10 Business Programs for Middle School Students
- Stephen Turban
- Sep 5
- 7 min read
For aspiring entrepreneurs currently in middle school, opting for a robust business program is a productive route to develop entrepreneurial skills, one’s knowledge of business economics, and overall leadership skills. In addition to gaining a theoretical understanding of business concepts, these programs also engage students in practical activities to expose them to real-life challenges faced by businesses.
Importantly, students who participate in business programs also have the opportunity to interact and network with reputable faculty and established corporate speakers, thereby gaining a head start in their business careers. Finally, since running a business is a team activity, the best programs also focus on team-building activities and enabling students to work collaboratively.
If you’re a middle school student who aspires to become a future business leader, here’s a list of 10 business programs you could consider applying to!
10 Business Programs for Middle School Students
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: Varies; financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: Three summer cohorts starting June 2, July 14, and August 25
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort; more details here
Eligibility: Students in grades 6–8
The Lumiere Junior Explorer Program is an intensive and highly selective research program providing middle school students the chance to undertake advanced research. The program provides 1-on-1 guidance from PhD mentors from top universities like Harvard, Columbia, and MIT. You are encouraged to pick your subject of interest, which can range anywhere from artificial intelligence to history. Over 8 weeks, this virtual program lets you dive deep into your chosen subject, build high-standard research skills, and complete your own project by the end. Beyond gaining specialized knowledge, you also build the confidence to think critically, innovate, and approach both theoretical and practical academic endeavors with independence.
For students aspiring to start or lead a business, the Business, Entrepreneurship & Strategy exploration track offers a great opportunity to dig deep into the practical world of businesses. In the last 2 weeks of the program, you will apply your learnings to curate a high-school-level project in the field through a Harvard Business School-style case study, a business plan to solve a prevalent problem, or something else that is out of the box.
Location: UC Berkeley, CA
Cost/Stipend: $3,640 for California residents, $4,160 for others
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: June 9 – June 20
Application Deadline: March 1
Eligibility: Middle school students
Berkeley Business Academy for Youth (B-BAY)’s Middle School Entrepreneurship Program is an established business program for middle school students. In the 2-week on-campus program, you engage in business courses focused on teamwork, entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, business principles, financial accounting, marketing, and computer skills. The program combines classroom sessions with hands-on activities, thereby giving you a glimpse of real-life business scenarios. Through individual and group projects, you will also learn essential skills like teamwork and division of labour. Finally, the B-BAY program also gives students the chance to meet prominent corporate guest speakers, enabling them to forge meaningful connections.
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: Varies, financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: June 9 – June 20 (Cohort I) | July 14 – July 25 (Cohort II)
Application Deadline: Varies according to the cohort, more details here.
Eligibility: Students in grades 6–8
Veritas AI’s two-week virtual summer program, AI Trailblazers, introduces middle school students to subjects in machine learning and artificial intelligence. In a total of 25 hours of instruction time, you will engross yourself in subjects like neural networks, image classification, deep learning, regression, and more. In the group project, you are encouraged to curate an AI-based project that aligns with their interests. For example, as an aspiring future business leader, you may choose to use data models and machine learning concepts to come up with an innovative AI-based solution to a prevalent problem! Past students have developed solutions to aid malaria detection and CIFAR-10 recognition.
Location: Anaheim, CA
Cost/Stipend: $195
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not Selective
Dates: June 29 – July 2
Application Deadline: Unspecified
Eligibility: Students in grades 6–12
The National Leadership Conference, organised by Future Business Leaders of America, is a 4-day event that invites middle school and high school students to participate in workshops, presentations and other competitive events. The scheduled activities are designed to test the knowledge and communication abilities of participants through written objective tests and other activities. While the competitions build pressure on the participants, they also open up avenues to connect with like-minded peers from the same age group. Workshops and leadership sessions are also included in the conference’s schedule.
Location: Berkeley, CA
Cost/Stipend: $2,898 for residential program, $1,498 for commuter program
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: Multiple week-long programs between July and August, more details here
Application Deadline: Unspecified
Eligibility: Students in grades 6–8
The Middle School Business and Entrepreneurship Program by Summer Springboard is a business program for students in grades 6 to 8. Over a period of one week, through 3-hour daily sessions, you will engage in activities to learn the fundamentals of managing a business. Students explore an array of study areas, from creating a business idea to presenting a business plan to potential investors in a Shark Tank-like setup. You will also undergo practical training and teamwork through hands-on activities, like forming your own company and making the right decisions to ensure its success. Planned excursions and workshops also form part of the program.
Location: UCSD Division of Extended Studies University, San Diego, CA
Cost/Stipend: $275
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not Selective
Dates: July 7 – July 11
Application Deadline: Unspecified, but early enrollment is advised
Eligibility: Students in grades 6–8
The Entrepreneurship For Young Innovators program, conducted at UC San Diego, is a week-long business program for middle school students. Through daily 3-hour sessions, you will study to refine your business ideas and curate reasonable business plans. In addition, students also engage in subjects like marketing, budgeting, financial planning, and more! You will also participate in activities like running your own mini-business, gaining practical exposure while you're at it! Importantly, the on-campus program’s curriculum also ensures that skills like creativity, teamwork, and critical thinking are inculcated among the students.
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: $700; financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly Selective
Dates: June 11 – August 13
Application Deadline: Early Bird Rate Deadline ends 10 days before the start of the session; participants registering afterwards will have to pay an additional fee of $25
Eligibility: Students in grades 7–11
Leadership Intensive, an online program by Northwestern University, caters to students studying in grades 7 to 11. Through 105-minute weekly sessions for a duration of 9 weeks, you will study the leadership traits of established personalities from different fields in order to set benchmarks for your future business career. With sessions with leaders working in government, the non-profit sector, and businesses, the program also gives students the chance to form valuable networks with model leaders and gain purposeful insights. Students also engage in individual coursework, team-building, and problem-solving activities steered by reputed instructors, thereby also learning the importance of collaborative work.
Location: Yale University, CT
Cost/Stipend: Tuition Fee: $8,800 | Enrollment Fee: $500
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not selective, but limited spots are available to students from each nationality
Dates: July 13 – August 3
Application Deadline: Unspecified
Eligibility: Students aged between 13–18 years
Yale University’s International Summer School is a multidisciplinary program that caters to middle school and high school students from different parts of the world. In a duration of 3 weeks, students go to the prestigious Yale University and pick one academic option and one elective option each of their choosing. In the former, you will get to choose from subjects like debate, business & entrepreneurship, youth leadership, creative writing, journalism, and other options! For their elective option, students pick one subject among outdoor leadership, film, art, and more! With multiple options centered on business and leadership, the program engages students not only in 3-hour daily classroom sessions, but also includes activities like workshops and cultural trips in its curriculum.
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: Up to $1,895, need-based scholarship available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not Selective
Dates: Multiple sessions between June and August spanning 1–4 weeks, more details here
Application Deadline: Varies as per cohort, more details here
Eligibility: Students aged 13 and above
Becoming an Entrepreneur is a pre-college online program offered by Georgetown University for students aged 13 and above. Through at least 20 hours of virtual instruction time and the stewardship of an expert mentor, students explore foundational concepts in business and entrepreneurship. In precise terms, you will delve into subjects that help you identify market needs, target customers, curate a business pitch, study varying business models, communicate your product stories, and more! The final capstone project serves as an opportunity for students to create a business plan and present it to a group of experienced investors.
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: $2,995
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not Selective
Dates: June 9 – June 20
Application Deadline: Unspecified
Eligibility: Students aged 12–14
Discover Business Academy is an online business program for students aged between 12 and 14 years. Through 2-hour live online sessions between Monday and Friday for a duration of 2 weeks, you will cement your foundations in essential subjects concerning business and economics. In precise terms, students engage with subjects like study strategies, macroeconomics, business competition, branding & marketing, leadership, finance & investing, and more! With a class size of 6 students and additional one-to-one tutorials, the program is designed to cater to the individual challenges of all the students optimally.
Stephen is one of the founders of Lumiere and a Harvard College graduate. He founded Lumiere as a PhD student at Harvard Business School. Lumiere is a selective research program where students work 1-1 with a research mentor to develop an independent research paper.
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