University of Wollongong Southern Highlands staff have given four students the opportunity to try university life to help them decide.

Students participated in an intensive summer master class and studied a humanities-based subject.

The subject explored a range of recent global and social issues in relation to the HSC English theme Discovery.

Bowral High School student Caitlin Stephens said she gained more than an academic advantage during the program.

"We were reminded that it wasn't about marks, it was about the confidence we gained to tackle a university workload," Ms Stephens said.

"The workload was intensive and the days were long but we had so much support."

Three students from Bowral High School and one student from Glenfield in Sydney undertook the summer holiday course.

Campus manager Stephen Lowe said he was happy with the students' commitment to the program.

"I'm pleased to provide students with the opportunity to have a taste of university life" Mr Lowe said.

The program was run by staff from UOW's In2Uni program and was designed to complement the current HSC curriculum.

Students who completed the program included Madeline Lockhart, Rebekah Shiba, Anthea Staats and Caitlin Stephens.