9 Free Research Mentorship Programs for High School Students
- Stephen Turban
- Apr 29
- 8 min read
If you are a high school student interested in gaining research experience under the guidance of an expert, a research mentorship program is worth considering. Today, many organizations and universities offer such research opportunities to high school students at no cost!
A research mentorship program can be a great way to familiarize yourself with research environments, ongoing research, laboratory tools and techniques, scientific research process, data collection, interpretation, and analysis. You will get to interact with professionals and students conducting research, which can help you gain insight into the day-to-day life of a researcher.
The mentorship component of the program ensures that you receive constant support while you work on your research project. Under a mentor's guidance, you can navigate the research paper writing and the presentation processes easily. Additionally, a research mentorship program can be a good addition to your resume, showing college admission officers you have research experience.
To help you get started, we have listed 9 free research mentorship programs for high school students:
Cost: The program is fully funded!
Location: Remote — you can participate in this program from anywhere in the world!
Application Deadline: Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September) and Winter (November).
Program Dates: Vary based on yearly cohort. Multiple 12-week cohorts throughout the year, including Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.
Eligibility: You must be enrolled in high school or plan to enroll as a freshman in college in the fall and must demonstrate a high level of academic achievement.
The Lumiere Research Inclusion Foundation stands as a non-profit research program tailored for gifted students from low-income backgrounds. Stemming from the Lumiere Research Scholar Program, renowned for its extensive one-on-one research opportunities for high school students, the foundation provides the same access to independent research experiences at zero cost.
The Lumiere Breakthrough Scholar Program is the equivalent of the Individual Research Scholar Program at Lumiere Education. In the flagship program, talented high-school students are paired with world-class Ph.D. mentors to work 1-on-1 on an independent research project. At the end of the 12-week program, you’ll develop an independent research paper. You can choose topics from subjects such as psychology, physics, economics, data science, computer science, engineering, chemistry, international relations, and more. You can apply here!
This program is a solid option if you are interested in interdisciplinary research and want to create an individual research paper.
Location: Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Stipend: SIMR offers a minimum stipend of $500 and a maximum of $2,500 or above on a needs-based system. While the program is otherwise free, housing and transportation costs are not covered.
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors who are at least 16 years old
Application deadline: February 22
Program dates: June 9 – July 31
Note: While any eligible student in the USA can apply, the selection team usually favors local (Bay Area) students due to specific grant requirements.
SIMR is a competitive research program typically accepting just 50 students each year. You will get to conduct research under the guidance of a mentor, who will either be a Stanford graduate student or a postdoctoral fellow. You can choose from 8 research areas—stem cell and regenerative medicine, bioinformatics, immunology, bioengineering, cardiovascular biology, neurobiology, cancer biology, and genetics and genomics. The program's key components are morning lectures, lab work, special joint lectures, and poster preparation. You can go through the detailed program information here before applying. To learn more about this program, check out our full guide here!
Location: Virtual
Application Date: Multiple deadlines throughout the year for the Spring, Summer and Fall cohorts.
Program Dates: The spring and fall cohorts run 15 weeks, while the summer cohort runs 10 weeks (June-September).
Eligibility: High school students with good academic standing (>3.67/4.0 GPA) can apply. Most accepted students are 10th/11th graders! Only a couple of tracks require formal prerequisites, more details of which can be found here.
Cost: 100% financial aid offered
Horizon offers trimester-long research programs for high school students across subject areas such as data science, machine learning, political theory, and more! Horizon is one of the few research programs for high school students that offers you the choice to engage in either quantitative or qualitative research.
Once you select a particular subject track, Horizon pairs you with a professor/PhD scholar who acts as a mentor throughout your research journey. As a participant, you will be expected to develop a 20-page research paper that you can send to prestigious journals for publication as a high school student.
The program also provides a letter of recommendation for each student and detailed project feedback that you can use to work on future projects.
Location: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA
Stipend: A stipend is offered to participants, but the exact amount has not been specified.
Eligibility: High school juniors who meet RSI’s academic requirements
Application deadline: December 11
Program dates: June 22 – August 2
The Research Science Institute (RSI) is a program that allows high school students to participate in research at MIT. RSI is a competitive program that usually selects just 3% or about 70 to 100 high schoolers out of 3,000 applicants. RSI allows high schoolers to work on a research project under the mentorship of MIT professors and scientists. If selected, you can attend college-level classes taught by MIT faculty members. The research experience begins with a week of seminars covering current research topics in chemistry, biology, math, engineering, physics, and humanities. You will be assigned research work for the next five weeks at the end of the seminar week. Then, during the final week, you will present your findings. Other key program components are the evening lecture series (check out the list of past speakers here) and field trips. For tips on getting into this competitive program, check out our full guide here.
Location: NIH research campuses, including the main campus in Bethesda, MD
Stipend: A monthly stipend of $2,530 (before high school graduation) or $2,840 (after graduation) will be provided.
Eligibility: High school seniors who will be 18 or older by June 1
Application deadline: February 19
Program dates: TBA, but the program usually runs from June to August
Note: NIH previously offered HS-SIP—a program exclusively designed for high schoolers. This program was recently merged with SIP, which invites college and high school students to engage in research.
SIP is a paid research program conducted by the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. government’s primary medical research agency. This is a competitive program with an acceptance rate of ~7%. If selected, you will be placed in a research group to work under the supervision of a Principal Investigator. You will learn to investigate existing and new health-related theories by conducting experiments, studies, surveys, and data analysis. You can find opportunities in biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences and engage in basic, translational, and clinical research. For instance, you can research topics in immunology, neuroscience, cancer biology, epidemiology, genetics and genomics, and more. In addition, you will access personal and professional development opportunities through a series of workshops, career development, and science skills sessions. You will present your research at the Summer Poster Day at the end of SIP.
Location: Virtual or in-person at the Johns Hopkins Department of Neurology (east Baltimore Campus), Baltimore, MD
Stipend: An hourly stipend is provided to the in-person program participants, and a $500 scholarship is offered to virtual participants.
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors can apply. In-person program applicants must live in Baltimore City, MD. Applicants from underrepresented backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
Application deadline: March 1
Program dates: The in-person program lasts eight weeks, while the virtual program runs for five weeks. Typically, both sessions are scheduled between June and August.
JHIBS is for high schoolers interested in neuroscience and medicine research. If selected, you will learn from biomedical research professionals and explore the scientific method. You will also gain insights on how to conduct research responsibly. The in-person program is more competitive, accepting just eight students each year. This option also involves working on a research project and accessing one-on-one mentorship, educational resources, scientific seminars, and career guidance sessions. Meanwhile, the virtual program offers activities related to STEM fields and the chance to learn essential laboratory techniques. You can look at past research topics here to know the type of research work you can expect. To learn more about this program, check out our full guide here.
Location: Varies based on the organization offering the chosen mentorship opportunity
Stipend: Up to $500 is usually offered as a stipend.
Eligibility: High school students in the U.S. | The precise requirements can vary for each project/internship.
Application deadline: March/April
Program dates: The 8- to 10-week program runs from June to August.
SPARK SMP is an opportunity for high school students looking to work on STEM projects and connect with industry experts, professors, and mentors. Each year, SPARK SMP offers a combination of in-person and remote projects. Previously, a mentorship option for those interested in engineering was Advancing Accessibility in Engineering Education, where interns conducted background research and presented a technical report. Another research opportunity was Power Grid Resilience to Extreme Weather Conditions, where interns modeled the impacts of extreme weather conditions like hurricanes and heat waves on electric power availability. Through such mentorship opportunities, the program introduces high schoolers to research, professional work environments, and the day-to-day work of organizations. To learn more about this program, check out our full guide here.
Location: Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY
Stipend: A stipend is offered, but the exact amount has not been disclosed. The program has no tuition fee, but those who intend to stay on campus must pay $2,360.25. This fee covers accommodation and meals.
Eligibility: High school juniors who are at least 16 years old
Application deadline: February 7
Program dates: June 30 – August 8
The Simons Summer Research Program is for high school juniors interested in working on research projects. As a program participant, you can choose from various STEM areas, including biochemistry, computer science, neurobiology, applied math, medicine, chemistry, geosciences, and physics. While applying, check the list of mentors and mention your top three choices. During the program, you will learn about research techniques and participate in weekly faculty research talks, special workshops, tours, and events. You will also have to develop a written research abstract and a research poster, which you will present at the end-of-program symposium. This is a selective program that typically accepts only 5% of all applicants. To learn more about this opportunity, check out our full guide here.
Location: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL
Stipend: Students may get fellowship payments at the end of the research experience.
Eligibility: Rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors, preferably from Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, and Wisconsin
Application deadline: Applications typically close at the end of March or early April
Program dates: June 20 – August 1
In the Young Scholars Summer STEMM Research Program, you will work on a project in STEM or medicine alongside university faculty, post-doctoral researchers, and graduate and undergraduate students. A key component of the program is a weekly seminar series, which helps you hone your professional and academic skills and learn about the college admission process. You will work on your scientific communication skills and learn how to prepare a research poster. This program accepted only 30 students out of 600 applicants in the last two years. If selected, you will be assigned to one of the following research groups based on your coursework and interests: SpHERES, which focuses on medicine, bioengineering, and neuroscience, or GEnYuS, which works on research in mechanical engineering, computer science, nuclear or quantum physics, electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, materials science, civil engineering, and more. To learn more about this program, check out our in-depth guide here.
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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