15 Medical Programs for High School Students in Palo Alto, CA
- Lydia Park
- 6 days ago
- 10 min read
If you want to study medicine, one of the most useful things you can do in high school is put yourself in a medical learning environment. Medical programs give you a chance to gain experience in health science and explore medical careers. Some programs are lab-based and allow you to contribute to medical research, while others are hosted by clinics or hospitals and focus on public health. These programs help you develop clinical skills and medical knowledge that can prepare you for a pre-med college major.
What medical programs are available for high schoolers in Palo Alto, California?
Palo Alto has a strong set of options because of the research and healthcare institutions based in and around the city. You can find programs connected to universities, hospitals, and science organizations. Many offer access to lab learning, mentorship, and high-level instruction that is hard to find in regular high school settings. Choosing a local program can also be a smart move because it keeps costs lower and makes participation easier. These experiences add weight to your college applications, especially if you’re applying to competitive pre-med undergraduate programs. They give you something specific to write about in your application essays and talk about in interviews.
With that, here are 15 medical programs for high school students in Palo Alto, California!
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies; Full financial aid is available
Acceptance Rate: Highly selective
Dates: 12-week program; Multiple cohorts in a year
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort
Eligibility: High school students with a GPA of 3.3+
The Lumiere Research Scholar Program is a research-focused opportunity designed for high school students who want to explore academic topics in depth. You work 1-on-1 with a Ph.D. mentor on an independent project in a subject area you choose. Over the course of twelve weeks, you learn how to form a research question, gather information, and develop your ideas into a full research paper. You can select from fields such as psychology, physics, economics, data science, computer science, engineering, chemistry, international relations, and several others. You can find more details about the application here, and check out students’ reviews of the program here and here.
Location: Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
Cost: Free to attend; $50 application fee (waivers available); limited need-based stipends
Acceptance rate or cohort size: 50 students
Dates: June 8 – July 30
Application Deadline: February 21
Eligibility: Current U.S. high school juniors or seniors, age 16+ by start date, must reside in and attend school in the U.S.; U.S. citizens or permanent residents only
Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program (SIMR) is Stanford’s flagship eight-week lab internship for high school juniors and seniors. You are placed inside a real research group and expected to show up like a junior lab member, not a visitor. Your work may include lab technique training, running parts of an experiment, recording results, and sitting in on lab meetings where data is discussed. The Bioengineering Bootcamp track is different. It is more like a build sprint where teams prototype health-related solutions using tools like CAD, microcontrollers, and basic coding. SIMR ends with a poster session, and the biggest practical limitation is housing. Stanford does not provide it, so most students who do this are Bay Area-based or staying with a guardian nearby.
Location: Remote
Cost: Varies; Full financial aid is available
Acceptance rate or Cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: Multiple 12-15-week cohorts throughout the year, including spring, summer, fall, and winter
Application Deadline: On a rolling basis. Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September), and Winter (November); You can apply to the program here.
Eligibility: High school students. AI Fellowship applicants should either have completed the AI Scholars program or exhibit experience with AI concepts or Python.
Veritas AI is an AI program for ambitious high school students, founded and run by Harvard graduate students. In the AI + Medicine Deep Dive, you will learn how AI is used in the healthcare and medical industry. You will work on real-world projects using AI & ML models to diagnose diseases, sharpen medical scans, and explain your outcomes to aid doctors and patients. Here is the program brochure and the application form.
Location: University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), San Francisco, CA
Cost: Free to attend; $4,500 stipend upon completion
Acceptance rate or cohort size: 25 students
Dates: June 8 – July 31
Application Deadline: February 8
Eligibility: Current high school juniors enrolled in SFUSD or San Francisco charter schools
Through the UCSF HIP, you'll engage in an 8-week paid internship conducting original biomedical research with a UCSF scientist mentor. The program includes lab work in areas like neuroscience, immunology, and stem cell research, along with professional development in science communication. Beyond research, you’ll participate in college counseling, resume workshops, and local college tours. HIP focuses on first-generation, low-income students and does not use GPA or future career plans as selection criteria. The experience aims to build your confidence in STEM while connecting you with a strong cohort of peers and mentors.
Location: Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
Cost: Free to attend
Acceptance rate or cohort size: 24 students
Dates: June 22 – July 26
Application Deadline: March 23
Eligibility: Current high school juniors from low-income, first-generation backgrounds living in one of eight Northern California counties
Stanford Medical Youth Science Program (SMYSP) is a free, five-week summer program for low-income and first-generation high school juniors in specific Northern California counties. The program combines hospital exposure at Stanford with structured teaching in health science and public health. A key part of the program is the team public health disparities project, where you do research, write a college-style paper, and present it formally. This is not a casual camp. It is full-time and requires consistent work. Like SIMR, housing is not provided, so you need to live locally with a guardian during the program.
Location: Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Cost: Free to attend (no program fee; travel/housing not included)
Acceptance rate or cohort size: 20 students
Dates: June 15 – August 7
Application Deadline: November 30
Eligibility: Ages 16+, open to students across the U.S.
Stanford STaRS Internship Program (Science, Technology, and Reconstructive Surgery) is a free in-person summer lab internship tied to reconstructive surgery research. You will work in a Stanford lab and learn concrete lab techniques like histology, imaging workflows, and genotyping, alongside research documentation and weekly workshops. The experience is designed for students who want research exposure but do not already have lab credentials, since prior lab experience is not required.
Location: Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
Cost: $6,580 (on-campus); $4,580 (virtual); $2,480 (fall virtual)
Acceptance rate or cohort size: Selective (24 students per fall cohort; summer cohort sizes not disclosed)
Dates: July 13 – July 24 (on-campus); July 27 – August 7 (virtual)
Application Deadline: Rolling until full
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors (age 16+), and undergraduate pre-med students; international students welcome for virtual sessions
Stanford Clinical Summer Internship is a short, high-intensity clinical skills program, not a research internship. The on-campus track is hands-on and procedure-heavy. You will practice suturing, injections, patient interviewing, and trauma style simulations, and you will also participate in anatomy work like organ dissection. The virtual track tries to replicate parts of that using mailed kits and live instruction, so you still do structured practice instead of just watching lectures. The Fall Intensive format is the most realistic option for students who cannot block out two full summer weeks, since it runs as weekly sessions over ten weeks.
Location: Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
Cost: $4,000; limited scholarships may be available
Acceptance rate or cohort size: Not disclosed; four sessions available
Dates: June 8–12, June 22–26, July 6–10, or July 20–24
Application Deadline: March 6
Eligibility: High school students age 15+ by program start date; open to U.S. and international students (non-residential)
CASP is a week-long, in-person program that gives you a deep dive into human anatomy and its clinical applications, using real cadaver specimens. You'll attend lectures by Stanford faculty, observe surgical demonstrations, and engage in skills labs that include dissection and suturing on animal tissue. The curriculum also introduces you to a variety of health careers through guest speaker sessions. This is a non-residential program, so if you’re coming from outside the Bay Area, you'll need to arrange your own housing and transportation.
Location: Virtual (hosted by Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA)
Cost: $4,500; $95 application fee; limited need-based scholarships available
Acceptance rate or cohort size: Not specified
Dates: June 22 – July 3 or July 13 – July 24
Application Deadline: March 31
Eligibility: High school students age 16+ by the start date (or current juniors under age 16); open to U.S. and international students
Stanford Cardiothoracic Surgical Skills Summer Internship (CSSSI) is a two-week virtual program that focuses narrowly on heart and lung surgery topics and surgical technique. Mornings are clinical teaching on cardiothoracic anatomy, diagnostics like ECG and echo, and major procedures like bypass or valve repair. Afternoons are skill practice using the kit you receive, where you work on knot tying, suturing, and instrument handling with live feedback. The porcine heart prosection component is also a major feature, because it gives you a realistic view of internal structures.
Location: Stanford Health Care – Tri-Valley, Pleasanton, CA
Cost: $5,000; $50 application fee; need-based scholarships available
Acceptance rate or cohort size: Not specified
Dates: July 20 – July 31
Application Deadline: March 9
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors (age 16+)
This two-week, in-person academy offers an introduction to clinical medicine through hands-on training and guided instruction by Stanford physicians and staff. You’ll learn foundational clinical skills such as taking vitals, conducting physical exams, and practicing suturing and splinting. The curriculum also includes discussions in medical specialties like cardiology and nephrology, along with guest speakers from the Stanford medical community. You'll interact directly with healthcare providers, physician assistant students, and fellow peers, gaining a clear sense of the teamwork and communication essential in healthcare. You will receive scrubs, stethoscopes, and a certificate of completion, and daily lunches are included.
Location: Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA (on-campus and virtual options)
Cost: $4,500 (Foundations program); tuition assistance available; housing not included in aid
Acceptance rate or cohort size: Not specified
Dates: June 22 – July 3 (Foundations), July 13 – July 17 (Clinical Skills), July 27 – August 7 (Virtual)
Application Deadline: Not yet announced; typically early spring
Eligibility: High school and undergraduate students; open to U.S. and international students
SASI offers three distinct tracks to explore anesthesiology and patient-centered medicine: a two-week intensive Foundations program, a one-week Clinical Skills experience, and a fully virtual session. In the Foundations program, you’ll work in teams to design healthcare solutions with guidance from Stanford faculty and patients, culminating in a capstone project. The Clinical Skills week focuses on developing essential procedures like suturing and vitals. The virtual track allows for similar skill-building and live engagement from anywhere, supported by mailed supplies. Across all formats, SASI emphasizes mentorship, teamwork, and holistic approaches to medical care. Tuition assistance is available for those with demonstrated financial need.
Location: Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
Cost: $1,250; includes surgical kit, materials, and lunch
Acceptance rate or cohort size: Not specified
Dates: July 9 – July 10
Application Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: Students age 16+ with an interest in medicine
The Stanford Suturing Bootcamp is a two-day, in-person intensive that introduces you to clinical and surgical techniques in a hands-on setting. Guided by Stanford faculty, you’ll begin with foundational sterile procedures and progress to advanced suturing skills using simulation models and tissue specimens. Training takes place in a surgical skills lab, where you’ll receive individualized feedback and practice techniques using professional-grade tools. Whether you're exploring a future in medicine or looking to strengthen your clinical foundations, this program provides a structured, skill-focused learning environment.
Location: Virtual (hosted by Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA)
Cost: $2,400 program fee; financial aid available; $45 application fee
Acceptance rate or cohort size: 50 students
Dates: Session A: June 15–26; Session B: July 6–17
Application Deadline: February 20 (Financial Aid: February 13)
Eligibility: U.S. high school students entering grades 9–12; must be 14+ and living in the U.S.
This two-week virtual internship introduces high school students to the intersection of artificial intelligence and healthcare. Through technical lectures, small-group research projects, and mentorship by Stanford researchers, you’ll explore the applications of AI in medicine. The curriculum is fast-paced and designed for students with a strong foundation in math or computer science, though financial aid makes the program accessible to a wider audience. You’ll also hear from experts in academia, industry, and government, and receive a certificate of completion at the end.
Location: Virtual (hosted by Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA)
Cost: $2,000 program fee; financial aid available; $45 application fee
Acceptance rate or cohort size: 50 students
Dates: Session A: June 15–26; Session B: July 6–17
Application Deadline: February 20 (Financial Aid: February 13)
Eligibility: U.S. high school students entering grades 9–12; must be 14+ and living in the U.S.
Stanford AIMI Summer Health AI Bootcamp is the more beginner-friendly AIMI option, built for students who want the healthcare AI concepts without needing coding experience. The learning is structured around understanding how healthcare data works, how models are tested, and what can go wrong when AI is deployed in hospitals. Topics like ethics, disparities, and generative AI are part of the curriculum, but the program stays practical by focusing on how decisions are made and evaluated. You finish with a certificate, and it is a good stepping stone if you want to apply later to more technical AI research programs.
Location: Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA (also available virtually)
Cost: $3,325 in-person / $1,725 virtual; up to 90% scholarships available
Acceptance rate or cohort size: 12% acceptance rate
Dates: Virtual Sessions: June 8–19 or June 22–July 3; In-Person Sessions: July 6–17 or July 20–31
Application Deadline: Rolling from December 15 to March 1
Eligibility: High school students aged 14–18; strong English proficiency required
Stanford Clinical Neuroscience Immersion Experience (CNI X) is a two-week program focused on clinical neuroscience, psychiatry, and mental health, offered both virtually and in person. The teaching is seminar-based, and you work through topics like neuroimaging, sleep, psychiatric disorders, and how neuroscience research connects to clinical care. The capstone is a group project where you propose a mental health solution, which forces you to turn learning into something structured. The program also includes professional development and self-care sessions, which makes sense because the subject matter is intense.
Lydia is an alumna from Harvard University and studied Molecular and Cellular Biology & Economics. In high school, she was the captain of her high school’s Academic Decathlon team and attended the Governor's School of Engineering and Technology. She is working as a life sciences consultant after graduation.
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