15 Coding Programs for High School Students

If you’re a high school student interested in computer science or tech careers, coding programs are a practical way to explore the field. Many universities, research institutions, and major corporations offer coding programs that allow high school students to gain experience beyond what’s typically covered in school. Some programs focus on foundational skills like Python, web development, or Java, while others explore more specialized areas such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data science, robotics, and software engineering. Depending on the program, you may write code for professional projects, analyze data, work in research labs, or collaborate with mentors from industry and academia. 

Why should I participate in a coding program in high school?

Coding programs help you build technical skills and scientific communication abilities, along with familiarity with professional tools and workflows. Participating in a coding program can strengthen your college applications by giving you projects, certificates, or research experiences you can reference in college essays or resumes. These programs offer industry exposure through workshops and lectures led by experts, giving you access to mentorship that can shape your future academic and career paths.

To help you explore your options, here are 15 coding programs for high school students that offer meaningful learning and exposure to computer science.

1. Google’s Code Next Program

Location: One of four Code Next labs in Oakland, CA. Chelsea, NY. Detroit, MI. Inglewood, CA
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective. Typically 50 to 75 students per cohort per location
Dates: Year round program. Typically after school and weekends
Application Deadline: June 30
Eligibility: High school students in grades 9 to 12 who live in or near cities with Code Next labs

Google’s Code Next Program provides free, in-person computer science learning opportunities for high school students at select Google-affiliated labs across the U.S. During the program, you’ll work alongside Google mentors and coaches on projects that may include coding robots, developing games, or experimenting with tools like 3D printing and augmented reality. The curriculum is structured into different tracks, such as Launch for beginners and Team Edge for year-round programs that combine core coding skills with leadership development and college readiness. Labs also offer semester-based clubs that focus on specific areas like game design, robotics, or wearable tech.

2. Ladder Internships

Location: Remote. Participate from anywhere in the world
Cost/Stipend: Varies by program type. Full financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Approximately 10 percent. Cohorts of 70 to 100 students
Dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year in spring, summer, fall, and winter
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort. Spring January. Summer May. Fall September. Winter November
Eligibility: High school students, undergraduates, and gap year students who can work 10 to 20 hours per week for 8 to 12 weeks

In this program, you will dive into the heart of the startup world, where you’ll tackle high-impact projects at fast-scaling companies, including those specializing in coding and deep tech. You will refine machine learning models and enhance autonomous navigation alongside mentors from industry leaders such as Meta and Google. Supported by a dedicated coach and professional managers, you will develop essential engineering skills within a Y Combinator-backed environment. This hands-on experience concludes with you presenting your technical achievements directly to the founders. It is an ideal bridge for anyone looking to gain professional credibility while contributing to the cutting edge of modern technology. Apply now!

3. Meta Summer Academy

Location: Meta headquarters, Menlo Park, CA
Cost/Stipend: No cost. Stipend paid. Amount not specified
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly competitive. Roughly 150 students annually
Dates: June 16 to July 25 tentative and subject to change
Application Deadline: February 14
Eligibility: High school sophomores from East Palo Alto, Belle Haven, North Fair Oaks, or Redwood City. Must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0

The Meta Summer Academy is a six-week, paid summer program that introduces high school students to careers in technology through hands-on experience at Meta. You’ll work in teams alongside Meta employees, contributing to projects that may involve coding and problem-solving. During the program, you’ll explore fields such as software engineering, artificial intelligence, and data science while learning how technical teams collaborate in a real-world workplace. Guided by employee mentors, you’ll build practical programming skills and gain exposure to industry tools and workflows. The experience is supplemented with professional development workshops and networking sessions that help you gain insight into computer science and tech-related careers.

4. Veritas AI

Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies by program type. Full financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective. AI Scholars 5 to 1 student mentor ratio. AI Fellowship 1 to 1 mentoring
Dates: Multiple 12 to 15 week cohorts throughout the year in spring, summer, fall, and winter
Application Deadline: Rolling. Spring January. Summer May. Fall September. Winter November
Eligibility: AI Scholars open to all high school students. AI Fellowship requires completion of AI Scholars or prior experience with AI concepts or Python

Veritas AI, founded and run by Harvard graduate students, offers programs for high school students who are passionate about artificial intelligence. If you are looking to get started with AI, ML, and data science, you would benefit from the AI Scholars program. This 10-session boot camp introduces you to the fundamentals of AI & data science, where you get a chance to work on real-world projects.  Another option for more advanced students is the AI Fellowship with Publication & Showcase. Through this program, you get a chance to work 1:1 with mentors from top universities on a unique, individual project. A bonus of this program is that you have access to the in-house publication team to help you secure publications in high school research journals.

5. Summer Academy for Math and Science (SAMS)

Location: Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA
Cost/Stipend: No cost. Stipend paid. Amount not specified
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Extremely selective. Approximately 75 to 80 students
Dates: Virtual Jumpstart June 15 to June 16. Main program June 20 to August 1
Application Deadline: February 1
Eligibility: High school juniors in grade 11 at time of application. Must be age 16 or older by program start. Must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents

In the Summer Academy for Math and Science (SAMS), you will learn in a rigorous coding environment similar to a college-level computer science curriculum. It covers topics like algorithmic thinking, control flow, and data structures using Python, alongside web development fundamentals like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. You will engage in hands-on activities such as building your own version of Tetris, developing interactive games in Unreal Engine, or managing code through industry-standard tools like Git and GitHub. You will be part of a collaborative capstone project, where you apply your technical skills to real-world STEM research alongside world-class faculty. 

6. America On Tech (AOT)’s Tech Flex Leaders Program

Location: Hybrid. In person sessions in Manhattan, Downtown Los Angeles, or Downtown Miami
Cost/Stipend: No cost. Stipend paid. Amount not specified
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly competitive. Cohort size varies by location
Dates: Fall semester week of September 8 to December 16. Spring semester week of January 19 to May 14. Summer NYC only. Professional Development Bootcamp June. Paid Tech Internship June to August
Application Deadline: August 3
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors attending a New York City, Los Angeles County, or Miami Dade or Broward County public or charter school

AOT’s Tech Flex Leaders Program is a nine-month out-of-school technology program for high school juniors and seniors in New York City, Los Angeles, and Miami. You will participate in weekly technical sessions that introduce you to coding through web development using HTML, CSS, and Bootstrap. You will also learn about foundational concepts in AI and responsible AI use. As the program progresses, you will choose a specialized tech track such as advanced web development, data science, UX design, or product management, where coding and AI tools are applied to hands-on projects. Students collaborate with industry professionals and mentors, gaining exposure to real-world tech workflows and career paths.

7. MIT PRIMES

Location: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective; 15–25 students
Dates: Year–long program
Application Deadline: December 1
Eligibility: High school juniors and sophomores who live within driving distance of Boston

Moving beyond the typical short-term internship, MIT PRIMES provides a year-long immersion into the world of professional mathematics. You will start by exploring topics like combinatorics and number theory through readings, guided by postdocs or graduate mentors. This foundation evolves into original research, with you producing formal papers or collaborating in small reading groups to master graduate-level texts. Throughout the year, you meet specific milestones, including progress reports and drafts, culminating in a fall conference presentation. Similar to the actual research lifecycle, the program offers an opportunity to tackle unsolved problems and build academic expertise.

8. STEM Enhancement in Earth Science (SEES) Summer Intern Program

Location: Virtual or in person at The University of Texas, Austin, TX
Cost/Stipend: No cost. Limited travel scholarships available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Around 10 percent acceptance. Typically 15 to 25 students per year
Dates: Distance learning and remote projects May to July. On site internship July 6 to July 19. Symposium July 21 to July 22
Application Deadline: February 22
Eligibility: Current high school sophomores or juniors age 16 or older. Must be U.S. citizens

The SEES Summer Intern Program is a competitive research experience for high school students hosted by the University of Texas Center for Space Research in collaboration with NASA. During the program, you will work on mission-based projects that use NASA data across areas such as Earth science, space science, remote sensing, and engineering. Many projects involve coding for data analysis, visualization, computer modeling, or instrument control, allowing you to build practical computing skills in a research context. You collaborate closely with NASA scientists, university researchers, and industry professionals through guided mentorship and team-based work. All participants present their research at the SEES Science Symposium, gaining experience communicating technical results.

9. EDIT AI High School Summer Internship Program

Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective. Typically small cohorts
Dates: June 13 to August 31 tentative and subject to change
Application Deadline: April 15 tentative and subject to change
Eligibility: High school students with strong backgrounds in computer science, machine learning, or bioinformatics

The EDIT AI High School Summer Internship Program is a fully remote research experience hosted by Dartmouth Health and Dartmouth Cancer Center that focuses on AI applications in medicine. In this program, you will work on coding-driven projects that apply machine learning and data analysis techniques to real medical and pathology datasets using tools such as Python and R. You will join one of several tracks based on experience level, ranging from building foundational programming and AI skills to contributing to mentored research projects in areas like cancer detection, medical imaging, and text analysis. You will collaborate closely with researchers, clinicians, and peer interns through structured mentorship, weekly office hours, and guided projects.

10. MIT’s Beaver Works Summer Institute (BWSI) Summer Courses

Location: Virtual or in person at MIT, Cambridge, MA
Cost: $2,350 for participants from families with income $150,000 or greater. Free for participants with income below $150,000
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 10 to 12 percent acceptance. 30 to 40 students per cohort
Dates: July 6 to August 2. Students must complete online prerequisite courses between February 2 and June 19
Application Deadline: March 30
Eligibility: U.S. high school students in grades 9–11; check here for course-specific prerequisites 

MIT’s Beaver Works Summer Institute (BWSI) Summer Courses offer an intensive, project-based learning experience for high-achieving high school students. Throughout the four-week program, you’ll work on hands-on technical projects in areas such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, autonomous systems, data science, and embedded hardware. Depending on the course, your work may involve writing Python code, developing machine learning models, programming robots or drones, or analyzing data. Courses are structured around team-based challenges and capstone projects that require applying math, algorithms, and engineering concepts to complex problems. You will take part in lectures, guided labs, and practical exercises under the mentorship of instructors with research and industry experience.

11. Microsoft Discovery Program

Location: Microsoft campuses in Redmond, Washington or Atlanta, Georgia
Cost/Stipend: No cost. Stipend paid. Amount not specified
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Approximately 15 percent. 100 to 150 students
Dates: July 7 to August 1
Application Deadline: Late February
Eligibility: High school graduating seniors who live and attend high school within 50 miles of Redmond, Washington or in the Atlanta, Georgia area. Must have completed pre calculus or an equivalent course by the program start

This internship allows graduating high school seniors to explore coding fundamentals and the product development lifecycle, gaining exposure to software engineering, UX design, and product management. You will work in a small "pod" to complete a real-world project, participate in technical workshops, and attend networking discussions with industry professionals. One of the program's most unique features is its focus on mentorship, where you are paired with Microsoft employees who guide your transition into the professional world. This prestigious program essentially offers you a foot in the door at one of the world's leading tech companies before you even step onto a college campus.

12. NYU’s Cyber Security for Computer Science (CS4CS)

Location: NYU Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, NY
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective. Typically 45 to 50 students
Dates: July 13 to August 7
Application Deadline: May 15
Eligibility: Current high school sophomores and juniors from New York City, New Jersey, and Nassau County

NYU’s CS4CS program gives NYC high school students an introduction to computer science through the lens of cybersecurity. During this program, you’ll explore topics such as white-hat hacking, cryptography, steganography, digital forensics, and data privacy. You’ll gain hands-on experience with coding and learn how security tools and techniques are used to detect, prevent, and trace cyber threats. Coursework emphasizes real-world scenarios, helping you understand how security analysis works in practice.  Alongside technical learning, you’ll hear from professionals who share insight into cybersecurity careers and current challenges in the field. The program is designed for beginners and does not require prior experience in computer science or cybersecurity.

13. USC Viterbi’s CS@SC Coding Camps

Location: Virtual or in person at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, Los Angeles, CA
Cost: Virtual $200. In person $600. Scholarships available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Non selective. Virtual sessions 5 to 8 students per class. In person sessions 6 to 8 students per class
Dates: In person Session 1 June 23 to 27. Session 2 July 7 to 11. Virtual Session 1 July 7 to 18. Session 2 July 21 to August 1
Application Deadline: Late May or early June or when all seats are filled
Eligibility: All high school students; check here for individual program pages for course-specific prerequisites 

In these programs, you will enroll in summer camps to focus on specific subjects such as Python, Java, Web Development, Mobile App Development, Game Design, Cybersecurity, or Robotics – Arduino. Courses are organized by skill level, allowing you to access a range of subjects from introductory programming concepts to more advanced topics like object-oriented programming, responsive web design, or creating 3D games. Most classes emphasize applied learning, where you write code, build projects, and solve programming challenges. Along the way, you may get to work with tools such as MIT App Inventor, Unity, Arduino, or Python.

14. Stanford AI4ALL

Location: Virtual | In-person at Stanford University
Cost: Online: $4,120; Residential: $9,800; financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 4%–6% acceptance; 30–90 students per summer
Dates: Online: June 15 – July 26 | Residential: July 19 – 31
Application Deadline: February 6
Eligibility: Rising 10th graders (current 9th graders); must be 14+ by the program start

In the Stanford AI4ALL program, you will explore artificial intelligence by learning Python-based coding for machine learning, computer vision, and natural language processing. You will apply coding in projects such as building a machine learning pipeline to identify poverty in satellite imagery, developing AI-powered robotic systems, or creating zero-shot classification models for medical diagnosis. You will engage in hands-on research projects, participate in live demos with industry leaders, and collaborate with a diverse peer group to solve real-world problems. By the end, you will have gained professional-level skills in data analysis, algorithmic design, and model evaluation using frameworks like PyTorch and NumPy. 

15. UPenn Engineering Summer Academy – Computer Science

Location: University of Pennsylvania campus, Philadelphia, PA
Cost: $9,250. Limited financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: About 10 to 15 percent acceptance. Approximately 30 to 35 students per cohort
Dates: July 12 to July 31
Application Deadline: February 28
Eligibility: Rising high school sophomores to seniors who have completed 9th grade and are at least age 15 by the program start. Must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 or equivalent

In the UPenn Engineering Summer Academy’s Computer Science program, you will explore a curriculum that bridges the gap between basic coding and complex computational theory. Throughout the three-week program, you’ll learn topics like discrete probability, graph theory, data analysis, and the core mechanics of how machine language translates into software. While primarily working in Python, you will build complex systems and engage in activities such as implementing recursive algorithms, modeling data with aggregate types, and developing software for targeted tasks. The program enables you to earn actual college credit while learning directly from Penn faculty and collaborating with a global peer group.