10 Summer Programs for Gifted Middle School Students
- Stephen Turban
- Jan 3
- 6 min read
Summer is a good time to get ahead of your academics before the new school year or catch up on weak areas. In particular, gifted students can consider using this time to explore their academic interests by pursuing summer programs. These programs are rigorous and allow you to learn various subjects. They also typically involve a hands-on component, helping you build field-specific skills.
Programs designed for gifted students enable you to interact with faculty and professionals who become part of your network. Similarly, you meet like-minded peers from diverse backgrounds. To help you pick a summer program that meets your needs, we have compiled a list below.
10 Summer Programs for Gifted Middle School Students
Location: Virtual
Cost: $550
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: October 18 to November 21
Application Deadline: August 28
Eligibility: Students in grades 7 to 9
Conducting research is a solid option for you to explore your interests in various fields. Lumiere’s Junior Explorer Program helps you carry out academic research by pairing you with PhD mentors from prestigious institutions who are experts in their fields. As you conduct research, you will learn to read and interpret academic literature, build research questions, and create outputs such as a high school-level research paper or case study. Additional sessions with a writing coach and personalized feedback help you polish your scientific communication skills. Lumiere also offers a Junior Research and Publication Program for students who wish to publish their research in academic journals in 16 weeks.
Location: Online
Cost/Stipend: Fully funded
Dates: July 6 to July 24 for summer. August 26 to December 9 for fall
Application Deadline: March 25
Eligibility: Low income students in grades 6 or 7 who live and attend school in the U.S. with family income under $90,000
SMSSP is designed with a rigorous curriculum for advanced middle school students. It is held in the summer and fall and offers various tracks. You can choose from among the following courses: Democracy & Dissent, Discovering Geometry: From Flatland to the Fourth Dimension, History through Graphic Novels, or Real-Life Applications to Mathematics. The summer programming involves online interactive classes and social activities. In the fall, you attend weekly meetings, participate in debates and discussions regarding your subjects, and receive counselling. You benefit from guidance regarding applying to other prestigious programs.
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies. Financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: 25 hours over 10 weeks on weekends during the spring cohort. 25 hours over 2 weeks on weekdays during the summer cohort
Application Deadline: Rolling deadlines
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 to 8
Veritas AI’s AI Trailblazers program invites gifted middle school students to learn the basics of AI and machine learning. The subjects are taught over 25 hours of programming. It covers a range of technology topics such as Python, data analysis, regression, image classification, neural networks, and AI ethics. You then apply your learnings to a practical project in a field of your choice. This project must aim to solve a real-world problem using technology. Past students have built a machine-learning model to classify music genres and a machine-learning algorithm to provide a custom list of educational resources based on selected specifications.
Location: New York City, NY
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: July 6 to July 31
Application Deadline: May 15
Eligibility: Rising 7th and 8th graders who are NYC residents
NYU’s SoSC program is designed for ambitious middle schoolers from NYC. In this program, you learn engineering and technology in the context of urban design. The program teaches you coding, microcontroller programming, circuitry, electronics, sensors, and other hardware. You also learn about sustainability with regards to making a city efficient and safe. Working in groups, you develop projects based on what you have learned. The program concludes with a presentation session where you demonstrate the technological solution for a real-world urban problem.
Location: Not specified
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: Until the student turns 18 years old
Application Deadline: Rolling from January to November
Eligibility: Gifted students ages 5 to 18 who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents with qualifying test documentation
This program for gifted students helps you develop intellectually and socially. You can participate in the residential summer program where you learn different subjects at an advanced level. In the Ambassador Program, you can develop and execute a community service project while receiving guidance. As a Young Scholar, you become part of an online community and interact with other gifted students. Other events are regularly held for you to benefit from.
Location: Yale University, New Haven, CT
Cost/Stipend: $75. Full scholarships available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 7 to 14 students per class
Dates: June 23 to July 30
Application Deadline: February 26
Eligibility: Middle school students enrolled in public and parochial schools in New Haven, CT
The Ulysses S. Grant Foundation’s 6-week residential program offers a range of subjects for academically advanced middle schoolers. You attend humanities and investigations courses in the morning. The humanities subjects typically include topics such as art, writing, poetry, and philosophy. The investigations subjects are STEM-focused such as biology, chemistry, finance, and architecture. Depending on the grade you are in, you can choose from various electives. This program helps you prepare for and succeed at higher education.
Location: Columbia University, New York, NY
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Competitive
Dates: July 6 to July 31 for the summer session. October to May for the academic year session
Application Deadline: April 15 for summer. November 1 for academic year
Eligibility: Students in grades 7 to 12 interested in medicine or related STEM fields with at least an 80 percent grade average, especially in math and science
S-PREP is a high school and college preparatory program. Students interested in medicine and other STEM subjects are likely to benefit from this program. It teaches lessons in different subjects like Anatomy, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Brain & Cognitive Science, Ready for PreMed, Physics, Psychology, Algebra, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus and Statistics. The program aims to inculcate interest in STEM. It also helps you prepare for standardized tests. Participating in this program may make you eligible to apply for other rigorous programs in the future.
Location: United States Military Academy, West Point, NY
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Dates: June 2 to June 6 for grades 6 and 7. June 9 to June 13 for grades 8 and 9
Application Deadline: February 28
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 to 9 who are U.S. citizens
This week-long STEM program is for ambitious students. You must have a strong academic record to be eligible to apply for this program. The workshops are designed according to specific grade levels. However, you can expect to partake in hands-on STEM activities that build your problem-solving and critical thinking skills. To make the program accessible, it covers tuition, room, and board.
Location: Online or in person at various locations
Cost/Stipend: Varies by program
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective. Typically 12 to 16 students per class
Dates: Multiple summer sessions
Application Deadline: December 15 for courses starting the week of January 26. February 17 for courses starting the week of March 23
Eligibility: Varies by program
Johns Hopkins CTY programs are available during various sessions and for various subjects. Although not all programs are rigorous, gifted students can opt for the more advanced courses with specific eligibility criteria and a fast pace. Courses are available in history and social sciences, language arts, mathematics, robotics and technology, and science and engineering. Held online or offline, these programs allow you to get a head start on your academics. The program also provides access to various resources and a large community of like-minded peers.
Location: Online or in person at Northwestern University, Evanston, IL
Cost: Ranges from $990 to $6,025 depending on duration
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Small classes
Dates: Varies by course
Application Deadline: One week before the start date
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 to 12. Additional academic criteria vary by course
Northwestern’s Center for Talent Development offers a range of programs for gifted and advanced students. These programs span across various subjects and fields. Many of these programs have specific eligibility requirements depending on the tier. Participating in this program enables you to access rigorous coursework that follows best practices in gifted education. You benefit from a small class size and individual attention, which helps you meet your learning objectives. You also prepare for future advanced academics and a career in your chosen field.
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 where students work 1-1 with a research mentor to develop an independent research paper.
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