.

For instance, the communication minor will be offered in full and may be completed entirely over the summer.

Summer Sessions will be partnering with Aggie Mental Health to hold an event this summer to present resources available to students and opportunities for students to participate in crafting activities. 

Summer Sessions is also partnering with other campus units to promote a smooth learning experience for students. 

“Our goal is to work with different departments across campus and work with faculty to help ensure that students have the classes that they need for summer and graduate on time,” Lee said. “We’re working with departments to help them to promote particular courses, and we’re hoping that, with our marketing techniques, students will see more of the courses that are available.”

Lee said the colleges, not Summer Sessions, determine what courses are offered during the summer. However, she and Biala meet with college leaders regularly and give additional information on which courses are popular or requested by students.

“We are hoping for more growth,” Lee said. “We are doing our best to promote certain courses and looking to expand our online course offering.”

The number of students enrolled in Summer Sessions during the summer of 2024 saw an increase of 5.9% to 12,689.

At the Summer Resource Fair, Lee and Biala hope to continue to communicate with students about valuable summer opportunities.

“We’ll have about 15 booths open,” Biala said. “The fair will be a great opportunity for students to see what resources are available for them.”

Summer Sessions is also increasing its presence at the special days for admitted students. 

Current students may register for Summer Sessions, which begins June 23, once they receive their pass time from the Office of the University Registrar. Summer Sessions is also open to the general public, who must apply first.