If you are a high school student who is serious about STEM, structured programs can help you explore your chosen field in depth. These programs typically go beyond the standard school curriculum, immersing you in college-level coursework, research opportunities, and professional settings to help you see how STEM is studied and practiced in real settings. Most programs connect with your professors and/or STEM professionals, letting you form meaningful connections and learn about STEM pathways.
If you are focused on building a competitive profile for college admissions, choosing a prestigious STEM program is a solid way to add value to your application.
What do prestigious STEM programs for high schoolers offer?
Prestigious programs are selective, rigorous learning experiences hosted by reputable universities, organizations, and government agencies. These programs typically accept a small cohort of motivated high schoolers and offer hands-on exposure to STEM. You may join researchers at MIT, Stanford, or federal labs, work on complex projects, and present your work to a panel of active STEM professionals and leaders. Depending on where you land, you may spend your summer debugging a bioinformatics pipeline, running statistical models in R, designing an experiment, or conducting original research. You will typically leave with a final product, which can be a research poster, a written paper, a conference-style presentation, or a prototype, which you can use as proof of your skills and interests.
To help you find the right options, here we have put together a list of 15 prestigious STEM programs for high school students.
If you are looking for more accessible opportunities, check out our list of free STEM programs.
15 Prestigious STEM Programs for High School Students
1. Research Science Institute (RSI) @ MIT
Location: MIT Campus, Cambridge, MA
Cost: $75 application fee
Acceptance rate/cohort size: ~2.5% acceptance rate; 100 students/year
Dates: Six weeks during the summer
Application deadline: Early to mid-December
Eligibility: Current high school juniors who are at least 16 by July 1 of the program year; open to U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and international students from participating countries.
RSI is among the most prestigious high school programs in the country, with an acceptance rate of less than 2.5% among applicants. You will start with a week of intensive STEM coursework taught by professors, and move on to five weeks of individual research under a faculty or scientist mentor. You will read current literature, develop and execute a research plan, and learn how to present your findings clearly. During the final week, you will prepare a written paper and deliver a conference-style oral presentation. Mentors and projects are assigned based on your stated interests and background. Field trips to nearby tech and science facilities are part of the experience.
2. NIST Summer High School Internship Program (SHIP)
Location: NIST campuses in Boulder, CO, and Gaithersburg, MD
Cost: Free; no stipend
Acceptance rate: 4% for Boulder, CO applicants | 10.6% for Gaithersburg, MD applicants
Dates: June 22 – August 7
Application deadline: January 26
Eligibility: U.S. citizens who are current high school juniors and seniors with a minimum 3.0 GPA; applicants must live within 50 miles of either the Gaithersburg, MD, or Boulder, CO NIST campus.
SHIP places students in research labs to work with scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, a non-regulatory federal agency focused on measurement science. You will work on a research project under the mentorship of a NIST scientist, applying techniques and methods relevant to the assigned lab’s work. Placements span areas such as physics, chemistry, environmental science, materials science, engineering, cybersecurity, and manufacturing. You will learn how to collect and assess data, work with specialized measurement instruments, and explore professional laboratory environments. At the end of SHIP, you will present your research work in the form of a poster.
3. Stanford University Mathematics Camp (SUMaC)
Location: Online or Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Cost: Online: $3,750 | Residential: $8,950; financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Online: 64 students/year | Residential: 40 students/year
Dates: Online: June 15 – July 3; Session 2: July 6 – 24 | Residential: June 21 – July 17
Application deadline: February 2
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors who have experience writing and reading mathematical proofs and a strong understanding of high school geometry and algebra
SUMac is a prestigious program designed for students interested in advanced mathematics. At SUMaC, you will explore topics like abstract algebra and number theory through lectures, group problem-solving, and guided research. The program exposes you to ongoing areas of mathematical inquiry, the evolution of major mathematical theories, and applications across scientific fields. You will choose one of two structured courses: one focused on algebra and number theory, and the other track focused on algebraic topology, both of which link classical math to modern applications. The workload reflects college-level expectations, letting you prepare for future math academics.
4. Summer Academy for Math and Science (SAMS)
Location: Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA
Cost: Fully funded
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; ~60 – 80 students each year
Dates: June 20 – August 1
Application deadline: February 1
Eligibility: Current high school juniors who are at least 16 years old by the program start date and are U.S. citizens or permanent residents; students from communities underrepresented in STEM are strongly encouraged to apply.
SAMS is Carnegie Mellon’s flagship pre-college STEM program that allows you to explore STEM coursework in a structure modeled after CMU’s freshman semester. You will spend six weeks engaging in math and science coursework, exploring the CMU campus, and working on a research project. You will complete quantitative and computational skill seminars, connect with CMU faculty, and attend weekly writing workshops focused specifically on college application preparation. You will also take a credit-bearing course called “Student to Scholar,” which further prepares you for college, and showcase your project at the end of SAMS. After the program ends, you will have access to virtual sessions on FAFSA, college prep, and budgeting.
5. Stony Brook University’s Simons Summer Research Program
Location: Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY
Cost/Stipend: No tuition, but $2,450 housing costs apply for residential students; a stipend is provided.
Acceptance rate: <5%
Dates: June 29 – August 7
Application deadline: February 5
Eligibility: High school juniors, ages 16 and up, who are U.S. citizens/permanent residents
The Simons Summer Research Program is an in-person STEM research program for high school students. It offers research opportunities spanning fields like engineering, physics, astronomy, math, geoscience, computer science, and chemistry. During the program, you will join a Stony Brook University research team and contribute to a project while learning how to use professional lab techniques and tools. You will also engage in weekly faculty talks to learn about various STEM fields and workshops to sharpen your research skills. At the end of the program, you will submit and present a research abstract and poster.
6. MITES Summer
Location: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA
Cost: Free
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: Late June – early August
Application deadline: February 2
Eligibility: High school juniors who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents
MITES Summer is a selective program that compresses a semester of college-level STEM into six weeks on MIT’s campus. You will enroll in five courses: one in math, one in life sciences, one in physics, a humanities course, and a project-based elective. Past electives have spanned areas like machine learning, genomics, electronics, engineering design, and architecture. During the six weeks, you will attend classes, engage in group activities and social events around the Greater Boston area, get college admissions guidance, attend a college fair, and tour MIT labs and local companies. You will also test your progress through midterms, finals, project work, and final presentations. At the end of the program, you will receive a written evaluation from your instructor.
7. Texas Tech’s Anson L. Clark Scholars Program
Location: Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX
Cost/Stipend: $25 application fee; $750 stipend
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 12 students/year
Dates: June 21 – August 6
Application deadline: February 16
Eligibility: Rising high school seniors and graduating seniors, ages 17 and up, with demonstrated academic ability
The Anson L. Clark Scholars Program is a selective program that places high schoolers in research-focused environments across a range of disciplines, including computer science, biology, chemistry, and engineering. You will work closely with Texas Tech faculty mentors on individual or small-group projects, which may involve lab experiments, data analysis, or theoretical research. The schedule also includes seminars, discussions, and workshops. Throughout the experience, you will engage in activities designed to refine your critical thinking, problem-solving, and scientific communication skills. At the end, you will submit a research report and even get to present your work.
8. NASA and UT Austin’s SEES Summer Intern Program
Location: Virtual and University of Texas Center for Space Research, Austin, TX
Cost: Free for virtual participants | $2,000 for on-site participants; full scholarships available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; ~10.75 acceptance rate in the past
Dates: On-site internship: July 5 – 18; Virtual project: June – July 21; Virtual Science Symposium: July 20 – 21
Application deadline: February 22
Eligibility: High school students in grades 10 and 11, ages 16 and up
The STEM Enhancement in Earth Science (SEES) Summer Intern Program is a summer internship hosted by the University of Texas at Austin in collaboration with NASA. During the program, you will connect with NASA scientists, engineers, and researchers to work on projects that use real mission data. Research areas may include astronomy, aerospace engineering, planetary science, remote sensing, Earth systems, and microgravity research. You will begin the program with online modules that cover concepts in Earth and space science, along with offering technical training in Python programming, if required for your research project. After this preparatory phase, you will work with mentors on research projects involving scientific data analysis, modeling, and visualization, and learn about the tools and methods used by researchers studying Earth and space systems. The program concludes with a virtual symposium, where you will present your research work to peers and NASA researchers.
9. Princeton University Laboratory Learning Program (LLP)
Location: Princeton University, Princeton, NJ
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: Five to six weeks in the summer
Application deadline: March 15
Eligibility: Students who are at least 16, are enrolled in a high school, are U.S. citizens, and are able to provide proof of local housing and transportation in New Jersey
Princeton’s LLP is a full-time, in-person summer research experience, where you will work with university faculty and research staff on active projects in the natural sciences and engineering. The project focus and tasks vary by placement, but typically involve data collection, documentation, laboratory activities, analysis, and scientific writing. You will follow the schedule set by the assigned department, complete safety training before starting experiments, and adhere to university policies. At the end of the summer program, you will produce and submit a two-page research summary describing your research work.
10. Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research (SIMR)
Location: Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Cost/Stipend: $50 application fee (waivers available) + limited number of need-based stipends
Acceptance rate/cohort size: ~50 students/year
Dates: June 8 – July 30
Application deadline: February 21
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors, ages 16 and up, who are U.S. citizens/permanent residents; preference given to Bay Area students.
SIMR is a selective program that places high school students in Stanford research labs for eight weeks to work on biomedical projects alongside faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate students. While applying, you will choose from eight research institutes, focusing on areas like immunology, neurobiology, cancer biology, bioengineering, stem cell and regenerative medicine, cardiovascular biology, bioinformatics, or genetics and genomics. You will spend the summer working with your mentor, who will be a Stanford graduate student or postdoc within a faculty-led lab, reviewing scientific literature, and learning how to present research findings. The program ends with a poster session on the last evening, where you will present your research to Stanford faculty, students, family members, and staff.
11. Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program (SEAP)
Location: 38+ Department of the Navy laboratories across the United States
Stipend: New participants: $4,000 stipend; returning participants: $4,500
Acceptance rate/cohort size: ~300 students/year
Dates: 8 to 10 weeks during the summer
Application deadline: November 1
Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, and seniors who are 16 or older; labs may have additional requirements
SEAP is one of the few programs that places you inside a real federal research environment rather than a university lab. You will join a naval research lab and contribute to active STEM research under the direct mentorship of Navy scientists and engineers for eight full weeks. Over 8 to 10 weeks, you will learn about careers in naval research and tech. The program also offers professional development opportunities, including the chance to shadow and connect with researchers and other professionals, and engage in seminars, meetings, and presentations.
12. MIT Beaver Works Summer Institute (BWSI)
Location: Online or MIT campus, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cost: Free for families with an income under $200,000; $2,400 otherwise
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: Four weeks during the summer (July – August) + prerequisite online course in the spring
Application deadline: Typically, the end of March
Eligibility: High school students currently in grades 9 – 11 residing and attending school in the United States
BWSI offers a series of college-level engineering and tech courses to high school students each summer. Before joining the summer institute, you will complete a free online prerequisite course in an area of choice, and based on your performance, qualify for summer courses. During the summer, you will choose from STEM courses, including autonomous drone racing, satellite design, AI and machine learning, cybersecurity, radar systems, and quantum software. Each course is project-based and collaborative, letting you work with peers and apply what you learn to building and testing real systems. The Autonomous Air Vehicle Racing track, for example, lets you develop control algorithms for DJI Tello drones and deploy them in a competition at the end of the four weeks.
13. Rockefeller University Summer Science Research Program (SSRP)
Location: Rockefeller University, New York, NY
Cost/Stipend: No cost; need-based stipends may be available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 32 students/year
Dates: June 22 – August 6
Application deadline: January 2
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors, ages 16 and up
The Rockefeller University Summer Science Research Program is a selective, lab-based summer program where high school students engage in STEM research alongside scientists. You will be placed in a laboratory and contribute to research projects, gaining experience with experimental design and data collection. Scientific trainees from Rockefeller, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and Weill Cornell Medicine offer guidance and mentorship throughout the program. The research questions are shaped partly by your own scientific interests. In week two, you will actively choose a specific question to investigate within your team’s broader topic. Weeks three through five are spent conducting the actual research, and the final two weeks are devoted to data analysis and building a poster for the end-of-program symposium. The experience also includes guest lectures, elective courses, workshops, and networking events throughout the summer.
14. JAX Summer Student Program
Location: The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, ME
Cost/Stipend: Free; $7,500 stipend
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; ~24 – 28 positions/year
Dates: May 30 – August 7
Application deadline: January 26
Eligibility: Graduating high school seniors, ages 18 and up, who are U.S. citizens/permanent residents
This 10-week internship at The Jackson Laboratory places you in active biomedical research labs to work on projects in biology or biomedicine. You will work with a scientist mentor, join an ongoing research program, and develop an independent project, gaining increasing autonomy over the summer. Research areas include neuroscience, genetics, genomics, cancer biology, immunology, bioinformatics, and computational biology. Throughout the program, you will attend professional development sessions covering topics such as principles of genetic testing, data visualization, science communication, and peer review. You will also attend journal club meetings and engage in informal interactions with JAX scientists across fields to explore the breadth of scientific careers. The program concludes with a formal presentation in which you will share your research findings with JAX researchers, peers, and family members.
15. COSMOS (California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science)
Location: UC Davis, UC Merced, UC Irvine, UCLA, UC Santa Cruz, or UC San Diego
Cost: $5,518 + $46 non-refundable application fee; financial assistance available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: ~160 – 200 students/campus
Dates: July 5 – 31/August 1
Application deadline: February 6
Eligibility: Students in grades 9 – 12 who are California residents
COSMOS is a pre-college STEM summer program that places students at the University of California campuses for four weeks of faculty-led coursework in advanced STEM subject areas or “clusters”. Each cluster focuses on a specific topic, with past offerings including computer science, bioengineering, physics, environmental science, robotics, pharmaceutical sciences, and math. You will work with university faculty and researchers, conduct experiments in university labs, work on research projects, and engage with material that goes beyond the standard high school curriculum. The academic experience is complemented by professional development, campus tours, and peer community building.
One more option—Horizon Academic Research Program
If you are looking for a competitive mentored STEM research program in an area of your choice, you can consider applying toHorizon’s Research Seminars and Labs! It is a selective virtual research program that allows you to engage in advanced research and come up with a research paper on a subject of your choosing. Horizon has worked with 1,000+ high school students so far, offering 600+ research specializations to choose from. You can find the application link here!
Image source: Rockefeller University