Getting involved in a research program is a great way for high school students to explore subjects they’re curious about in a more hands-on way. Spring research programs can be an ideal opportunity for students wanting to start research outside of the regular school year. You’ll work on real research questions, learn how studies are designed, and develop skills like data analysis, critical thinking, and academic writing. You’ll often work with mentors, such as professors, graduate students, or industry researchers, who can guide you through the research process and share what research looks like. These experiences can also help you discover your interests, boost your academic profile for college applications, and gain early exposure to how research works in fields such as science, social science, technology, and the humanities.
Why should you choose a program in the spring?
Spring research programs typically run from March to May and are designed to fit around regular school schedules. They are easier to balance with school commitments compared to intensive summer options. These programs usually have smaller class sizes, so you get more time to get feedback, ask questions, and receive guidance from your instructor. They also allow you to stay productive during the semester, explore research without a long commitment, and get early exposure before applying to summer programs.
To help you get started, here are 15 spring research programs for high school students. If you’re looking for remote options, you can find online spring break programs for high school students here. You can also check out free research programs for high school students here.
15 Spring Research Programs for High School Students
1. Alley Pond’s Field Biology Internships
Location: Alley Pond Environmental Center, Douglaston, NY
Cost: $150 participation fee; financial aid is available upon request
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: Spring: March 14 – May 2 (Saturdays)
Application Deadline: January 2 (Spring)
Eligibility: High school students who are 14 or older and can participate in outdoor activities for at least two hours
The Alley Pond Environmental Center Field Biology Internship is for high school students interested in hands-on field research and local ecosystems. You will engage in activities such as macroinvertebrate identification, coastal seining, testing soil and water quality, bird watching, biodiversity surveys, and native planting. Participants will explore Alley Pond Park along with other locations in Queens, gaining insights into the interactions between wildlife and urban environments. The program includes data collection and recording, learning to identify native plants and animals, and building skills in independent research and public speaking. The program will help you learn zoology by studying local animal ecology, behavior, and identification.
2. Research Scholars at UC San Diego
Location: Online, hybrid, or in person at the University of California, San Diego, CA
Cost: $1,450 – $4,900, depending on the chosen program and format
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: Programs run throughout the year, with sessions available in the summer, fall, winter, and spring
Application Deadline: Varies by session; March 13 (Spring Session). Applications are accepted on a rolling basis
Eligibility: Students in grades 9–12 who are at least 15 years old and have a minimum 3.0 GPA are eligible to apply. Application steps and requirements differ by program, so make sure to review each program page before applying
UC San Diego’s Research Scholars program, run by the Division of Extended Studies, provides high school students with hands-on experience on real research projects. You can choose from tracks like Bioengineering, Sports Medicine, Business Research, Engineering in Medicine, Life Sciences, and Marine Science. Through lab work, data analysis, and project-based learning, you’ll develop practical research and technical skills. For example, in the Life Science track, developed with the Boz Institute, you’ll take part in fieldwork and study key topics in molecular biology as well as learn bioinformatics, modern lab techniques, and statistics. You’ll develop core research skills such as reviewing scientific literature, formulating hypotheses, planning experiments, working with samples, analyzing data, and presenting results. The program wraps up with a poster presentation where you will share your research with local scientists and industry professionals.
3. Internship Opportunities at the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI)
Location: Remote or in person at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, Philadelphia, PA
Cost/Stipend: Free | Both paid internships with need-based stipends and part-time unpaid internship options are available
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: February – April (Spring Session)
Application Deadline: Deadlines vary by session
Eligibility: High school students authorized to work in the U.S.
The Foreign Policy Research Institute offers internships for high school students interested in international policy and law. You’ll be matched with a mentor who will help you develop your communication, critical thinking, collaboration, and time management skills. Internship roles are available in areas like research, special events, communications, and operations. If you choose a research role, you’ll work closely with an FPRI staff member and scholars focused on regions such as the Middle East, Africa, Eurasia, or Asia. Research internships may require experience in data analysis, advanced language skills, and prior study abroad or field research. You’ll also attend weekly seminars on foreign policy and career development with guest speakers and may contribute to a research paper for possible publication in FPRI’s Intern Corner.
4. Penn State Research Internships and Observation
Location: Penn State College of Medicine (PSCOM), Hershey, PA
Cost/Stipend: Free | Internships may be paid or unpaid
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Varies depending on the availability of mentors
Dates: Start and end dates are flexible and depend on the research mentor you choose during the application process
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions
Eligibility: High school students who are U.S. residents and are sponsored/supervised by a College of Medicine faculty member
Penn State College of Medicine offers high school students the opportunity to explore biomedical research through short shadowing experiences of one to two days or longer internships of several weeks to months. You will gain practical lab experience by shadowing a research mentor and observing their daily tasks, including lab procedures, experiments, data collection, and analysis. This will provide insight into how biomedical research is conducted in real-world settings. Your lab supervisor will manage your training and make sure everything is arranged, and you will only be able to start after completing all required training. To find potential supervisors, you can search the Penn State Research Database by topic or browse departments to learn about faculty research areas.
5. U.S. Department of the Treasury Headquarters Student Internship Program
Location: U.S. Treasury Department’s headquarters, Washington, DC
Cost/Stipend: Free | Unpaid
Acceptance Rate: Around 10–12%
Dates: January – May (Spring Session); you can find current opportunities at www.usajobs.gov
Application Deadline: Applications typically close in October for the Spring Session; the exact dates vary by opportunity
Eligibility: High school, undergraduate, and graduate students who are enrolled or accepted at an accredited school, are U.S. citizens, and are able to stay eligible for the full internship
The Treasury Department offers unpaid internships in Washington, D.C. for students interested in federal service, finance, or law. You’ll be placed in offices that focus on economics, finance, national security, international law, or departmental management. You’ll work with Treasury staff and other federal agencies, as well as develop research, communication, and management skills. You might research and summarize sources, analyze policy data, draft reports and policy papers, attend hearings, plan events, or support HR, budgeting, IT, or strategic planning. You’ll also gain strong research experience, such as studying economic issues, developing policy proposals, preparing economic updates, analyzing international financial trends, and supporting meetings with global financial institutions.
6. Internships at the American Psychological Association
Location: Remote
Cost/Stipend: Free | internships may be paid or offer academic credit (unpaid)
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: APA offers internships year-round, in the spring, summer, fall, and winter, with exact dates varying depending on the specific opportunity
Application Deadline: Varies based on the opportunity
Eligibility: To apply for an APA internship, you must be enrolled in school at least part-time, be authorized to work in the U.S. through E-Verify, and live in a state where APA is registered as an employer. If you’re under 18, you’ll also need to submit a D.C. Work Permit with your application
The American Psychological Association offers remote internships year-round for students interested in psychology. You will collaborate with a supervisor who assigns daily tasks, supports your learning goals, and explains how professional psychology workplaces operate. While these internships may include administrative or communications work, depending on placement, they are included because many roles involve research assistance, literature synthesis, and exposure to applied psychological research in professional settings. You might work in fields such as research, publishing, education, communications, policy, or operations, applying classroom knowledge to real projects. Additionally, you can participate in workshops, group projects, discussions, and office activities. Benefits include a free one-year APA student membership, access to PsycINFO, PsycNET, PsycCAREERS, and PsycARTICLES, and chances to network with senior psychologists.
7. Northwestern University’s Pre-College Online Program — Medical Research: Evaluating Claims and Facts
Location: Virtual
Cost: $1,895
Acceptance Rate: Not specified
Dates: Courses of different lengths are offered throughout the year, including in the spring
Application Deadline: Each session’s deadline is one week before it begins
Eligibility: Students aged 13 or older
Northwestern University’s Medical Research: Evaluating Claims and Facts online course equips students to critically read and assess medical research. It covers key research methods, their advantages and limitations, and emphasizes the importance of ethics in medical studies. Students will practice locating and analyzing journal articles and learn to identify when and how to question medical claims encountered in traditional and social media. You’ll get guidance from a mentor, hear directly from MDs and PhDs about how they approach research, and explore related college majors and career paths in medicine and science. The program ends with a capstone project in which you’ll investigate a medical claim, compare it to published research, and rewrite it to better reflect the methods, ethics, and findings. You’ll also receive a Certificate of Completion from Northwestern University.
8. Rising Researchers One-on-One Mentorship
Location: Virtual (live via Zoom)
Cost/Stipend: Free | Unpaid
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: No fixed cohort size; students work one-on-one with a research mentor
Dates: The program runs for 10 sessions, each lasting 75 to 90 minutes, with a flexible schedule set by you and your mentor
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions
Eligibility: Middle school, high school, and college students can apply; no prior experience is required
Rising Researchers allows students to work one-on-one with a research mentor in a fully customizable setup. Research areas include artificial intelligence, machine learning, cybersecurity, biochemistry, astronomy, astrophysics, medical bioinformatics, molecular biology, plant biology, microbial bioinformatics, and neuroscience. The program includes 10 live virtual Zoom sessions with your mentor, each lasting 75 to 90 minutes. You’ll work together to choose a research topic, complete a project, and prepare your results. You will also have your research published, present a poster, receive a certificate of completion, and get a unique URL for your indexed research report that makes your work easy to access, share, and cite.
9. Internship Program at CAIR-Chicago
Location: CAIR-Chicago, Chicago, IL
Cost/Stipend: Free | Unpaid
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Each department or division selects at least four team members for each session
Dates: January 1 – May 15 (Winter/Spring Session)
Application Deadline: December 1 (Winter/Spring Session); rolling admissions
Eligibility: High school students in grades 9–12
CAIR Chicago’s Internship Program gives you hands-on experience in grassroots advocacy while helping you explore different career paths. The program runs year-round and can count for academic credit or community service hours through partnerships with more than 120 colleges and universities, including Ivy League schools, HBCUs, UC and Texas system schools, and Carnegie Research I institutions. You’ll begin with orientation and training, help staff on real projects, and finish with a final evaluation and exit interview. You can focus on areas like Civil Rights Law, Communications, Government Affairs, Operations, or Outreach. Research work may include legislative research, policy analysis, investigations of civil rights cases, content creation, and community outreach. Strong performance may lead to an invitation to return for future sessions, subject to space availability.
10. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Voluntary Internship Program
Location: Various locations across the United States
Cost/Stipend: Free | Unpaid
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: Internships run for 10–12 weeks; January/February – April (Spring)
Application Deadline: December 8 – 19 (Spring)
Eligibility: Current high school, undergraduate, and graduate students who have U.S. citizenship and are 18 or older
The NARA Voluntary Internship Program allows students to work with the National Archives and Records Administration and gain hands-on experience with records that include major moments in American history. These materials are used in historical research, military service verification, and family history projects. You can explore areas like legal and legislative research, marketing, records management, social media, communications, digitization, archival processing, and editorial work. You’ll work 10 to 40 hours a week and complete at least 100 total hours, with at least half of your time spent on site. Your schedule is set with your supervisor. You’ll get strong research exposure through archival processing, museum exhibits, and heritage science projects. You’ll also help process new collections, support exhibit development, and work directly with historical documents, building hands-on experience in managing and researching national records.
11. OHSU School of Medicine Partnership for Scientific Inquiry (PSI)
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: Free | Unpaid
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: January 14 – May 27
Application Deadline: September 11 – December 1
Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, and seniors in the Portland metro area or elsewhere in Oregon
The Partnership for Scientific Inquiry program introduces students to how science works in practice while helping them build connections with researchers in their local community. This 16-week program is for local high school students interested in medicine or biomedical research. You’ll learn the scientific process and connect with research scientists at OHSU and other research institutes in Portland. The program ends with a summer internship for students who are 16 or older, where you’ll work directly with a research mentor. You’ll attend 2 hours of lectures and discussions every Wednesday on ongoing research at Oregon Health & Science University. With guidance from your mentor, you’ll learn research methods, present a published research paper in a journal club format, and develop your own research proposal. You’ll also present your work at a poster symposium at the end of the summer internship and complete a minimum of 250 total hours.
12. Columbia University’s Academic Year Weekend — Brainwaves to Breakthroughs: Translating Neuroscience Research Methods into Biomedical Careers
Location: Virtual
Cost: $2,815 per session for a single course ($2,700 for each additional course) + at least $50 for course materials + $80 application fee
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Maximum 22 students per session
Dates: January 23 – March 29 (Spring Session)
Application Deadline: Spring Session: October 9 (early deadline) | December 15 (general deadline)
Eligibility: Domestic and international students enrolled in grades 9–12
Columbia University’s Academic Year Weekend is a 10-week virtual program that allows students to take up to four online courses. You’ll learn from experienced instructors across subjects like academic research, marketing, social psychology, political science, law, economics, finance, and STEM. You can also take part in mentoring sessions, workshops, online clubs, and seminars. If you’re looking for research-based opportunities, you can enroll in the Brainwaves to Breakthroughs, a neuroscience course focused on research methods and biomedical careers. You’ll learn about neuroimaging, molecular neuroscience, electrophysiology, and computational modeling. The course breaks down complex neuroscience methods and outlines career paths in the field, including clinical work, research roles, and interdisciplinary options.
13. WashU Medicine Saturday Scholars Program
Location: Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: February 14 – March 14 (5 consecutive Saturdays)
Application Deadline: January 5 – February 6
Eligibility: High school juniors, seniors, or sophomores with a GPA of 3.0 or higher can apply. Freshmen may be considered if space is available
The Saturday Scholars Program gives high school students, especially those from St. Louis Public Schools and nearby county schools, the chance to study human anatomy through labs and lectures while connecting with Washington University medical students. The program runs for five consecutive Saturdays, with each three-and-a-half-hour session focused on a body system, such as the digestive, cardiovascular, respiratory, renal, or reproductive. Sessions include anatomy labs, medical student-led lectures, and clinical skills breakout activities. On the final Saturday, you will present your research project to teachers and family members, followed by an awards ceremony. While the program is instructional and lab-based rather than a full research apprenticeship, it introduces students to research methods, data interpretation, and scientific presentation within a medical context.
14. UCSD Extended Studies — Fundamentals of Neurosciences: Health and Disease
Location: Live online
Cost: $2,700
Acceptance Rate: Limited cohort size
Dates: January 17 – March 14 | April 4 – May 30
Application Deadline: Varies depending on the cohort; rolling admissions
Eligibility: High school students
UCSD Extended Studies offers the Fundamentals of Neurosciences: Health and Disease course for high school students, where you’ll explore how the human brain works and why it matters for health and disease. You’ll study neurobiology from the molecular and cellular level up to neural circuits involved in pain, empathy, emotion, and memory. The course also emphasizes on disorders like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and conditions affecting the peripheral nervous system. You’ll examine neuronal samples and brain anatomy, take part in discussions and critical analysis of major theories on neurodegenerative diseases, and watch a guided rodent brain dissection for comparison. As a part of the course, you will also develop your own hypotheses about possible causes of Alzheimer’s disease while building a strong foundation in neuroscience.
15. Miami-Dade State Attorney High School Volunteer Internship Program
Location: Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, Miami, FL
Cost/Stipend: Free | Unpaid
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not listed
Dates: Minimum three months
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions
Eligibility: High school students
The Miami-Dade State Attorney High School Volunteer Internship Program gives students an inside look at the criminal justice system and how the State Attorney’s Office works. Before starting, you’ll complete a screening and interview, followed by a brief training session to prepare you for the role. You will assist with various office tasks such as answering legal questions from the public, researching case law, attending bond hearings, contacting victims, interviewing defendants, taking sworn statements from victims and witnesses, conducting background checks, managing complaints, helping with protection orders, and reviewing evidence to determine if charges should be filed. You’ll also work with case files from start to finish, building strong research and analysis skills. Although not a traditional academic research program, this internship has a strong emphasis on legal research, evidence analysis, and case-based investigative work.
One more option – Horizon Academic Research Program
If you’re looking for a competitive mentored research program in subjects like data science, machine learning, political theory, biology, and chemistry, consider applying to Horizon’s Research Seminars and Labs! This is a selective virtual research program that lets you engage in advanced research and develop a research paper on a subject of your choosing. Horizon has worked with 1000+ high school students so far and offers 600+ research specializations for you to choose from. You can find the application link here!
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