If you’re a high school student interested in anthropology, online programs can help you explore the field and build practical skills. You’ll learn about human evolution, archaeology, linguistics, and social structures while developing research and analytical skills.
These programs include training in data analysis, ethnographic research, and historical interpretation, which are useful in anthropology and related fields. The skills you gain can be applied to journalism, policy-making, global development, and technology careers, where understanding human behavior is essential.
To get started, we’ve compiled a list of 8 online anthropology programs for high school students!
8 Online Anthropology Programs for High School Students
1. UPenn’s Precollege Online Program: Human Origins, Evolution and Diversity
Cost: $8,248
Eligibility: High school students in grades 10 and 11 who have a minimum GPA of 3.5
Application deadline: March 30
Program dates: May 27–July 2
The University of Pennsylvania’s Pre-College Programs offer high school students a chance to take university-level courses. If you’re interested in anthropology, you can enroll in the Pre-College Online Program and take the course Human Origins, Evolution, and Diversity to explore the field. This course covers key topics like human evolution, genetics, heredity, and the development of the human species.
You’ll examine fossil records, material culture, and the history of scientific racism in physical anthropology. The program also includes hands-on exercises where you’ll collect and analyze behavioral, genetic, and morphological data on humans and nonhuman primates. These skills are useful for research, journalism, global development, and other fields that require analytical and critical thinking.
2. American Anthropological Association’s Virtual High School Internship
Cost/Stipend: Free
Eligibility: All high school students can apply!
Application deadline: March 31
Program dates: June 23–July 18
The American Anthropological Association offers a four-week virtual internship for high school students interested in anthropology and science communication. As an intern, you’ll engage with anthropological research and learn how to present complex ideas to younger students in grades 6 to 12.
You’ll review scholarly research articles and work with other interns and the programming team to adapt this information into summaries, infographics, and videos. This experience helps you explore anthropology while also developing skills in research, communication, and content creation. You can check out what former interns worked on here.
3. UCLA’s Summer Online: Anthropology Courses
Cost: $2,001 (for a 4-unit course)–$4,311 (for a 10-unit course) | Financial aid is offered to students in California
Eligibility: Students who are at least 15 years old
Application deadline: Registration opens on February 15. The deadline to add a course varies on the session you choose.
Program dates: Multiple 3- to 10-week sessions are scheduled each year. Check the dates here.
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) offers various learning opportunities throughout the year, including the Summer Online program, where high school students can take university-level courses. You can explore anthropology by enrolling in one of UCLA’s online courses.
The Human Evolution course covers evolutionary processes and the history of the human species through lectures and research. The Culture and Society course examines cultural and social structures worldwide, exploring how human institutions form and function. This course also includes some fieldwork, allowing you to apply concepts in real-world settings. These courses help you build research, analytical, and critical thinking skills, which are useful in anthropology, sociology, journalism, and policy-making.
4. Horizon Academic Research Program (HARP)
Cost: This is a paid research opportunity. You can raise an interest form here to know the exact cost | Financial aid is available.
Eligibility: High schoolers who have maintained a GPA of at least 3.67 on a 4.0 scale | A couple of tracks have a few formal prerequisites, which are listed on the application info page here.
Application Deadline: Spring: February 16; Summer: February 16 (early), March 23 (priority), April 20 (regular-I), May 18 (regular-II)!
Program dates: The spring cohort runs for 15 weeks, starting on March 3. The summer cohort lasts 10 weeks, beginning on June 16, while Summer Session II starts on July 14. The fall cohort, like spring, also runs for 15 weeks.
Horizon offers trimester-long research programs for high school students across subject areas such as data science, machine learning, political theory, biology, and more! It is one of the few research programs for high school students that offers the option to engage in either quantitative or qualitative research.
Once your research focus is set, you’ll be paired with a mentor—typically a professor or PhD scholar from a recognized university—who will guide you through the process. You’ll work on a 20- to 25-page research paper, which you can submit to academic journals for potential publication.
This experience helps you develop critical thinking, research methodology, and academic writing skills, which are valuable in fields like anthropology, sociology, policy-making, journalism, and global development. At the end of the program, you’ll receive project feedback and a letter of recommendation. Apply here!
5. Georgetown University Summer College: Anthropology Courses
Cost: Starts at $6,621, which is the tuition for a single three-credit course | Financial aid is available.
Eligibility: High school students in grades 10–12 with at least a 3.0 GPA
Application deadline: April 15
Program dates: June 2–July 25
Georgetown University offers two online eight-week anthropology courses for high school students through its Summer College program. You can take up to six credits per session, meaning you can choose one or both of these three-credit courses. The Anth Perspectives on Climate Change course explores anthropological perspectives on climate change, including ethnocentric biases, power imbalances between the Global North and South, and traditional ecological knowledge about science.
The Cyborg: Human-Machine Interface course examines trends in AI, algorithmic bias, and the ethics of human-technology interaction, helping you understand how technology shapes human experience.
6. Pre-College @ UMass Amherst: Primate Evolution, Ecology and Conservation Course
Cost: $1,925 program fees + $45 application fee | Scholarships are available.
Eligibility: Rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors as well as graduating seniors
Application deadline: May 1
Program dates: June 30–July 11
University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Online Pre-College Programs offer virtual courses in multiple subjects, including anthropology. The Primate Evolution, Ecology, and Conservation course introduces key topics in primatology, such as primate evolution, behavior, ecology, and conservation.
You will engage in lectures, discussions, and electronic lab (e-lab) sessions while working on assignments that build research and analytical skills. The program includes a final project where you can choose to create a presentation, a conference-style poster, or a short research paper on a primate species, covering its behavior, ecology, and conservation status.
7. Lumiere Research Scholar Program: Sociology & Anthropology Track
Cost: $2,990–$8,900, depending on the format (individual research, premium research, etc.) you choose | Financial aid is available for eligible applicants.
Eligibility: High school students
Application Deadline: Varying deadlines based on cohort. The Spring Cohort application deadline is February 9!
Program Dates: Summer: June – August, fall: September – December, winter: December – February, spring: March – June.
The Lumiere Research Scholar Program is a research opportunity for high school students to work one-on-one with a Ph.D. mentor on an independent research project. Over 12 weeks, you will develop a research paper in a subject of your choice, including anthropology, psychology, physics, economics, data science, computer science, engineering, chemistry, and international relations. The program helps you build skills in research design, data analysis, academic writing, and critical thinking.
The program pairs you with a full-time researcher to develop your independent research project, in any discipline of your choice. Last year over 4000 students applied to 500 slots in the research program! You can find the application form here.
8. Cornell’s Precollege Summer Online: Cultural Diversity and Contemporary Issues Course
Cost: $5,520 for the three-credit Anthropology course ($1,840 per credit) + additional fees may be charged | Financial aid is offered to eligible applicants.
Eligibility: Rising and current high school juniors and seniors who are between 15 and 19 years old
Application deadline: June 16 | The applications open on February 6
Program dates: July 14–August 1
Cornell University’s Pre-College Summer Online Program offers high school students a chance to explore university-level courses. The Cultural Diversity and Contemporary Issues course examines cultural diversity through topics like race, ethnicity, sexuality, political correctness, nativism, religion, and war.
You will analyze films, videos, and selected readings to understand how cultures are portrayed and reflect on personal biases. The course includes live sessions and asynchronous lectures, providing flexibility in learning. This experience can help you develop an anthropological perspective on cultural differences and contemporary social issues.
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