There are two ways to get research experience as a high school student: apply to a formal program, or cold email a professor directly. This guide covers both.
The programs below are well-established, most are free or paid, and all accept high school students. But keep in mind: formal programs are extremely competitive (many have 3-5% acceptance rates). Cold emailing professors directly is often more effective and always available.
Established Research Programs
Research Science Institute (RSI)
MIT / Center for Excellence in Education
Grades: Rising seniors
Timing: June–August (6 weeks)
One of the most prestigious and competitive programs. Fully funded. Students conduct original research with MIT and Harvard mentors. ~100 students selected from ~3,000+ applicants.
Official website →SIMR (Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program)
Stanford University
Grades: Rising juniors and seniors
Timing: June–August (8 weeks)
Biomedical research internship embedded in Stanford labs. Students work alongside faculty and graduate students. Competitive — applicants must be 16+ by program start. No stipend but valuable mentorship.
Official website →Garcia Summer Scholars
Stony Brook University
Grades: Rising juniors and seniors (16+)
Timing: Late June–August (7 weeks)
Materials science and nanotechnology focus. Students work on polymer research and can continue projects into the school year. Strong track record at Regeneron STS. Note: there is a ~$3,700 lab usage fee plus optional room and board.
Official website →SSTP (Summer Science Training Program)
University of Florida
Grades: Rising seniors only
Timing: June–July (7 weeks)
One of the oldest STEM summer programs. Students work with UF faculty on research projects. Tuition-based (~$5,200) but financial aid may be available.
Official website →MITES Semester (formerly MOSTEC)
MIT
Grades: Rising seniors
Timing: June–December (6 months)
Free online program for underrepresented students. Includes a STEM immersion phase in summer followed by college/career prep through fall.
Official website →NIH Summer Internship Program (SIP)
National Institutes of Health
Grades: Graduating seniors (must turn 18 by Sept 30)
Timing: June–August (8 weeks)
Paid internship at NIH in Bethesda, MD. Students work directly with NIH investigators. Extremely competitive. Note: this is for students who have graduated high school, not rising juniors.
Official website →Simons Summer Research Program
Stony Brook University
Grades: Rising seniors
Timing: Late June–early August (~6 weeks)
Students work one-on-one with Stony Brook faculty. Stipend provided at closing symposium. Wide range of STEM fields. Note: students are responsible for housing costs (~$2,450) and dining. Strong reputation for science fair results.
Official website →Jackson Laboratory Summer Student Program
Jackson Laboratory (Bar Harbor, ME)
Grades: Graduating seniors (18+) and undergrads
Timing: June–August (10 weeks)
$7,500 stipend + room and board + travel. Genomics and genetics focus. Students conduct independent projects. One of the best-funded programs for aspiring biomedical researchers.
Official website →Regeneron Science Talent Search
Society for Science
Grades: Seniors
Timing: Submissions due November
Not a program — a competition. Submit a research paper you have already completed. Top 40 finalists travel to D.C. and compete for up to $250,000. Doing a cold-email research project and entering STS is a common path.
Official website →ISEF (International Science and Engineering Fair)
Society for Science
Grades: 9th–12th grade
Timing: Regional fairs: fall–spring; ISEF finals: May
The world's largest pre-college STEM competition. You qualify through regional and state science fairs. Having a real lab-based research project (from cold emailing) is one of the strongest ways to compete.
Official website →Research Training Program (RTP)
Seattle Children's Research Institute
Grades: Rising juniors and seniors
Timing: July–August (4 weeks)
Biomedical research focus. Students are paired with mentors at Seattle Children's. $2,000 stipend. Weekday daytime program (not residential). Pacific Northwest students may have an advantage.
Official website →BRAINYAC
Columbia University / Zuckerman Institute
Grades: Rising juniors and seniors (NYC partner programs)
Timing: July–August (7 weeks)
Neuroscience-focused summer program at Columbia. Stipend provided. Applicants must be enrolled in one of five specific NYC partner programs (S-PREP, Lang Youth Medical, Double Discovery Center, Columbia Secondary School, or BioBus).
Official website →Beyond Formal Programs: Cold Emailing
The programs above accept a few dozen to a few hundred students each. But there are tens of thousands of professors running labs at universities across the country, many of whom would happily mentor a motivated high school student — they just do not have a formal program to apply to.
That is where cold emailing comes in. A well-written, specific email to a professor whose research you find genuinely interesting can yield a 10-20% response rate. Send 10-15 of those, and you are very likely to land a position.
Read our complete guide to cold emailing professors to learn how.
How to Decide: Formal Program vs. Cold Email
| Formal programs | Cold emailing | |
|---|---|---|
| Acceptance rate | 3-10% | 10-20% response rate |
| Cost | Free (competitive) to $5,000+ | Free |
| Timeline | Fixed deadlines, usually Dec–Mar | Year-round |
| Structure | Organized curriculum and mentorship | You and the professor figure it out |
| Best for | Students who want a structured intro | Students who know what field they want |
The best strategy is to do both: apply to 3-5 formal programs and cold email 10-15 professors. That way you have multiple paths to a research position.
Finding More Programs
This list is not exhaustive. New programs launch every year, and many universities have local programs that never make it onto national lists. To find programs that match your specific interests, location, and grade level:
- Use On Helix AI's Discover page — our database is updated daily with 500+ programs filtered by your profile.
- Search “[university name] high school research program” for schools near you.
- Ask your school counselor — they often know about local opportunities that are not widely advertised.
- Check department websites directly. Many programs are buried 3 clicks deep on a university site and never show up in Google.