Summer courses are a great way to broaden your knowledge, travel around the world and socialize with international students. Attending a Summer School is one of the ways in which you can efficiently combine the development of your knowledge and career with rewarding social activities. What is more, most Summer Schools are located right next to sandy beaches, hiking and cycling hotspots, water sports-friendly lakes and rivers, or cities where there is always something going on.

Last year we shared the top economics summer schools, and top business and management summer schools to attend in 2014. With that in mind, now we decided to put together a list of the best Summer Schools taking place this year. The following courses are listed based on their approaching deadlines – have a look and apply now since some deadlines are approaching soon!

Economics Summer Schools at Barcelona GSE

Country: Spain

Duration of the course: From 29 June to 10 July 2015

Application Deadline: 15 Jun 2015

This short summer program includes courses in banking, labor economics, macroeconomics and microeconomics addressed to researchers, professionals and graduate students who want to improve their knowledge.

EcoMod Modeling School - Europe

Country: Czech Republic

Duration: From 29 June to 3 July 2015

Application Deadline: 18 May 2015

EcoMod Modeling School offers training programs in general equilibrium, macroeconometric and financial modeling. Courses in CGE, DSGE, OLG – GE, time series econometrics, and global VAR, using software such as GAMS, EViews, MATLAB, DYNARE are available. All courses are fully practical and provide hands-on experience. Participants build the models step-by-step with individualized guidance from instructors.

Summer School in Empirical Research Methods

Country: Switzerland

Duration of the course: From 8 June to 20 June 2015

Application Deadline: 30 April 2015

This summer school is specially designed for PhD Students and postdocs. It is a 2-week integrated program that offers block seminars taught by renowned lecturers.

UB Economics Summer School in Transport Policy and Planning, Barcelona

Country: Spain

Duration of the course: From 6 July to 10 July 2015

Application Deadline: Applications will be open soon

The second 2015 edition will be offering two complementary courses: “Economic evaluation of transportation projects: a course on cost-benefit analysis“ (Daniel Albalate - Universitat de Barcelona), and “Cities and sustainable transport” (David Banister - Oxford University).

2015 Econometrics Spring School, Rio de Janeiro

Country: Brazil

Duration of the course: From 15 March to 1 April 2015

Application Deadline: 23 March 2015

This spring school includes two and a half days of courses, offering a fantastic opportunity for students and professionals to expand their econometrics skills and learn how they can apply econometrics. The courses are taught by econometricians conducting pioneering research at the forefront of their specialist fields.

Barcelona Macroeconomics Summer School – BMSS 2015

Country: Spain

Duration of the course: From 22 June to 10 July 2015

Application Deadline: Applications are open now

The summer school offers to graduate students and senior researcher’s courses in the areas of macroeconomics including growth, international finance and trade, monetary policy and forecasting.

Experimental Auctions: Theory and Applications in Food Marketing and Consumer Preference Analysis

Country: Crete, Greece

Duration of the course: From 7 July to 14 July 2015

Application Deadline: 15 May 2015

The 2015 edition of the summer school will take place in Chania, Crete, Greece. It is a unique occasion to learn about the experimental auctions method, to meet the leading experts in the field, to create a network of peers with common interests and to visit an amazing place.

NOVA PHD Summer School: The Empirics of Economic Organizations and Transaction Cost

Country: Sweden

Duration of the course: 17 August to 21 August 2015

Application Deadline: 15 February 2015

This Summer School addresses PhD students and other interested researchers interested in the empirics of organizations and transaction costs. The summer school seeks to promote the exchange and dissemination of research in Industrial Organization with application to the agri-food sector.

Warwick Economics Summer School 2015

Country: United Kingdom

Duration of the course: From 19 July to 7 August 2015

Application Deadline: Applications are open now

This summer school offers 3-weeks of intermediate level courses for economics undergraduates, postgraduates and even courses for non-economists who would like to get an insight into the discipline during their vacation.

Essen Summer School in Health Economics

Country: Germany

Duration of the course: From 1 June to 7 June 2015

Application Deadline: 31 Mar 2015

This is a PhD summer program for research in Health Economics. The course is structured in lecture sessions and presentations. Topics include health investments, social mobility, visualization and analysis of data.

Economics Courses at Stanford Summer School

Country: United States

Duration of the course: From 23 June to 14 August 2015

Application deadline: Applications are open now

The summer school offers courses in principles of economics, economics analysis, money and banking, economics and sports, financial economics and international finance. The university also offers possibilities for intensive courses and other course modalities like summer programs abroad.

LSE Summer School

Country: United Kingdom

Duration of the course: Session One: 6 – 24 July 2015 | Session Two: 27 July – 14 August 2015

Application Deadline: Applications are open now

The LSE Summer School offers over 70 three-week courses taught by LSE’s highly respected professors. All courses are taught in the heart of Central London and comprise areas of accounting, finance, economics, business and management and other multidisciplinary courses.

International Summer Session

Country: China

Duration of the course: From 4 July to 1 August 2015

Application Deadline: April 30, 2015

The summer school offers 19 content courses, 3-level Chinese language courses and historical and cultural visits. The content courses will cover a range of topics in History and Culture, Society and Politics, Business and Economy, and Global Issues of the 21st Century.

Public Sector Economics

Country: United Kingdom

Duration of the course: From 6 July to 24 July 2015

Application deadline: Applications are open now

This summer school course provides an introduction in public sector economics as well as an overview to topics such as microeconomic foundations, social welfare and theory of public choice, education, social security, taxation and fiscal policy.

PKU Summer School International 2015

Country: China

Duration of the course: From 6 July to 31 July 2015

Application deadline: 31 May 2015

This summer school offers different courses taught entirely in English in the disciplines of philosophy, culture, literature, economy, politics, international relations, to traditional body exercise and sports.

There are plenty of great options for you. Each summer school has a particular specialization and purpose, so it is important to choose the right one for you. Selecting, applying and getting in a summer school requires the consideration of factors such as timing, location, reputation of the institution, costs and possible funding and the application process. If you want to have a complete list of summer courses, we invite you to visit this page.

Photo Credit: Peter Toshiro