Technology & Business: Silicon Valley

This Technology and Business trip gives students direct access to the people, universities and companies shaping Silicon Valley.

Students begin at the Computer History Museum and the Intel Museum, tracing the history of computing and Silicon Valley's origins, before a guided tour of Stanford University and its Computer Science Department, and a visit to the Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment. At the Lawrence Hall of Science, the University of California, Berkeley's public science centre, students take part in activities designed to open up STEM careers to underrepresented students.

Industry access includes a visit to a leading tech company's headquarters (such as Apple, Google, Meta or Tesla), a look inside NASA Ames Research Center, and a networking session with local software engineers and professionals. Students also visit the Tesla showroom to learn about the future of transportation, and explore Silicon Valley's startup ecosystem directly: a visit to a startup accelerator or co-working space, a tour of a promising startup's offices, and a conversation with its founders, with time in downtown Palo Alto and Mountain View.

Hands-on learning continues at the Hacker Dojo and other maker spaces, where students attend technical workshops or coding sessions and discuss emerging technologies directly with practitioners.