Summer Seminars
2024 Center for Science & Culture Summer Seminars
Program Overview
Launched in 2007, the CSC Summer Seminar program has now had the pleasure of hosting hundreds of students and professionals from around the country — and world — who wish to follow the evidence where it leads. The program is led by prominent ID researchers and scholars from a variety of disciplines who are equipped to explore a wide range of questions related to the origin of the universe, life, and human consciousness. Presentations and discussions help equip participants with the tools to breathe new purpose into the scientific enterprise, as well as to explore the many social implications of scientific theories. More on seminar topics below….
Seminar Topics
Historically, the Summer Seminar program has included two seminars offered concurrently: the Seminar on Intelligent Design in the Natural Sciences, designed for students and professionals in the natural sciences and the history and philosophy of science, and the C.S. Lewis Fellows Program on Science and Society, designed primarily for students and professionals in the humanities, social sciences, law, and theology. These two seminars share a core curriculum but diverge at times to focus on more specialized topics.
U.S. participants will be asked to choose one of the below seminars based on their degree programs or areas of interest. Core topics will be offered jointly to both sets of participants, while specialized topics will be offered separately to each seminar.
International participants will cover a wide range of topics from the natural and social sciences and humanities and will meet jointly as a single seminar. Additional resources may be available for those wishing to dive deeper into specialized topics.
Format & Dates
In-Person Seminars for U.S. Students (Colorado Springs, CO)
- Choose between two seminar tracks focusing on either the natural sciences or the social sciences & humanities
- January 1 | Application opens
- March 31 | Application closes (applications will be reviewed during the following weeks, contact jfelts@discovery.org with questions)
- May 3 – June 23 | Self-paced online course featuring special video lectures, readings, and discussion boards
- May 11 | Introduction to seminar directors and fellow participants via Zoom
- June 24 – 30 | In-person lectures, discussions, and activities led by seminar faculty at Glen Eyrie Castle & Conference Center in Colorado Springs, CO
Online Seminar for International Students
- A single seminar track covering the natural sciences as well as social sciences & humanities
- January 1 | Application opens
- March 31 | Application closes (applications will be reviewed during the following weeks, contact jfelts@discovery.org with questions)
- May 10 – July 11 | Self-paced online course featuring special video lectures, readings, and discussion boards
- May 17 | Introduction to seminar directors and fellow participants via Zoom
- July 11-13 | Online question & answer sessions with seminar faculty via Zoom
Application Requirements
The Summer Seminars are designed primarily for upper-division undergraduate and graduate students, but each year we also reserve spaces for a cohort of professors, scientists, teachers, pastors, and other professionals.
Student applicants must be college juniors or seniors or already in graduate school. Professional applicants may be postdocs, professors, scientists, teachers, pastors, or other professionals. Space is limited and admittance is competitive.
Cost
There is no application fee or tuition, and those admitted to the program will receive digital course materials free of charge, including books, articles, and other resources. For U.S. participants attending in person, lodging and meals will be provided and a limited quantity of need-based travel scholarships may be granted upon request.
How to Support the Program
Help us educate the next generation of scientists and scholars!
If you know of students who may be good candidates for this program, please help us by referring them to this website and encouraging them to apply as soon as possible.
Also, please consider making a special donation to help fund the cost of the seminars. Your support of the Summer Seminar program will allow us to educate a new generation of scientists, scholars, and educators who have the desire, the vision, and the determination to breathe new purpose into the scientific enterprise and influence its self-understanding in ways that will benefit both science and humanity.