Our programmes
Summer school
Two weeks at University College London: English for science in the morning, hands-on STEM in the afternoon, and no cost to any student.
How it started
The story
Since 2016, a group of students and academics at University College London (UCL) have been organising Summer Schools. The programme gives students from London state schools a chance to observe the research taking place at the London Centre of Nanotechnology (LCN), a multidisciplinary enterprise operating at the forefront of science and technology, and UCL Department of Physics.
The Summer School programme then opened to recently arrived young forced migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in the UK, who experience ‘being lost in the GCSE vacuum because of their lower English level’. In 2019, the course ran for two weeks and 40 participants were signed up.
On the ground
What we do
The Summer Schools aim to help with the linguistic needs of the students and also provide skills that would help them to settle into the relatively new environment. In addition to English reinforcement, the Summer School includes daily practical workshops in groups covering diverse STEM subjects (physics, chemistry, biology) and providing useful coding & IT skills.
The funding received is used to cover transport expenses for the students to get to UCL campus and provide them with lunch. All organisers and mentors are volunteers.
English
In small groups, an English teacher helps the students to improve their writing, speaking, listening and reading skills. The groups are made depending on levels in order to reach the highest impact and fast improvement.
Science
After lunch, all the students meet up in the afternoon for an exciting practical workshop. They learn how to build their own microscope or extract DNA from fruits.
IT & coding
The students have the opportunity to develop their IT and coding skills. They learn how to code and control a friendly programmable robot, learn Word, Excel and PowerPoint, create their email address and build a CV.
Summer school in numbers
What the programme adds up to
105105
Participants
2424
Summer school days
5454
Volunteers
41,700£41,700
GBP funds raised
A single year — 2019
4040
Students enrolled
22
Weeks of English & science
8,500£8,500
Funds from sponsors
From the summer school
Inside the fortnight
In their words
What participants say
Dear UCL Summer School team, I would like to say a big thank you for every person in the Summer School team who have supported, taught, helped and encouraged us through these two weeks. I appreciate every single person and their effort in the team, I love the way you support the students and help them. I wish a very bright future for everyone. I will not have this opportunity again and it will always remain in my heart as a beautiful memory with you all.
My favourite part of the summer school was when we extracted DNA!
I was so pleased to attend the celebration event. It was a great opportunity for the students to show what they had learnt in English and IT skills and it was a real pleasure to talk to them. It’s fantastic to see an Ogden alumnus supporting other young people to succeed.
Applications
Summer School 2026 @ UCL — applications open
Week 1: Mon 03 Aug – Thurs 07 Aug. Week 2: Mon 10 Aug – Thurs 13 Aug. Department of Physics & Astronomy, University College London (UCL). Applications close 5 pm, Wednesday 15th July 2026.