Current Academic Outreach Programs
Below are offices, programs, and initiatives at Princeton University that are actively engaged in academic and educational outreach activities. Click on each title to learn more. Questions, additions, or corrections may be directed to Academic Affairs within the Office of the Provost.
Chem-STEM is a science outreach program run by the Department of Chemistry. The goal of the Chem-STEM outreach initiative is to inform and excite high-school students about graduate study and careers in science, with the hope of inspiring students at a young age to pursue careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math).
The Department of Computer Science hosts or supports a growing number of outreach activities, including Princeton Computer Science in Puerto Rico.
The Princeton Graduate School-Community College Teaching Partnership program, supported by the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning, enables Princeton University graduate students to teach courses at Mercer County Community College, Rowan College South Jersey, Camden County College, or Middlesex College.
The Community College Faculty Program (CCFP), administered by the Princeton University Office of Community and Regional Affairs, is an opportunity for New Jersey community college faculty members and administrators to undertake advanced study.
Engineers without Borders is a student-led organization dedicated to addressing development challenges through the implementation of sustainable engineering projects abroad, drawing on the legacy of “Princeton in the Nation’s Service and in the Service of Humanity.”
GradFUTURES Social Impact Fellowships are bespoke opportunities for Princeton graduate students with nonprofit organizations that have partnered with the Graduate School. Host organizations work closely with the Graduate School to determine the learning outcomes and professional development goals for these immersive experiences.
The IGWMC supports a robust education and outreach program, promoting the education of K-12 students and teachers, as well as community members, through STEM fairs, classroom lessons, workshops, resource development, and educational partnerships. The IGWMC is available to work with new faculty and educational partners.
The Molecular Biology Outreach Program is dedicated to fostering enthusiasm for scientific enquiry and increasing scientific literacy in the Greater Princeton community.
The Novogratz Bridge Year, administered by the Office of International Programs, is a nine-month, tuition-free program that allows newly admitted undergraduates to begin their Princeton experience with a year of community-engaged learning at one of five international locations.
The Pace Center helps undergraduate and graduate students to serve well by making meaningful connections through learning, experience, and reflection—connections that create a strong foundation for understanding what it means to be an engaged citizen.
The Princeton Computer Science Department, the Princeton Center for Information Technology Policy, and the AI4ALL Organization run an annual summer camp to teach AI to high school students from underrepresented groups.
Princeton ArcPrep, administered by the Princeton University School of Architecture, aims to diversify the field of architecture by providing comprehensive support, guidance, and academic and cultural enrichment to students who are typically underrepresented in American architecture schools and thus the profession of architecture.
Princeton University's Community Auditing Program (CAP), administered by the Princeton University Office of Community and Regional Affairs, enables members of the community, high school graduates ages 18 and above, to audit, University lectures as a "silent student" on a non-credit basis.
The Princeton Center for Complex Materials brings high school students from underrepresented backgrounds to Princeton to attend the Princeton University Materials Academy (PUMA), a three-week materials science and engineering program held during the summer.
Princeton Online is the home of Princeton’s fully open, online courses. Taught by Princeton faculty, and hosted on the platforms Coursera and edX, Princeton Online offers courses on a variety of topics, including computer science, law, and sociology. The courses are free and not for credit or other credentials. Princeton Online is managed by the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning.
Princeton’s Program in Continuing Education, administered by the Princeton University Office of Community and Regional Affairs, admits qualified area residents, K-12 New Jersey teachers, as well as University employees, employees' spouses, same-sex domestic partners and dependents, and graduate students' spouses and same-sex domestic partners to University undergraduate and graduate courses.
PPPL hosts tours for school groups, professional societies, and neighbors, and PPPL scientists and engineers visit K-12 classrooms in the region to talk about plasma physics, fusion energy, and related topics, and to conduct hands-on science activities.
The Princeton University Preparatory Program, in Princeton’s Emma Bloomberg Center for Access & Opportunity, is a highly engaged, holistic college preparation and success program that fosters development of high-achieving students who have been historically marginalized. Its multi-year, tuition-free program prepares participants for admission to and success within selective colleges and universities, and beyond.
The Princeton University Program in Teacher Preparation is dedicated to supporting members of the Princeton University community who choose to serve humanity through education.
SPIA in N.J. is an initiative within the School of Public and International Affairs that is focused on engagement with the School’s neighbors within the State of New Jersey. Students and faculty work with partners around New Jersey to generate research-based data and provide analysis that support policy aligned with racial, social, and economic justice.
The Princeton Summer Journalism Program (PSJP), housed in Princeton’s Emma Bloomberg Center for Access & Opportunity, is the only program of its kind offering a free, year-long college preparation and journalism program for high school students from limited-income backgrounds.
The Prison Teaching Initiative seeks to bridge Princeton University’s academic and service-driven missions by providing the highest quality post-secondary education to incarcerated students in New Jersey, offering Princeton University’s graduates students, postdocs, faculty, and staff innovative, evidence-based pedagogy training and the chance to diversity their teaching portfolios.
ProCES supports academic collaborations between Princeton faculty, staff, students, and community partners that create opportunities to learn from community experience and expertise. Partners include non-profit, public sector, and non-governmental organizations and grassroots community leaders representing a variety of fields as well as racial and environmental justice and social change frameworks.
Science Outreach facilitates mutually beneficial and sustainable relationships between Princeton University science faculty, students, and postdocs with youth, schoolteachers, nonprofit organizations, and the broader community with the goals of increasing engagement, participation, equity, and inclusion in STEM fields. Science Outreach supports Astrophysical Sciences, Center for Statistics and Machine Learning, Chemistry, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Geosciences, Mathematics, Molecular Biology, Physics, Princeton Neuroscience Institute, and Psychology
The Teaching Transfer Initiative is an academic outreach pilot program led by the Office of the Provost and managed by the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning. Designed to encourage community college students to explore and transfer to four-year institutions, the program will place Visiting Faculty Fellows at Mercer County Community College in the pilot year, investing in the community college sector by expanding Princeton’s teaching and advising capacity outward.
The Transfer Scholars Initiative (TSI) is a pilot summer program for community college students housed in the Emma Bloomberg Center for Access and Opportunity. Working with its community college partners, Princeton hosts a small and talented cohort of students considering transfer to highly selective four-year colleges with excellent completion rates.
The Trenton Arts Program is a collaboration between the Department of Music, Lewis Center for the Arts, and Pace Center for Civic Engagement. The program’s mission is to build a multi-disciplinary community of artists across Trenton and Princeton University through student leadership and volunteer opportunities, youth programming, community performances, and more.