If you’re a high schooler in Texas interested in medicine, consider a summer program in the state!
A summer program can be a valuable way to build foundational skills and gain early exposure to the healthcare field without having to travel to another city or state! These programs can help develop hands-on clinical skills, laboratory techniques, data analysis and research methods, anatomical knowledge, and technical skills required to become a medical professional.
Medical summer programs for high school students in Texas can also provide networking and mentorship opportunities, enhance college applications, and give you a competitive edge when starting your undergraduate pre-med studies. In this blog, we’ve highlighted 15 medical summer programs for high school students in Texas designed to challenge and engage students aspiring to pursue a future in medicine or healthcare.
1. Horizon Academic Research Program
Location: Virtual
Cost: $5,950 (financial aid available)
Program dates: Summer seminar – June 24 – September 2 | Fall seminar – October 23 – February 19 | Lab dates are flexible, but you must apply 4 weeks in advance.
Application date: May 21 for the summer cohort, and September 25 for the fall cohort
Eligibility: High school students with good academic standing (>3.67/4.0 GPA) can apply. Only a couple of tracks require formal prerequisites, more details of which can be found here.
Horizon offers trimester-long research programs for high school students across subject areas such as data science, machine learning, political theory, biology, chemistry, neuroscience, psychology, and more! It is one of the very few research programs for high school students that offers a choice between quantitative and qualitative research!
Once you select a particular subject track and type of research you’ll be paired with a professor or Ph.D. scholar (from a top university) who will mentor you throughout your research journey. You’ll work to create a 20-page, university-level research paper that you can send to prestigious journals for publication as a high school student.
This program is a solid opportunity for you to pursue a research program in highly specialized fields, under the guidance of a top scholar. The program also provides a letter of recommendation for each student, as well as detailed project feedback that you can use to work on future projects and on college applications. Apply here!
2. Ladder Internships’ Medicine Track
Location: Remote! You can work from anywhere in the world.
Cost: Starting at $2,490 (financial aid available)
Program dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year, including Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.
Application deadline: Deadlines vary depending on the cohort. Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September) and Winter (November).
Eligibility: Students who can work for 10-20 hours/week, for 8-12 weeks. Open to high school students, undergraduates, and gap year students!
Ladder Internships is a remote, eight-week program where you can gain hands-on experience by working directly with a fast-growing start-up. These companies span diverse fields such as medicine, technology, artificial intelligence, healthcare, marketing, and more. As an intern, you’ll be paired with a manager from the company and guided by a Ladder Coach to complete meaningful projects that contribute to the business. The focus is on real-world work, so you’ll be expected to apply critical thinking, collaborate effectively, and present your outcomes to company stakeholders. This opportunity is designed for high school students eager to explore professional fields and build tangible skills outside the classroom. Here is the application form.
3. Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine’s Summer Enrichment Program (SEP)
Location: Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX
Cost: Free
Program dates: June 23-28
Application deadline: February 14 – April 14
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors from West Texas are eligible.
This program is a solid opportunity for students in West Texas interested in medicine. You’ll engage in hands-on activities like suturing, administering injections, and diagnosing simulated patients, providing an immersive experience in medical procedures and healthcare. You’ll also explore various medical specialties, learn about different career paths from healthcare professionals, and attend workshops on critical topics like medical ethics, communication, and healthcare policy in this medical summer program for high school students in Texas.
4. Houston Methodist’s Summer Internship Program for High Schoolers
Location: Houston Methodist Hospital, Texas Medical Center, Houston, TX
Cost: Free
Program dates: June 9 – August 1
Application deadline: December 2 – January 31
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors with a minimum 3.5 GPA who will be at least 16 years old by the start of the program are eligible to apply.
This program is designed to engage academically outstanding high schoolers in translational research in a real-world academic environment. During this internship, you’ll work closely with undergraduate research interns and faculty, gaining practical experience in a fast-paced medical research setting. Your summer project will be tailored to your mentor’s area of expertise, allowing you to learn important laboratory techniques and contribute to meaningful research. The medical summer program for high school students in Texas also includes career development sessions and a symposium where you can present your findings at the end of the program. You will also participate in a welcome reception, sporting events, seminars, and didactic lectures, ensuring personal and professional growth.
5. UT Austin’s High School Research Academy (HSRA)
Location: University of Texas, Austin campus, TX
Cost: $4,000 (limited need-based scholarships are available)
Program dates: June 9 – July 16
Application deadline: March 23
Eligibility: Rising high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors (for the upcoming academic year) who are 15 years or older by June 1 and are Texas residents can apply.
At UT Austin’s High School Research Academy, you’ll dive into the world of scientific research with a five-week practical program that takes place directly on the university campus. This program immerses you in active research within cutting-edge fields like genetics, biochemistry, and neuroscience, where you’ll get to work on live projects in the active College of Natural Sciences laboratories alongside undergraduate researchers and experienced faculty. You’ll develop practical lab skills, learn research methodologies, and experience the collaborative nature of scientific work. The program concludes with a research symposium where you’ll present your findings in a professional format and you earn a stipend. There is also a course credit to be earned in this program subject to graded reflection assignments, readings and research-related assignments.
6. Carl B. & Florence E. King Foundation High School Summer Program in Biomedical Sciences
Location: MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Cost: Free
Program dates: June 2 – August 8
Application deadline: November 18 – January 15
Eligibility: Current high school seniors over 18 years of age or older by program start currently enrolled in a Texas public, private or charter high school or a Texas home school are eligible to apply.
This highly selective 10-week program offers 12 students hands-on experience in research projects at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. You will participate in a project in one of the biomedical disciplines under the guidance of an MD Anderson’s full-time faculty member, and work five days a week in the center’s laboratories. Here, you will gain the practical skills of a biomedical researcher and gain an in-depth understanding of the discipline. You will also be part of seminars by faculty members covering several research-based topics. This program also includes abstract, poster, and elevator speech competitions. You will present your experiences at the end of the program and receive a stipend of $6,800.
7. Stanford Center for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine and Imaging Summer Research Internship
Location: Virtual
Cost: $840 + $40 application fee (Financial aid available)
Program dates: June 16-27
Application deadline: December 9 – February 28
Eligibility: High school students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents and are 14 years or older by the start of the program are eligible.
In this two-week program, you’ll get a clearer understanding of the role of artificial intelligence in medicine through lectures and working on real-world problems in small teams under the guidance of Stanford researchers. You will work on activities such as medical data analysis, machine learning model training, developing ML models to detect medical tubes and analyze chest X-rays, image recognition, etc. The program introduces you to the basics and shows how they come together in clinical settings, from imaging to decision-making. You will receive a Certificate of Completion at the end of the program and may qualify for an extended research opportunity.
8. The BEAT Academy at UT Health San Antonio
Location: UT Health Lozano Long campus, San Antonio, TX
Cost: $1000
Program dates: July 14-18
Application deadline: June 20
Eligibility: 9th-12th graders with a GPA of 3.0 or higher who are nominated by their school can apply.
The academy provides an experience where you’ll explore topics like anatomy, physiology, medicine, aging neurodegeneration, and molecular biology through interactive seminars and practical activities at the UT Health Science Center. You’ll get a behind-the-scenes tour of the human anatomy lab, work with simulated patients, and conduct your own biomolecular experiments. You will also have a chance to explore your career aspirations and get guidance on pursuing a future in healthcare.
9. Baylor College of Medicine’s Saturday Morning Science (SMS) Summer Research Program
Location: Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
Cost: Free
Program dates: June 11 – August 4
Application deadline: April 18
Eligibility: High school students who are 18 years of age by June 1 and have a U.S. Social Security card or the U.S. Permanent Resident card can apply.
In this program, you’ll work closely with a BCM researcher on a project of real-world impact, gaining hands-on exposure in a lab setting. You’ll also get to participate in weekly “Lunch and Learn” sessions, where you’ll get insights into various research and career development aspects and other research meetings and special seminars related to your research. At the end of this program, you’ll have the chance to present your findings at the SMS Summer Research Symposium and showcase your work with faculty and other budding researchers. There is a guaranteed internship opportunity with his program where you will earn a taxable stipend equal to the minimum wage in Texas.
10. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center DACCPM Summer Research Program
Location: MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Cost: Free
Program dates: June 2 – August 8
Application deadline: November 18 – January 20
Eligibility: High school seniors who are 18 years or older, in good academic standing, or graduating are eligible to apply.
In this 10-week medical summer program for high school students in Texas, you’ll work alongside a faculty mentor on a research project, engaging with topics like chemotherapy-induced pain, perioperative immune function, cancer recurrence, etc. Before the research begins, you’ll participate in a Cancer Biology boot camp, helping you familiarize yourself with key concepts from Robert Weinberg’s book ‘The Biology of Cancer.’ As you progress, you’ll learn lab techniques, conduct literature reviews, and attend professional development sessions, all while preparing to present your research findings at a symposium to the broader MD Anderson community.
11. Johns Hopkins Internship in Brain Sciences (JHIBS)
Location: Remote
Cost: Free
Program dates: June – August
Application deadline: December 1 – March 1
Eligibility: Current high school juniors and seniors interested in research and clinical careers in behavioral or brain health-related sciences are eligible to apply.
The Johns Hopkins Internship in Brain Sciences (JHIBS) offers a structured virtual experience in neuroscience. The internship will take you through a research-focused curriculum that includes lab technique demonstrations, educational talks, and mentorship from professionals in the neurological sciences. It is designed to help you understand what it means to work in brain research or clinical neuroscience via learning basic laboratory techniques and experiments, while also building skills through professional development sessions. At the end of the program, you’ll receive a certificate recognizing your participation and progress.
12. UT Health San Antonio Voelcker Biomedical Research Academy (VBRA)
Location: San Antonio, TX
Cost: Free
Program dates: 7 weeks during the summer for 3 years. Tentative dates – June 11 – July 24
Application deadline: February 7 – March 7
Eligibility: Rising high school sophomores who are at least 15 years of age by June 15 and meet the grade criteria (90% or above in Math, Science and English; 85% if in Pre-AP, AP or Dual Credit courses) can apply.
This program offers an opportunity to work directly in a research lab alongside professional scientists as part of an overall three-year commitment. In the first year, you’ll be part of a 7-week hands-on summer program that introduces research methods and biomedical science through direct work with faculty at UT Health San Antonio. The program also includes seminars, scientific writing practice, and a chance to present your findings through poster presentations and brief research talks. You will conduct faculty-mentored research in years two and three, deepening the understanding of your interest area and building real experience in a lab environment throughout the school year. This program is selective and selects only 20 students. First-year students receive a Voelcker Student Award for participation.
13. Rice University’s Digital Health Young Scholars
Location: Multiple locations in Houston, TX
Cost: Free
Program dates: June 9-26
Application deadline: April 4
Eligibility: Current 10th and 11th-grade students residing in Houston can apply.
This program offers an exciting three-week summer opportunity for students interested in exploring the intersection of engineering and healthcare. Throughout this program, you’ll work with digital circuitry, computer science, and engineering tools, using devices like pulse oximeters and accelerometers to understand how these technologies are applied in healthcare settings. Under the guidance of university staff and graduate students at the PATHS-UP Engineering Research Center, you’ll build your own device, such as a smart watch, and learn about the principles behind digital design and its relevance to medical advancements. In addition to hands-on experience, you’ll gain exposure to scientific writing, programming, and valuable networking opportunities with peers and professionals in digital health.
14. Dell Medical School Health Sciences Summer Camps
Location: University of Texas, Austin campus, TX
Cost: $500 (June Camp)
Program dates: June Camp: June 16-20 | Residential Camp: July 7-11
Application deadline: April 14
Eligibility: Current 9th to 11th-grade students from any district and residency can apply.
Dell Medical School offers two-day camps for high school students, to help them to enhance their learning about various health sciences. You will engage in hands-on activities such as administering IVs, performing intubations, taking vital signs, drawing blood, etc., in the same simulation labs where medical and nursing students train. The program offers the chance to earn a first aid or CPR/automated external defibrillator certification. You will also interact with health professionals from various medical fields, gain insight from school counselors, and gain knowledge about professions in healthcare. Recreational activities are also part of this camp in the Texas Union and Gregory Gym areas.
15. Columbia University: Pre-College Programs (Neuroscience)
Location: Virtual
Cost: $3,965 per session + $80 application fee + non-refundable $1,000 deposit (limited need-based scholarships are available)
Program dates: Summer A: July 7-18 | Summer B: July 21-August 1 | Summer C: August 11-15
Application deadline: March (varies by program)
Eligibility: Domestic and international students entering or currently enrolled in grades 9-12 are eligible to apply.
Columbia University’s Neuroscience Pre-college Program offers a deep dive into neuroscience. It covers topics such as Introduction to Neuroscience, Neuroscience of Psychiatric Disorders, Translating Neuroscience Research Methods into Biomedical Careers, and the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory. Throughout the 2-week virtual program, you’ll engage with advanced topics in neuroscience, from neuroimaging to computational modeling, and get practical experience by analyzing neuroimaging data and conducting real-time virtual experiments. You’ll explore cutting-edge research methods such as electrophysiological techniques and neuropharmacology, while learning about the ethical considerations of neuroscience research.
Image source – Columbia University