Language is one of the most important tools people use to think, learn, and connect with each other. If you want to understand how it works in an advanced academic setting, linguistics research programs for high school students are a great way to start. These programs let you study and carry out rigorous research on how people speak, write, and communicate across different settings.
Linguistics research focuses on the structure, use, and history of language, as well as its connection to culture and society. You might study sounds, grammar rules, meanings of words, how people learn new languages, and how language shapes what we know and how we act.
To help you get started, we’ve put together a list of 15 linguistics research opportunities for high school students!
15 Linguistics Research Opportunities for High School Students
1. National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y)
Location: Türkiye, Taiwan, Jordan, Korea, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Indonesia, Latvia, China, Tajikistan, and other locations around the world.
Cost: The program pays for travel, visa, classes, housing, health coverage, and activities. You get a stipend for local transport. You cover your passport, medical checks, and personal expenses.
Application Deadline: November 4
Dates: Summer programs last 6–7 weeks from mid-June to mid-August. Academic year programs run 8–10 months, starting in late August or September. You’ll get the exact dates if you’re selected as a finalist.
Eligibility: U.S. high school students in grades 9–12, aged 15–18, with a GPA of 2.5 or higher (or equivalent)
The U.S. Department of State’s NSLI-Y program gives full scholarships to high school students to study critical languages abroad. You’ll live with a host family or in group housing, take language classes, and join cultural activities. In the summer, you’ll study the language for 3 to 4 hours each morning and spend afternoons on practice, projects, and local activities.
In the academic year program, you’ll get at least 10 hours of weekly language instruction, take other classes, and work on longer projects. Languages include Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Indonesian, Korean, Persian (Tajiki), Russian, and Turkish. After the program, you can join the NSLI-Y Alumni Association and the International Exchange Alumni network, which offers professional development, language and cultural events, and community service opportunities.
2. Horizon Academic Research Program (HARP)
Location: Virtual
Cost: Horizon Labs and Seminar courses both cost $5,950. Need-based financial aid is available for Seminar courses, with up to 90% of the tuition waived.
Application Deadline: March 23 (priority), April 20 (regular-I), May 18 (regular-II)
Dates: The summer cohort begins on June 16. Lab schedules are flexible, but you must apply at least four weeks before your preferred start date.
Eligibility: High school students with a GPA of 3.67 or higher can apply. Most participants are in 10th or 11th grade. Some program tracks have specific prerequisites, which you can check here.
Horizon offers trimester-long research programs in subjects like history, machine learning, philosophy, chemistry, physics, and data science. You can choose from over 600 topics and pick either qualitative or quantitative research.
If you’re interested in linguistics,the Ancient History course explores the languages, beliefs, and cultures of ancient Greece and Rome and how they connect to modern fields like linguistics and philosophy.
You’ll choose your research topic, work one-on-one with a professor or PhD mentor, and write a 20-page research paper. You’ll also get feedback, guidance, and a recommendation letter. You can apply here.
3. Lumiere Research Scholar Program
Location: Virtual
Cost: Starts at $2,990. Financial aid is available!
Application Deadline: Application deadlines vary by cohort. The next one coming up, for the summer cohort, is May 11.
Dates: The program offers four cohorts: summer (June–August), fall (September–December), winter (December–February), and spring (March–June).
Eligibility: High school students with an unweighted GPA of 3.3 or higher (on a 4.0 scale) are encouraged to apply.
The Lumiere Research Scholar Program is a 12-week experience where high school students work on independent research in a subject they’re interested in, with guidance from a Ph.D. mentor. It covers areas across STEM, Humanities, and Social Sciences, and includes workshops on research methods, ending with a completed research paper.
You’ll team up with your mentor and a writing coach to shape your topic and join workshops to build your research skills. Subjects include linguistics, engineering, anthropology, classics, history, gender studies, physics, biology, data science, international relations, and chemistry. If none of those match your interests, you can adjust your topic to fit. You can find more info on how to apply here.
4. UPenn Pre-College Online Program – Introduction to Linguistics
Location: Virtual (synchronous)
Cost: The cost is $8,462 for one college credit course unit and $13,858 for two units, with an additional non-refundable $100 fee.
Application Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis until May 16
Dates: Summer Session I: May 27 – July 2; Summer Session II: July 3 – August 8
Eligibility: Current 10th and 11th graders with at least a 3.5 GPA, including international students, can apply.
UPenn’s Pre-College Online Program This program lets you take online, credit-bearing college courses from home alongside Penn undergrads. Courses are taught by Penn faculty and visiting scholars. You can take 1 or 2 course units (each equal to 4 college credits). If you pass, you can request an official transcript for a fee.
If you’re into linguistics, the Introduction to Linguistics course covers how language works—its biology, history, sounds, meaning, and social use. You’ll also learn about language evolution, dialects, language and gender, how we learn languages, brain disorders, and writing systems.
5. Summer@Brown — Language and Social Justice
Location: Brown University, Providence, RI
Cost: $2,960–$10,386, depending on the program’s length and format. Some courses may also have extra fees. Scholarships are available.
Application Deadline: May 9
Dates: On-campus programs last 1 to 3 weeks, with a 5-week hybrid option, all held between June 16 and July 25.
Eligibility: Students finishing grades 9–12, aged 14–18 by June 15, can apply. Some courses may have extra requirements, so be sure to check the individual course pages.
Brown offers over 230 non-credit courses for high school students, taught by experienced instructors. You’ll get a college-level experience without grades or credits, plus access to workshops and activities.
If you’re interested in linguistics, the Language and Social Justice course explores how language shapes identity and reflects power. You’ll look at links between language, gender, ethnicity, class, and more. The course also examines how language can affect access to healthcare, jobs, and legal rights, using real examples from speech and writing.
6. Stanford Summer Session — Greek and Latin Roots of English
Location: Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Cost: Tuition starts at $8,091 for commuters and $18,443 for residential students, which covers a full course load and a meal plan. You can check out the Tuition & Fees Calculator for a full breakdown.
Application Deadline: Early: December 13; Regular: February 12
Dates: June 21 – August 17
Eligibility: Current high school sophomores, juniors, or seniors who are between 16 and 19 years old and not planning to start as first-year students at Stanford
Stanford Summer Session gives high school students the chance to take challenging courses and get involved in campus life. With more than 130 classes to choose from, you’ll attend advanced lectures taught by Stanford faculty alongside undergrads and visiting college students.
If you’re interested in linguistics, the Greek and Latin Roots of English course can help you expand your vocabulary, better understand written English, and boost your standardized test scores by exploring how Greek and Latin shape the English language.
You’ll look at how words are formed and learn vocabulary used in fields like medicine, business, education, law, and the humanities. The course will also introduce you to the basics of language etymology and history.
7. Columbia University’s Pre-College Summer Programs — Language & Identity: A Linguistic Exploration of Accents, Dialects, Slang, & Grammar
Location: Columbia University, New York, NY
Cost: Residential: $12,750 per session. Commuter: $2,825 or $6,300 per session. $80 application fee and possible course fees. Budget at least $50 for materials. Scholarships available for eligible NYC commuter students.
Application Deadline: Early: February 2; General: March 2 (residential), April 2 (commuter)
Dates: Residential program: June 30 – July 18 | July 22 – August 8; Commuter program: June 30 – July 18 | July 22 – August 8 | August 11 – August 15
Eligibility: Students entering grades 9–12 and current 12th graders can apply. For the residential program, applicants must be at least 16 years old by the start date.
Columbia offers high school students college-level courses in subjects like languages, business, art, writing, and more. You’ll also join lectures, college prep workshops, and wellness activities.
If you’re interested in linguistics, the Language & Identity: A Linguistic Exploration of Accents, Dialects, Slang, & Grammar course looks at how accents, dialects, slang, and grammar shape culture and identity. You’ll learn about sounds, words, and sentences, do fieldwork for a term project, and study how language appears in film, books, and media. You’ll also collect data and explore language from cross-cultural and global perspectives.
8. Summer@Brown Online – Introduction to Linguistics
Location: Online through Canvas, Brown’s learning management system
Cost: The cost ranges from $3,218 to $6,238, depending on course length, with some courses having additional fees. Scholarships are available
Application Deadline: May 9
Dates: Several online courses are available from June 16 to July 25, ranging from 2 to 6 weeks.
Eligibility: Students who have completed grades 9–12 and are aged 14–18 by June 15 can apply. Check individual course pages for any extra requirements.
Brown’s online program lets high school students pick from over 50 courses in subjects like history, linguistics, biology, psychology, finance, and more. Courses come in three formats: asynchronous, mostly asynchronous, or blended. You can also join workshops and activities.
If you’re interested in linguistics, the Introduction to Linguistics course covers phonetics (speech and transcription), phonology (how sounds are structured), morphology (word structure), syntax (sentence rules), and semantics (how sentences related to meanings). The course may also touch on historical linguistics, sociolinguistics, and how linguistics connects to cognitive science, helping you explore how language shapes thought and communication.
9. Indiana University’s Summer Language Immersion Workshop
Location: Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
Cost: The cost ranges from $2,656 to $3,320, depending on the number of credits. Additional fees include a $753 program fee, a $589 student services fee, and a $2,535 housing and laundry fee.
Application Deadline: General: January 31; Rolling: May 16
Dates: June 2 – August 1; June 9 – August 1
Eligibility: High school students who are 18 or older on the first day of the program
The Immersion Workshop is a two-month intensive language program where you can study Arabic, Chinese, or Russian and complete a full year of language training. The program focuses on practical skills in speaking, listening, reading, and writing, using real-life scenarios.
Each week, you will have around 20 hours of class in small groups, usually 8 to 12 students, with experienced instructors. Outside of class, you will spend 3 to 5 hours preparing for the next lesson, plus 30 to 45 minutes working individually with a language trainer. At the end of the program, you will take an external language assessment and receive an official Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) certificate.
10. Ohio State University Summer Linguistic Institute for Youth Scholars (SLIYS)
Location: Virtual (live sessions)
Cost: SLIYS tuition is $550 per week. So it’s $550 for one session, or $1,100 if you attend both SLIYS 1 and 2. Need-based financial aid is available.
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions start on February 1.
Dates: SLIYS 1 (required): June 9 – June 13, July 14 – July 18; SLIYS 2 (optional): June 23 – June 27, July 21 – July 25
Eligibility: High school students entering grades 9–12 next school year and aged 13–18 can apply. There’s no strict GPA requirement, but a 3.0 or higher is recommended.
Ohio State University’s Department of Linguistics offers the Summer Linguistic Institute for Youth Scholars (SLIYS), a program designed for high school students interested in the study of language. The program introduces the basics of linguistics, the scientific study of human language, through live sessions where you’ll learn about language structure and how to analyze it.
SLIYS 1 (required) covers core topics such as phonetics, morphology, syntax, and documenting languages. SLIYS 2 (optional) is a more advanced course and is only available to students who have completed SLIYS 1. The program is taught by Ph.D. students from OSU’s Linguistics Department, who have teaching experience and strong backgrounds in languages.
11. UChicago’s Pre-College Summer Language Institute – Summer Intensive Intermediate Ancient Greek
Location: Virtual
Cost: The program costs $8,225, with need-based financial aid available in amounts ranging from $500 to $6,000.
Application Deadline: Priority: January 22; Regular: March 5; Extended: April 15
Dates: Several 6 to 8-week courses are offered between June 16 and August 8.
Eligibility: Current high school juniors and seniors
The University of Chicago’s Pre-College Summer Language Institute allows advanced high school students to take language courses with current UChicago students. You can choose from modern or ancient languages. Intensive beginner and intermediate courses focus on speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Each course is worth 300 units of credit (equivalent to three quarter-long classes) and includes at least 90 contact hours.
If you’re interested in linguistics, the Summer Intensive Intermediate Ancient Greek course is a great choice. You’ll study texts by Classical authors like Plato, Herodotus, and Homer while strengthening your grammar and syntax skills. This course prepares you for advanced Greek studies and research.
12. Stanford Online High School – Spanish: Literature, Film, and Culture
Location: Virtual
Cost: Tuition ranges from $6,195 for one course to $30,970 for four or more, with need-based financial aid available.
Application Deadline: January 9
Dates: The program typically runs from August to June, though you can also enroll in individual courses if you prefer.
Eligibility: Students in grades 7–12
The Stanford Online High School (OHS) Program offers interactive online courses for students in grades 7-12. Courses are available in two semesters (Fall and Spring), with most running the entire year. Classes meet twice a week, or three times for language courses.
If you’re interested in linguistics, the Spanish: Literature, Film, and Culture course explores cultural diversity in the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America through texts and media like poetry, short stories, films, and art. You’ll analyze these materials to understand the cultures and histories of these regions.
13. University of Mississippi Summer Language Institute
Location: University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS
Cost: The cost ranges from $3,150 to $3,475 for residential students and $900 to $1,200 for commuters. All students in a college credit program get some level of tuition scholarship. Additional scholarships are available for eligible students, and some programs also offer their specific scholarships.
Application Deadline: Priority: March 15; Final: April 1
Dates: May 27 – June 20; June 26 – July 25
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors enrolled in public, private, charter, or home school with a GPA of 3.0 or higher or an ACT score of at least 30 (or SAT equivalent) can apply. You’ll also need to meet the University of Mississippi’s dual enrollment admission requirements—check here for details.
The University of Mississippi Summer Language Institute offers high school students the chance to study Arabic or Chinese with a focus on real-world use. The program includes cultural activities and explores future academic and career paths, helping you prepare for scholarships and competitive programs after graduation.
The Arabic Language Flagship Program is a month-long beginner course that earns you 6 college credits. It is competitive and focuses on building Arabic language skills and cultural understanding through intensive classes and hands-on activities.
The Summer Chinese Language Institute helps you improve your speaking and writing skills in Chinese while learning about culture through themes like everyday life in China, the Silk Road, and traditions. You’ll focus on real-world language use, like conversations, travel, and shopping, and be placed in a class that matches your level.
14. Cornell SCE Pre-College Summer/Winter Online Program – Introduction to Cognitive Science
Location: Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; online courses are also available
Cost: Tuition is $1,840 per credit, and while Cornell tuition doesn’t cover textbooks, some online courses may have additional nonrefundable fees for required materials or supplies.
Application Deadline: Summer session: Deadlines vary by session, with different due dates in May and June depending on the course you select; Winter session: December 2
Dates: Summer session: There are several 3-week sessions and one 6-week session available between June 2 and August 1; Winter session: January 2 – January 18 (3-week session)
Eligibility: Rising or current high school juniors and seniors, aged 15 to 19
Cornell University’s School of Continuing Education offers online pre-college courses for high school students to get a jumpstart on college. With over 100 undergraduate courses to choose from in subjects like linguistics, history, arts, engineering, anthropology, business, and health, you’ll learn through Cornell’s Canvas platform.
If you’re interested in linguistics-based research, the Introduction to Cognitive Science course explores how the mind works by integrating linguistics, psychology, computer science, neuroscience, and philosophy. You’ll dive into topics like language, visual perception, learning, attention, memory, problem solving, and consciousness.
15. University of Virginia Summer Language Institute (SLI)
Location: Offered virtually or in person at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
Cost: 6 or 4 credits (half program): $2,820. 12 or 8 credits (full program): $5,640. Institute fee: $60. Comprehensive fee: $475 for Virginia residents, $535 for non-residents.
Application Deadline: March 28; admissions decisions are made on a rolling basis
Dates: June 16 – August 8
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors
The University of Virginia’s Summer Language Institute offers eight-week intensive courses in Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Latin, Russian, and Spanish. Classes are conducted five days a week for up to 7.5 hours a day and cover all language skills such as writing, speaking, listening, and reading.
You will receive tutoring four days a week and practice with native speakers through community events like cooking competitions, cultural presentations, and guest lectures. Most activities are in person, and cultural programming includes interactive exercises. In two months, you will earn 12 credits (equal to two years of study) in French, German, Latin, Russian, or Spanish, or 8 credits (one year) in Arabic or Chinese.
Image source – University of Pennsylvania