19 Medical Programs for High School Students
- Stephen Turban
- 2 days ago
- 12 min read
If you’re a high school student interested in medicine, joining a medical program can give you early exposure to the field and help you build skills you might not learn in school. Many universities, hospitals, and healthcare organizations offer programs that introduce you to areas like anatomy, physiology, public health, research, and patient care.
You’ll explore medical topics through lab work, workshops, and simulations. Some programs include shadowing healthcare professionals, practicing clinical skills, or working on health-related research projects. These experiences can also help you confirm your interest in a medical career and make your college applications stronger by showing your commitment to the field.
To help you find the right option, here’s a list of 19 medical programs for high school students!
19 Medical Programs for High School Students
Location:Â Virtual
Dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year, including summer sessions that run between June and August
Application Deadline:Â Multiple deadlines for each cohort; summer session applications are due in May/June
Eligibility:Â High school students with strong academic backgrounds; accepted students have an unweighted GPA of at least 3.3 out of 4.0
The Lumiere Research Scholar Program is a 12-week summer research experience where you work one-on-one with a PhD mentor from a university like Harvard, MIT, or Yale. You choose your topic in fields like neuroscience, medicine, public health, or life sciences. You meet regularly with your mentor to shape your research question, collect and analyze data, and write a paper that meets college-level standards. You build skills in research design, data interpretation, and academic writing.Â
Location: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA
Cost: Fully-funded
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 100 students, with an acceptance rate of 2-5%
Dates: Typically six weeks from late June to early August
Application Deadline: Early January
Eligibility: Current 11th graders
RSI (Research Science Institute) is one of the most selective research programs for high school students, with only 100 students chosen from over 4,000 applicants each year. After a week of seminars on current topics in medicine, science, and engineering, you spend four weeks doing research with a mentor from MIT, Harvard, or another Boston institution. You work one-on-one with your mentor to shape your project and build a research paper that meets professional standards. RSI also offers lectures and networking events with top scientists, including Nobel Prize winners. At the end of the program, you present your work at a symposium judged by Boston researchers and professors.
Cost: Starts at $2,490
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; 3-5 students per group
Dates: Multiple 10-week courses throughout the year
Application Deadline: Summer sessions have a May/June deadline
Eligibility: Students must have completed the Veritas AI Scholars program or have a background in coding. The program is open to students from grades 8-12.
Veritas Deep Dive: AI + Medicine lets you explore how AI is transforming healthcare. You work one-on-one with a mentor from a top university to build a personalized project that uses machine learning to solve real medical problems. You might train models to detect diseases, improve medical imaging, or explain results in ways that help doctors and patients. You learn how AI tools work and how to apply them in real-world healthcare settings. Here is the program brochure and the application form.
Location: Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
Cost: Free; approximately $4,500 stipend
Dates: June 9 - August 1
Application Deadline: January 26
Eligibility: Current 11th graders; must be at least 16 before the program start date | As a non-residential program, students must either live in the area with reliable transportation to campus or have a place to stay in the area for the length of the program
Northwestern’s Pulmonary and Critical Care Research Program places you in a full-time clinical research role at the Simpson Querrey Biomedical Research Center in downtown Chicago. You’re matched with a faculty mentor and assigned a research project focused on lung disease. You spend 40 hours a week working directly on research that supports real clinical goals. The program includes a poster session, career guidance, and support for college applications, helping you turn your experience into a clear next step.
Location: University of California - San Francisco, San Francisco, California
Cost: Free; stipend of $3,000 - $4,300
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: 9 weeks in summer, usually from early June to early August
Application Deadline: February 1
Eligibility: Current 11-12th graders with backgrounds underrepresented in STEM (underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, students with disabilities, first-generation college students, and students from low-income families). Undergraduate students are also eligible.
UCSF’s Summer Student Research Program places you in a clinical or biomedical research lab under the direct mentorship of a UCSF faculty member. You complete a full research project and produce a personal statement, abstract, formal proposal, and scientific poster. You participate in weekly seminars, journal clubs, and a final Research Symposium where you present your work. You work alongside undergraduate students and gain experience in clinical research and academic publishing.
Location: Hosted on college campuses; varies yearly and by topic
Cost: $6,950 for in-person, $3,950 for virtual. Financial aid is available. Some students receive $3,000 stipends.
Dates: 5-6 weeks; generally in mid‑June to late July
Application Deadline: Varies; generally in late March or early April
Eligibility: Open to current 11th graders (rising seniors). You must be 16–17 years old at program start. SSP looks for strong STEM coursework and research interests.
The Summer Science Program (SSP) offers intensive research tracks in Biochemistry, Bacterial Genomics, and Cell Biology for students interested in medicine. You spend about 60 hours per week in the lab working on a pre-set research project with a small cohort of peers. You work closely with faculty and fellow students, attend guest lectures from leading researchers, and receive guidance on careers in medicine and science. Each track has a fixed research topic for the year, so you should review the current project before applying.
Location: Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland
Cost: Free and stipended (hourly wage) plus transportation funds
Dates: In-person program runs for 8 weeks (June–August). The virtual program runs for 5 weeks (July–August).
Application Deadline: March 1
Eligibility: Rising 11-12th graders | In-person participants must be Baltimore residents
JHIBS at Johns Hopkins places you in a neurology or neurosurgery lab to complete a research project on topics like neurodegenerative disease, brain development, or neural imaging. You work directly with a JHU faculty mentor and contribute to research aimed at advancing neurological treatments. You also complete clinical rotations with Johns Hopkins neurologists and neurosurgeons, gaining firsthand experience in medical practice. The in-person program is limited to Baltimore high school students. A shorter virtual option is available to students outside Baltimore, though local applicants are prioritized.
Location: Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Cost: $6,380 (In Person), $4,380 (Virtual)
Dates: Session 1 (In-person): July 14–25. Session 2 (Virtual): July 28–August 8. Fall Intensive (Virtual): September 10–November 12
Application Deadline: Applications open in November and typically close in February.
Eligibility: Open to current high school sophomores and juniors (rising juniors and seniors), and undergraduate pre-med students. You must be at least 16 years old and have completed at least one high school biology course before the program begins.
Stanford’s Clinical Science, Technology, and Medicine Summer Internship (CSI) gives you direct exposure to medical school life and clinical practice. You attend lectures by Stanford faculty and doctors, participate in workshops with current medical students and residents, and meet with Stanford medical school admissions officers to learn how to prepare for med school. You complete dissection labs with Stanford physicians, studying hearts, brains, and kidneys. You also practice medical procedures on training manikins, gaining hands-on experience with patient care techniques.
Location: Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
Cost: On-campus Pre-College Program (2 weeks): $6,500; Online Pre-College Program (2 weeks): $3,500
Dates: Three 2-week sessions offered: June 23–July 2, July 7–17, and July 21–31. Students choose based on course availability.
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions beginning in December; applying early is recommended
Eligibility: Current 9-11th-grade students are eligible to apply. Students are recommended to have taken Biology before enrolling, and must have a GPA of at least 3.0.Â
JHU’s Foundations of Medicine and Health offers college-credit courses in core medical topics for high school students. You can choose the Medical School Intensive to study surgery, pediatrics, and biomedicine, with hands-on labs and dissections. If you already have a focus area, you can take specialized courses in surgery or physiology that include practical activities and patient care techniques. For medical research, JHU offers options in biology and public health focused on experimental design.
Location: Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Cost: Free, with a stipend ($500 - $2,500)
Dates: June 9 – July 31
Application Deadline: February 22
Eligibility: Current 11th and 12th graders can applyÂ
Stanford’s Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program (SIMR) places you in a full-time clinical research internship. You work in one of eight Stanford Institutes, including Immunology, Neurobiology, Cancer Biology, Bioengineering, Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Cardiovascular Biology, Bioinformatics, or Genetics and Genomics. You complete an independent research project under the guidance of a Stanford researcher. If you prefer collaborative work, you can apply to the Bioengineering Team Internship, where you develop a medical technology project using computational tools.
Location: Harvard Medical School MEDSCIENCE, Boston, MA
Cost: $2,800 for the standard 5-day session. $2,250 for the 4-day Holiday Week session (no class on July 4). Limited scholarships available for Boston-area students.
Dates: Ten 5-day sessions run weekly from June 9 to August 22
Application Deadline: Early to mid-March
Eligibility: Current high school students able to commute to campus
Harvard Medical School’s MEDscience Clinical Program gives you hands-on clinical training and exposure to medical careers. You learn procedures like IV insertion, intubation, and simulated childbirth in interactive labs. You earn certifications in trauma care through Stop the Bleed and American Red Cross CPR/AED. You study diagnostic techniques with physicians and medical students and join MEDchats to network with Harvard-affiliated healthcare professionals and explore career paths in medicine.
Location: Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Cost: $8,410 for residential students (includes tuition, housing, meals). $6,355 for commuter students.
Dates: Varies; generally 3 weeks in June/July
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions, beginning in late fall. Early Bird application deadline is January 31st; Final Deadline is April 15th
Eligibility: Open to high school students entering grades 9–12. You must be at least 15 years old by the program start.
Georgetown’s Medical Immersion Academy gives you academic training in cell biology, cardiology, immunology, and pathology through courses taught by Georgetown faculty. You complete hands-on clinical activities, including wound care, bleeding control, CPR, oxygen administration, and splinting. You attend lectures from Washington D.C. doctors and researchers and connect with Georgetown medical students and faculty. At the end of the program, you create and present a research poster based on a topic you studied.Â
Location: Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California
Cost: Free with $4,830 stipend
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Very selective
Dates:Â June 23 - August 8
Application Deadline:Â April 4
Eligibility: High schoolers (16+) from select San Diego schools with a GPA of 3.0+, and at least one year each of chemistry and biology.
Scripps College’s Biomedical Research Internship gives you a paid seven-week research experience if you attend a San Diego public high school. You begin with a research training course, then interview to be matched with a Scripps lab. You work alongside a graduate student on a biomedical research project focused on areas like molecular biology, drug development, or disease mechanisms. You receive guidance on college applications, learn about biomedical degree programs, and explore careers in clinical medicine and medical research.Â
Location: Massachusetts General Hospital campuses in Boston, Cambridge, or Somerville, MA
Cost/Stipend: Free with stipend
Dates:Â June 30 - August 8
Application Deadline: Applications open November 1 and close January 31
Eligibility: Rising high school seniors or recent graduates living/attending school in MA | Internships are also available for undergraduate students
Massachusetts General Hospital’s Summer Neuroscience Internship places you in a full-time lab studying neurology and neuroscience. You begin with a multi-day bootcamp in clinical research methods and professional networking. You complete mentored research under an MGH faculty member, contribute to an active lab project, and present your findings to peers and the MGH Neurology department. You also attend weekly Didactics sessions focused on current research in neurology and receive guidance on academic and career planning for college and medical school.
Location: University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
Cost: $5,500
Dates: June 8 - July 26
Application Deadline: April 1 (out-of-state) or April 15 (Florida residents)
Eligibility: Rising 12th-grade students
University of Florida’s Student Science Training Program (SSTP) gives you a full-time research experience in a medical lab if you are a rising senior interested in medicine. You complete a mentored research project with UF faculty and students, write a formal research paper, design a conference poster, and present your work to UF researchers. You also take part in an Interdisciplinary Honors Seminar, attend lectures from medical and scientific professionals, and join workshops focused on academic planning and research skills.
Location: Harvard University, Cambridge, MA | Some 7-week courses are offered remotely
Cost: $8,650 (4-week) or $14,950 (7-week) | Students commuting or taking remote courses are eligible for lower rates
Dates: July 12 - August 8 (4-week) or June 20 - August 8 (7-week
Application Deadline: January 7 (Early/Priority) and February 11 (Regular/International) | Late deadline is April 1, though very limited spots are availableÂ
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors, seniors, or high school graduates entering college | Students must be between 16-19 years of age | Certain courses may have specific prerequisites
Harvard’s Secondary School Program (SSP) lets you earn 4 to 8 college credits by completing a full undergraduate course over 4 weeks on campus. You study alongside Harvard students and complete all required lectures, labs, exams, and assignments. Medicine-focused options vary each year. Recent offerings included Health and the Nervous System, Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, and Introduction to Immunology with Laboratory Techniques. You’ll finish the course with 4-8 transferable college credits to get ahead on future coursework requirements and demonstrate to colleges your preparation for advanced undergraduate study.
Location: Belin-Blank Center, University of Iowa, IA
Cost/Stipend: $7,500
Dates: June 18 - July 25
Application Deadline: February 14
Eligibility: High school students in grades 10-11 | As a highly competitive program, successful applicants usually have a very strong track record in STEM courses and often have previous research experience
University of Iowa’s Secondary Student Training Program (SSTP) places you in a mentored research cohort for full-time lab work in a medical subfield. You earn 3 semester hours of college credit while completing a research project in areas like Internal Medicine, Neurology, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Orthopedics and Rehabilitation, Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Pathology, or Psychiatry. You are matched with a faculty lab based on your skills and interests. You complete a research poster and present it at a student symposium. You also attend seminars and weekend activities with faculty and peers.
Location: UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Los Angeles, UC San Diego, and UC Santa Cruz, CA
Cost: $5,256. Financial aid is available for eligible California residents.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Very selective; about 150-200 students are hosted at each campus, though clusters are limited to 20-25 students
Dates: July 6 - August 1 or 2, depending on your campus placement
Application Deadline: February 7
Eligibility: Open to California residents in grades 8–11 (rising 9th–12th graders)
COSMOS (California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science) places you in a three-week STEM research cluster at a UC campus. If you’re interested in medicine, you can apply to clusters in bioengineering, genomics, tissue and tumor biology, or data science in health sciences. You complete coursework in two subfields taught by UC faculty, participate in hands-on labs, and work on a research project related to your cluster. You also join group workshops and discussions to deepen your understanding of medical science and research.
Location: FSU, Tallahassee, FL
Cost/Stipend: $1,650
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; 20 students per session
Dates: June 8-13 (Session 1), June 22-27 (Session 2), or July 13-18 (Session 3)
Application Deadline: January 15Â
Eligibility: Rising juniors and seniors with a minimum GPA of 3.3 and strong performance in STEM courses
Florida State University’s Summer Medical Program gives you exposure to clinical practice and medical research. You shadow physicians, tour rural hospitals, and visit medical labs at FSU to learn about careers in medicine. You complete a group research project focused on a medical topic and present it in a research competition. You also attend workshops on college admissions and financial aid and receive mentorship from current FSU medical students.
Stephen is one of the founders of Lumiere and a Harvard College graduate. He founded Lumiere as a Ph.D. student at Harvard Business School. Lumiere is a selective research program in which students work one-on-one with a mentor to develop an independent research paper.Â
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