Exeter summer camp has been recalled as one of the most exciting and memorable experiences for those who attended. It contains a community filled with people of differences, whether if it’s nationality, cultural background, age, or gender.

The time spent at Exeter summer camp is not only a growth in knowledge, but also in confidence, maturity, and happiness. This brings us into questions: How do people feel after their first week at Exeter summer? Would this feeling change over time? How does the evolution of students’ attitudes toward Exeter summer look like?

With these questions in mind, we came up with the idea of interviewing a certain group of people every week, and asking the same questions each time, so that we can see the change in answers as the weeks pass by. The people interviewed are from both Upper School and Access Exeter.

The students we picked are Baaba Bentsi-Enchill from Ghana, Jimmy Small from New Hampshire, Victor D’anzi from Rome, Emily Tanaka from Japan, and Elliot Smith from New Jersey. They will each be represented as their first initials in the following Q&A section. 

What is your favorite thing so far at Exeter Summer?

BB: I love the classes here at Exeter, especially the idea of Harkness table. It brings all the students to participate in a discussion.

JS: I definitely like the classes here, as well as the academic opportunities that are given. Exeter summer offers a wide range of courses. I also like the diversity in the camp.

VD: The community, the diversity, and the people are what I love the most about Exeter summer camp. I made a lot of good friends in such short period of time. 

ET: I love the dorms! And also the Harkness table, I have never tried it before so it’s such a new experience for me. I think that it is so cool how the students can lead the class instead of the teachers. 

ES: The crew team because it’s just a sport I like. I also like how people are from different backgrounds. I have had great conversations with them.

How is your workload? Are you able to manage them?

BB: It is kind of the same amount as normal school work. I actually expected less than that, but it is still manageable because I am used to it.

JS: I think it is not that much. I would say doable.

VD: It’s fine. Yeah.

ET: There is a lot of homework. It is sometimes manageable, and sometimes too much.

ES: It’s ok. The homework is challenging but since I am interested in those subjects, I enjoy doing them a lot. Yeah, I would still get time for other things. 

Do you get homesick?

BB: Yes. The first day was really bad, but I guess it is getting better.

JS: No, cause I am from this place.

VD: I missed my family a lot the past week, but now it’s ok.

ET: Not really, just the first night.

ES: Not a lot, but occasionally. I miss my dog, but I am glad that there are a lot of dogs on campus. 

Use one sentence or two to describe your past week spent at Exeter.

BB: It was really exciting, I can clearly tell that I grew a lot already.

JS: It was absolutely fantastic, I love it here!

VD: I had a lot of fun. There were a lot of activities to do.

ET: I think the camp is different from all the others. There was a lot of freedom, which allowed me to do more of my own things. I was concentrated in each of my experience. 

ES: The people are amazing here. They would reach out to help you, which made this experience really fun.

What did you expect Exeter summer to be? Did it meet your expectations?

BB: It is actually pretty much the same as I expected, but there are more fun activities.

JS: The academics is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Also, I didn’t expect the people to be so friendly.

VD: I expected it to be big, so it met my expectation for that, but I didn’t expect it to have good food, there are a lot of choices. 

ET: I didn’t expect this much freedom, but I love it because it allowed me to learn new things.