11 Online Engineering Summer Programs for Middle School Students
- Stephen Turban
- Jun 2
- 7 min read
Online engineering summer programs are a great way for middle school students to explore STEM in a structured environment. These programs provide exposure to advanced academic concepts, problem-solving skills, and even industry insights. Moreover, online engineering summer programs for middle school students offer a low-risk way to explore your interest while gaining valuable experience.
Online programs, in particular, make high-quality learning opportunities more accessible. Without the need for travel or relocation, you can take expert-led courses, engage in virtual projects, and connect with peers from across the country. These virtual programs not only allow you to build technical skills but also offer flexibility and convenience, making them an excellent fit for busy schedules. Additionally, participating in an engineering summer program can help middle schoolers establish a solid foundation for future STEM opportunities.
To help you find the best option, we've narrowed down a list of 11 online engineering summer programs for middle school students.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective.
Dates: The program typically runs for 8 weeks. Summer Cohort I start date: June 2 | Summer Cohort II start date: July 14.
Application Deadline: Summer Cohort I: Early Admission - February 9 | Priority Admission: March 9 | Regular Admission I: April 13 | Regular Admission II: May 11 | Summer Cohort II: June 23.
Eligibility: Middle school students with a strong academic background are eligible to apply.
Cost: $2400. Need-based financial aid is available.
The Lumiere Junior Explorer Program (JEP) is an advanced research experience tailored for middle school students interested in engineering, computer science, physics, and more. You will collaborate with PhD mentors from prestigious universities like Harvard, MIT, Stanford, and Yale to develop independent research projects based on your interests.
This program emphasizes critical thinking, scientific inquiry, and independent research, preparing you for academic competitions and future research opportunities. With expert mentorship and hands-on project development, JEP offers a personalized learning experience that nurtures young scientists' curiosity and analytical skills.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective.
Dates: 25 hours over 2 weeks (on weekdays) during the summer cohort.
Application Deadline: Rolling deadlines.
Eligibility: Middle school students in grades 6-8 are eligible to apply.
Cost: $1,990. Need-based financial aid is available.
The AI Trailblazers program by Veritas AI is a virtual program that teaches middle school students the fundamentals of artificial intelligence and machine learning. Over 25 hours, you will learn the basics of Python as well as topics like data analysis, regression, image classification, neural networks, and AI ethics. Students learn through lectures and group sessions with a 5:1 student-to-mentor ratio. Previous projects done by students have included building a machine-learning model to classify music genres and creating a machine-learning algorithm to provide a custom list of educational resources based on selected specifications.
Acceptance rate: Highly selective.
Dates: June 4 - August 13.
Application Deadline: Flexible enrollment period.
Eligibility: Students going into grades 6-8 are eligible to apply.
Cost: 1 Credit Honors: $835 | 2 Credit Honors: $1,425. Need-based financial aid is available.
Northwestern Accelerated Summer Online Engineering courses offer summer learning opportunities to help middle school students accelerate their coursework. These online courses—Aircraft Engineering, Machine Learning, Physics Honors, and Programming C++ Honors—condense one or two credits of the curriculum into a compact format. You will benefit from flexible summer scheduling, taking challenging electives while earning high school credit and advancing your studies. The summer session lasts 9 to 11 weeks, depending on the enrollment date, with students dedicating 10–15 hours per week for one-credit courses and 20–25 hours per week for two-credit courses. Coursework is rigorous and independent, supported by instructor guidance and personalized feedback to keep you on track.
Acceptance rate: Highly selective.
Dates: Multiple dates during the summer (June-August). The program typically runs for 12-15 hours per week (3 hours of class time, 9-12 hours of independent work).
Application Deadline: Rolling deadlines.
Eligibility: Middle school students in grades 7-8 are eligible to apply.
Cost: $1,365 - $1,433. Need-based financial aid is available.
The Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth offers online summer programs for middle school students to expand their knowledge beyond the traditional school curriculum. In the Engineering Design course, you will explore key principles of design theory while responding to requests for proposals. You will work both individually and collaboratively in asynchronous settings before presenting your final projects in a live Zoom session with the entire class. Throughout the course, you will examine the role of engineering design in historical innovations, learn to assess key parameters in the design process, and explore the importance of modeling, prototyping, and teamwork. By the end of the program, you will have developed a strong understanding of successful engineering design, applied diverse strategies to solve problems, and refined your ability to communicate solutions effectively.
Acceptance rate: Open for all.
Dates: Multi-length courses are available throughout the year, including summer.
Application Deadline: Varies depending on the course.
Eligibility: Middle school students aged 13 years or older are eligible to apply.
Cost: $1495. Need-based scholarships are available.
This online program offers an in-depth understanding of how engineers address challenges, while introducing fundamental engineering concepts and various specialized fields within the field. You will gain a strong foundation in core engineering principles and explore how engineers can contribute to addressing pressing global issues, such as climate change. The program covers essential scientific and mathematical concepts, including physics, chemistry, mechanics, and calculus, which are integral to the field of engineering. You will develop problem-solving skills by analyzing, designing, and constructing solutions while engaging with professionals in the field. You will also complete a Capstone Project, allowing you to explore how different engineering fields collaborate to develop solutions to complex problems.
Acceptance rate: Open for all.
Dates: June 2 - June 13 | July 7 - July 18 | July 21 - August 1 | August 4 - August 15.
Application Deadline: March 31.
Eligibility: Young women and gender expansive teens aged 13 years or older are eligible to apply.
Cost: Free!
Kode With Klossy offers free two-week summer coding camps for students from traditionally underrepresented genders in STEM. The program features a high-quality curriculum designed to provide you with foundational coding skills and explore various engineering fields. You will engage in one of four specialized curricula: web development, machine learning, mobile application development, or data science. Beyond coding instruction, the camps include additional enrichment activities, such as a speaker series featuring accomplished women in the technology field.
Acceptance rate: Open for all.
Dates: This is a self-paced program.
Application Deadline: No deadline.
Eligibility: Female middle school students are eligible to apply.
Cost: Free!
The Girls Who Code Python Activities online program teaches middle school students to code in Python. You will work on projects like building a chatbot, visualizing data through various graph types, and analyzing datasets to identify trends. Through these projects, you will learn to create line, bar, pie, histogram, and scatter plot graphs using Python. A key project involves analyzing data from Kickstarter, a popular crowdfunding platform. This experience introduces you to essential software engineering and data science skills, including data cleaning, analysis using advanced algorithms, and presenting insights to stakeholders such as policymakers, business leaders, and researchers.
Acceptance rate: Open for all.
Dates: Multi-length courses are available throughout the year, including summer.
Application Deadline: Varies depending on the course.
Eligibility: Middle school students aged 13 years or older are eligible to apply.
Cost: $1495. Need-based scholarships are available.
This online program offers middle school students the opportunity to explore genome engineering and its potential applications in treating hereditary conditions, such as Sickle Cell disease and other blood disorders. You will examine the human genome, genetic mutations, and ethical considerations of gene editing while gaining experience with genome-engineering tools. Guided by expert mentors, you will analyze CRISPR/Cas9-based treatment strategies and complete a capstone project on beta-thalassemia. The program culminates in a Certificate of Completion from Rice University.
Acceptance rate: Open for all.
Dates: July 14 - July 18.
Application Deadline: May 31.
Eligibility: Middle school students are eligible to apply.
Cost: $175.
In this online summer program, you will cover key aspects of urban planning, including civil engineering, architectural engineering, transportation systems, waste management, energy and water resources, and the development of functional and healthy neighborhoods. You will examine how urban centers have evolved and investigate the challenges cities face in achieving sustainability. You will apply your knowledge by designing your own city, utilizing sketches and software to create a comprehensive urban plan. As part of the program, you will engage with critical topics, including population dynamics, geographic influences on city development, and the impact of emerging “smart cities.”
Cohort size: 6-12 students.
Dates: Session I: June 9 - 20 | Session II: July 7 - 18.
Application Deadline: Registration closes approximately 2 weeks before the program's start date.
Eligibility: Middle school students aged 11-14 years are eligible to apply.
Cost: $50.
This introductory online summer program, sponsored by State Farm, is designed for students new to coding and software engineering. You will work on creative projects using a variety of free visual programming tools, allowing you to build a solid foundation in programming logic and design. Upon completing this program, you will have the opportunity to advance to a more in-depth JavaScript program, and then progress to widely used programming languages such as C++, Java, and Python. The curriculum covers key topics, including creating animations and drawings with Scratch, developing interactive games and music using Scratch, exploring animation through Alice, designing graphics with Logo, and integrating JavaScript for both animations and drawings.
Acceptance rate: Open for all.
Dates: July 7 - July 11.
Application Deadline: Open enrollment.
Eligibility: Students in grades 6-8 are eligible to apply.
Cost: $415. Need-based scholarships are available.
Temple University’s Philadelphia Youth STEM Camp is a week-long experiential learning program for middle school students interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The program offers a curriculum that incorporates problem-based learning activities, laboratory tours, demonstrations, and teamwork and leadership development. You will collaborate with mentors from Temple’s College of Engineering, gaining exposure to interdisciplinary engineering concepts, design thinking, and problem-solving strategies.
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.
Image Source - Johns Hopkins University Logo