Engineering and Technology Extracurriculars in the DMV
Explore a curated short list of engineering extracurricular activities in the DMV made with the help of alumni of these programs.
Quick Info
Who
Maryland high school, community college, and four-year university students with "basic programming skills"
What
From a former student:
"Students are placed into groups and take 5 weeks to ideate, design, and build a physical product that solves a common problem. At the end of the program, students present their finished products during a demo day, complete with a presentation in front of local business leaders and parents."
Where
The Universities at Shady Grove, Rockville, MD
When
Mid July to mid August
Cost
Free tuition, $100 registration fee upon acceptance
Ratings
Cost
M.H., Summer '24
D.S., Summer '24
1 being the most expensive, 10 being free with stipends
Value
M.H., Summer '24
D.S., Summer '24
1 being not valuable at all, 10 being extremely valuable
"Unlike many other programs, this program involves actual hands on work where you have to work with a group of people who each have a different expertise. It goes through the entire engineering design process with all steps of planning all the way to presentation, mimicking real world design."
"This program gave me confidence in teamwork and engineering and enabled me to pursue leadership in other engineering projects after the program."
Difficulty
M.H., Summer '24
D.S., Summer '24
1 being very easy, 10 being extremely difficult
(Time spent, transportation, break time, etc.)
"5 weeks may seem like a lot, but it is not as smooth as it may seem. We encountered a lot of problems along the way that took time to fix."
"The time crunch of completing the project in just 5 weeks (practically 4 after the intro week) was challenging, but the mentors were actual college professors and provided immense support and guidance throughout the whole process."
Program Qualities
According to Alumni
Peer-based collaborative work
Hands-on learning
Lecture-styled learning
Open-ended (freedom of creativity on work)
Rigid scheduling
Low-commitment
Fun
Independent work
Research
Mentorship
Flexible scheduling
Instructor-led
Self-paced
High-commitment
Project building
Skill learning
Alumni Testimonials
​
Quick Info
Who
Rising seniors and rising juniors in high school
What
From a former student:
"We had the opportunity to explore the various engineering programs that the University of Maryland offers, as well as design and create a product as a capstone project."
Where
James A. Clark School of Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
When
Two different sessions, normally running from late July to early August
Cost
~$1,400
Ratings
Cost
1 being the most expensive, 10 being free with stipends
Value
1 being not valuable at all, 10 being extremely valuable
Difficulty
1 being very easy, 10 being extremely difficult
(Time spent, transportation, break time, etc.)
M.P., Summer '25
M.P., Summer '25
"I was able to meet some very cool people, some of whom could possibly aid me in my college application process, or if I did go to UMD, I would have already been introduced to people on campus."
M.P., Summer '25
"The time crunch of completing the project in just 5 weeks (practically 4 after the intro week) was challenging, but the mentors were actual college professors and provided immense support and guidance throughout the whole process."
Program Qualities
According to Alumni
Peer-based collaborative work
Hands-on learning
Lecture-styled learning
Rigid scheduling
Instructor-led
High-commitment
Fun
Independent work
Research
Mentorship
Open-ended (freedom of creativity on work)
Flexible scheduling
Self-paced
Low-commitment
Project building
Skill learning
Alumni Testimonials
​
Quick Info
Who
Any teenager
What
From a former student:
"A large amount of in-person coding clubs, mentored grant programs where you get IRL (in real life) rewards for learning to make things, worldwide in-person hackathons and events with travel stipends, and a giant online community."
Where
Local clubs and international competitions around the world
When
All-year
Cost
Free to register and participate
Ratings
Cost
1 being the most expensive, 10 being free with stipends
Value
1 being not valuable at all, 10 being extremely valuable
Difficulty
1 being very easy, 10 being extremely difficult
(Time spent, transportation, break time, etc.)
G.R., Summer '24 - Present
G.R., Summer '24 - Present
"I got back into coding because of Hack Club. I went to an 8-day event in China for free, I got a ton of free stuff, I launched a real game I made because of Hack Club, and I learned a ton. I also made many very good friends who I then met in-person at events."
G.R., Summer '24 - Present
"There are a lot of different options in Hack Club for different levels of commitment, but it's mostly self-paced."
Program Qualities
According to Alumni
Independent work
Peer-based collaborative work
Mentorship
Hands-on learning
Lecture-styled learning
Research
Rigid scheduling
Instructor-led
High-commitment
Skill learning
Open-ended (freedom of creativity on work)
Flexible scheduling
Self-paced
Low-commitment
Fun
Project building