15 Pre-Med Summer Programs for High School Students
Summer programs allow you to explore new fields in a structured environment. They let you develop skills, understand how professionals work, and get early exposure to professional environments. Many summer programs for high schoolers are offered by universities, medical centers, and national organizations, giving you valuable experience. In a pre-med program, you might observe lab routines, participate in clinical activities, or shadow doctors and other healthcare professionals. Furthermore, pre-med programs facilitate connections with mentors and university faculty who can strengthen your college applications by writing your letters of recommendation.
For students curious about medicine, these programs help you understand the various directions healthcare can take, including research, clinical care, public health, and more. They provide activities like medical simulations, suturing practice, and lab experiments. They allow you to attend lectures from doctors and researchers and learn about various healthcare systems and specialties, which helps confirm your interest before you commit to a college pre-med track. To help you get started, we’ve narrowed down our list to 15 pre-med summer programs for high school students.
1. Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research (SIMR) Program
Location: Stanford, CA
Cost/Stipend: $40 application fee / $500–$2,500 stipend based on a needs-based system from special grants
Dates: June 8 – July 30
Application Deadline: February 21
Eligibility: Current high school juniors or seniors at the time of application and at least 16 years old or above by the program start date | U.S. citizens and permanent residents (with a green card) and attending high school in the country
SIMR is an eight-week program where you work with a graduate student or postdoctoral mentor on a defined research project. You select one of several fields, including immunology, neurobiology, cancer biology, and others, and you are matched to a lab based on that interest. The program begins with morning lectures before shifting into full days of laboratory work. During the final phase, you prepare a research poster that summarizes your findings. Cohorts are about 50 students, making the program selective, and its structure centers on laboratory research within biomedical science.
2. Ladder Internship Program
Location: Remote
Cost/Stipend: Varies depending on the program type; financial aid is available / No stipend
Dates: Multiple cohorts year-round, including summer, fall, winter, and spring
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort; Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September), and Winter (November)
Eligibility: High school, undergraduate, and gap year students able to work 10–20 hours per week for 8–12 weeks
Ladder Internship Program places you with a start-up where you contribute to defined projects in fields such as technology, health, marketing, journalism, or consulting. Past founders have included Y Combinator alums and founders who previously worked at Microsoft, Google, and Facebook. You collaborate with a manager at the company and receive guidance from a Ladder coach throughout the internship. Work assignments generally follow an eight-week schedule and conclude with a presentation to the host organization. Responsibilities vary by company and may involve technical, analytical, or creative tasks. The program focuses on remote project-based experience within start-up environments.
3. HOPP Summer Student Program
Location: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Manhattan, NY.
Cost/Stipend: No cost / $1,200 stipend
Dates: June 29 – August 21 (tentative)
Application Deadline: February 6
Eligibility: High school juniors who are 14 or older by June, are legally authorized to work in the U.S., live within 25 miles of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan, New Jersey, New York, or Connecticut, and have a 3.5 GPA in science courses
The HOPP Summer Student Program introduces you to translational cancer research through guided laboratory work. It matches you with a principal investigator who helps place you in a biomedical or computational lab. The eight-week schedule pairs independent research time with training sessions and tours across MSKCC. You follow assigned research tasks and learn how laboratories study cancer from multiple angles. The cohort typically participates in sessions on scientific methods and lab procedures, and the program emphasizes research practices in oncology.
4. Lumiere Research Scholar Program
Location: Remote
Cost/Stipend: Varies depending on the program type; financial aid is available
Dates: Multiple cohorts year-round, including summer, fall, winter, and spring
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort; Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September), Winter (November)
Eligibility: Currently enrolled high school students with demonstrated high academic achievement (accepted students typically maintain an unweighted GPA of 3.3 or higher)
The Lumiere Research Scholar Program offers individualized research guidance for high school students across a wide range of academic fields, including psychology, computer science, engineering, economics, physics, international relations, and other disciplines. You work one-on-one with a PhD mentor to design and complete an independent research project. Throughout the program, you will receive structured feedback on your writing, analysis, and data interpretation. The standard 12-week structure leads to the creation of an independent research paper and a possible UCSD Extended Studies credit.
5. ISPEED in Biomedical Engineering
Location: Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
Cost/Stipend: No cost / $2,400 stipend
Dates: June 30 – July 25
Application Deadline: February 28
Eligibility: High school sophomores or juniors who are between the ages of 15 and 18 | U.S. citizens or permanent residents | Check website for detailed age criteria
ISPEED is a four-week residential program that introduces you to topics in biology, life sciences, computer programming, and healthcare design. You take classes and participate in project-based assignments that connect these subjects to biomedical engineering. The program includes hands-on time in the BME Design Studio and the Cell and Tissue Engineering Lab. You also attend talks from researchers and go on scheduled field trips. A final project showcase allows you to present your work to faculty and peers. The curriculum centers on engineering concepts applied to health and medicine.
6. High School Summer Internship Program (HS-SIP)
Location: NIH campuses nationwide; main campus in Bethesda, MD
Cost/Stipend: No cost / Stipend of $2,530 before graduation and $2,840 after graduation
Dates: Minimum eight weeks in summer
Application Deadline: Typically, mid-February
Eligibility: High school students who are 18 and enrolled in an accredited educational institution, and are U.S. citizens and permanent residents
HS-SIP places you in an NIH laboratory where you contribute to ongoing biomedical research projects. You work under the guidance of research staff, gaining experience with data analysis, lab procedures, and scientific communication. The program includes sessions on scientific, professional, and personal skills alongside exposure to STEM-M career paths. Some students may participate through associated programs like HiSTEP or HiSTEP 2.0, each with its own structure. Your tasks depend on the assigned mentor and research area, and the program focuses on introductory research training within NIH laboratories.
7. High School Emerging Researcher Experience
Location: Various research institutions coordinated through Houston Methodist
Cost/Stipend: None
Dates: June 8 – July 31
Application Deadline: January 30
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors aged 16 or older by the program’s start | Minimum 3.5 GPA
This internship places you at a research site such as a college, hospital, school, or private lab. The program centers on translational research experience, where you collaborate with undergraduate students while developing an independent project within a biomedical area. Throughout the program, you receive structured mentorship that guides the progression of your project from design to presentation. The program also involves career development sessions that introduce scientific writing and related skills. At the end, you present your findings to the Houston Methodist staff and researchers.
8. STEP-UP – National Institutes of Health
Location: Various research institutions coordinated through NIH
Cost/Stipend: No cost / Stipend of $2,530 before graduation and $2,840 after graduation
Dates: Eight to 10 weeks beginning no later than early June
Application Deadline: February 15
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors, ages 16+, GPA of 3.0 or above | U.S. Citizen, non-citizen national, or legal permanent resident
STEP-UP connects you with a research mentor who supervises a project in fields such as biology, genetics, or neuroscience. You work at an institution close to your home and follow a schedule arranged with your coordinating center. The program combines laboratory tasks with training in research techniques tailored to your chosen project. You also receive continued mentorship for up to nine months after finishing your research. Schedules vary by site and mentor. The program emphasizes research exposure across biomedical disciplines and extends beyond the summer with a nine-month mentorship. It concludes with you presenting your work at a national symposium.
9. Medical Student Research Internship Program
Location: Scripps Research Translational Institute, La Jolla, CA
Cost/Stipend: No cost / Stipend paid, amount not specified
Dates: June 2 - August 8 or June 16 – August 22
Application Deadline: March 31
Eligibility: High school students who are at least 16 by the internship’s start date
This 10-week program brings together high school, undergraduate, and graduate students for training in translational science and precision medicine. You attend sessions on digital health, clinical genomics, and community engagement, along with instruction in study design and analysis. You also observe elements of clinical trial development, from proposal through analysis. Research tasks vary by mentor and may involve genomic or clinical data. A final presentation allows you to share a scientific concept with peers. The program focuses on translational and clinical research methods.
10. High School Internship Program
Location: Multiple Kaiser Permanente sites nationwide
Cost/Stipend: No cost / Stipend of $24/hr
Dates: June 15 – July 31
Application Deadline: January 9
Eligibility: High school students between the ages of 16 and 19 as of June 1 who live in a Northern California Kaiser Permanente designated service area and can legally work in the US
This seven-week paid internship places you in a healthcare environment where you observe and assist professionals in fields such as nursing, pharmacy, and lab sciences. You are placed in administrative, clerical, or health care support roles, not direct medical treatment, to gain hands-on experience in the day-to-day operations of a large health system. The program includes mandatory, paid "Education Days" or weekly workshops designed to enhance professional skills such as communication, public speaking, teamwork, financial literacy, and career readiness. Interns often work on team-oriented projects with specific deliverables related to their department's work. The experience typically culminates in a final presentation.
11. ResearcHStart – University of Chicago and partner institutions
Location: Chicago and the Urbana-Champaign area
Cost/Stipend: No cost / $3,000 stipend
Dates: Second week of June – First week of August (8 weeks)
Application Deadline: January 19
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors who are at least 16 years of age at the start of the program and are residents of Illinois or Lake County, Indiana
ResearcHStart focuses on foundational research experience in cancer science and assigns you to a cancer research laboratory at one of several participating universities. You work on projects involving cancer immunology, bioengineering, therapeutics, or related fields. Training includes skill-building workshops, lectures, and regular interactions with faculty and peer mentors. You follow lab procedures under supervision and complete assigned research tasks. You will also attend professional development workshops and scientific lectures that focus on different biomedical science career pathways. A symposium concludes the program, where you present your work.
12. Summer Student Research Program
Location: University of California, San Francisco, CA
Cost/Stipend: No cost / $3,000 stipend
Dates: 9 weeks from early June to early August
Application Deadline: February 14
Eligibility: High school juniors or seniors, age 16 by June 1, with at least one year each of math and biology
This nine-week program focuses on introductory research and health sciences exposure, and pairs you with a mentor at UCSF or its affiliated children’s hospital. You work on a clinical or basic science project while receiving guidance on research methods and professional development, where you receive direct exposure to experimental techniques, analysis, and data collection. Networking events connect you with health professionals and trainees. You participate in workshops, seminars, simulations, and skill-building sessions alongside your research tasks. The program ends with a presentation of your independent findings.
13. Future Scientist Program
Location: IU School of Medicine’s downtown Indianapolis campus, Indianapolis, IN
Cost/Stipend: No cost / Stipend paid, amount not specified
Dates: June 8 – July 31
Application Deadline: February 28
Eligibility: High school juniors attending Indianapolis or Marion County public schools who have a minimum 3.0 GPA
The Future Scientist Program places you in a university research setting for eight weeks under the guidance of a faculty mentor. You work on a defined project and participate in basic, translational, or clinical research activities depending on your assigned lab. Daily work involves observing and assisting with experiments while learning how researchers design and interpret studies in cancer science. You also interact with physicians and research staff during scheduled activities. The program focuses on introductory research training in oncology and is apt for students exploring future careers in academic medicine or cancer research.
14. Summer Medical Academy
Location: Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego, San Diego, CA
Cost/Stipend: $3,000 + $50 registration fee; limited scholarships available for students from eligible Title I San Diego County high schools
Dates: Session 1: June 15 – 26; Session 2: July 6 – 17
Application Deadline: February 20
Eligibility: High school students ages 15–19 who have completed at least 9th grade
Rady Children's Hospital offers the Summer Medical Academy (SMA), an intensive two-week program designed to immerse high school students in diverse healthcare professions. You gain firsthand exposure through clinical workshops, interactive lab activities, and medical simulations, complementing specialized lectures and panel discussions with healthcare experts. The curriculum spans critical areas like pediatrics, emergency medicine, surgery, nursing, public health, and medical ethics. Beyond technical training, the academy emphasizes essential teamwork and communication through skills sessions, networking, and group projects. The program culminates in a final group presentation, showcasing both the scientific knowledge and collaborative expertise acquired.
15. UPenn Summer Academies
Location: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Cost/Stipend: 2-week: $6,700; 3-week: $10,050 + $100 nonrefundable application fee; limited scholarships available for Philadelphia public and charter school students
Dates: 2-week: July 11 – 25; 3-week: July 11 – August 1
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions until full
Eligibility: High school students between grades 9 – 11 who have a 3.5 GPA
The Penn Summer Academies are subject-focused programs that introduce you to scientific, social science, or humanities topics through structured coursework. You study in either a two-week or three-week format, depending on the academy you choose. Instruction is led by Penn faculty with support from graduate and undergraduate teaching assistants. Activities may include lectures, group work, and lab sessions for science-focused tracks. Students who complete the program receive a certificate and may request recommendation letters from their instructors. The program centers on thematic academic study supported by Penn campus resources.
Image Source - Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research (SIMR) Program Logo