10 Summer Programs for High-Achieving Middle School Students
- Stephen Turban
- 1 hour ago
- 6 min read
High-achieving middle schoolers can make the most of their summer holidays by participating in summer programs. These programs tend to be rigorous and have a challenging curriculum. You can also expect to develop practical skills through hands-on activities.
Summer programs are a good way to interact and network with professionals and peers from diverse backgrounds. Overall, these programs help you get a step ahead in your academics and choose your career pathway. Here are some programs you can opt for.
10 Summer Programs for High-Achieving Middle School Students
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies. Financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: 8 weeks. Varies by cohort
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort
Eligibility: Students in grades 6 to 8
High-achieving middle schoolers can consider pursuing research and participating in Lumiere’s Junior Explorer Program. The program offers mentorship by pairing you with PhD mentors from prestigious universities, such as Harvard, Oxford, MIT, and Princeton, who are specialists in their fields. Throughout the program, as you develop your research project, you learn to read and interpret academic literature, build research questions, and create outputs such as a high school-level research paper or case study, thereby building crucial research skills. Feedback and writing coaching sessions help improve your scientific communication skills. Students looking to publish their research in academic journals can opt for the Junior Research and Publication Program.
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 grade students who are NYC resident
SoSC is a selective program that introduces you to engineering and technology. Here, you learn coding and microcontroller programming along with electronics and circuitry basics. You study environmental and urban science to inform the group project you work on. This project responds to an urban problem by aiming to make cities safer and more sustainable. At the end of the program, you present this project.
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
If you are curious about technology, you can consider Veritas AI’s AI Trailblazers program. You establish a foundation in AI and machine learning. The program covers a range of topics such as Python, data analysis, regression, image classification, neural networks, and AI ethics. Upon completing the theoretical topics, you apply the learnings to a practical project. This project must solve a real-world challenge in a field of your choice. In the 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.
4. dynaMIT
Location: MIT, Cambridge, MA
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: To be announced
Application Deadline: To be announced
Eligibility: Rising students in grades 6 to 9
This program by MIT is designed to help you explore and pursue your interests in science and engineering. It is designed and led by MIT students. This free program is aimed at students who otherwise wouldn’t have access to STEM enrichment programs. These students also act as mentors throughout the program, guiding you through hands-on activities. The program aims to cultivate the next generation of scientists and engineers. Because the program is held at MIT, you get a taste of college life.
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 the 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 free high school and college preparatory program. Here, you encounter a wide range of STEM subjects. Designed for students interested in a career in medicine or related fields, it teaches you various topics like Anatomy, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Brain & Cognitive Science, Ready for PreMed, Physics, Psychology, Algebra, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus and Statistics. You also receive support with preparing for standardized tests. Furthermore, you can partake in college preparation and career development workshops, college & academic counseling services, field trips, and college tours. Participating in this program makes you eligible to apply for other prestigious programs.
Location: Online
Cost/Stipend: Fully funded
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
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 in and attend school in the U.S. Family income below $90,000
SMSSP is a rigorous program for talented middle schoolers. It is held online in the summer and fall. You attend live interactive classes in the summer led by Stanford faculty. In the fall, you engage in weekly debates and discussions related to your chosen track. The tracks available include Democracy & Dissent, Discovering Geometry: From Flatland to the Fourth Dimension, History through Graphic Novels, and Real-Life Applications to Mathematics. The program also provides support for applying to other prestigious programs.
Location: Yale University, New Haven, CT
Cost: $75. Full scholarships available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 7 to 14 students per class
Dates: June 29 to July 30
Application Deadline: February 27
Eligibility: Middle school students enrolled in public or parochial schools in New Haven, CT
The Ulysses S. Grant Foundation’s 6-week academic program offers a challenging curriculum to middle schoolers. You take humanities and investigations classes in the morning. The humanities class includes topics like art, writing, poetry, and philosophy. Similarly, the investigations class teaches biology, chemistry, finance, and architecture. In the afternoon, you opt for an elective class depending on your grade.
Location: Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: July 13 to July 17
Application Deadline: March
Eligibility: Rising students in grades 8 and 9
Middle schoolers interested in math and science can opt for this week-long program. Here, you can participate in the Making & Engineering track, where you are exposed to engineering and design concepts. You will participate in engineering programs and complete two projects throughout the week. The first project is completed in a group and is a structured assignment. The second project can be done individually or in small groups. Both teach you problem solving, design, and critical thinking.
Location: Online or in person at Northwestern University, Evanston, IL
Cost: $990 to $6,025 depending on course 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 CTD offers a range of programs for gifted students to explore different subjects. You can pick a track according to your interests. These are fast-paced and intensive courses that encourage you to hone your critical and creative problem-solving skills. They also provide opportunities to interact with industry professionals, who provide insights into their careers. Small class sizes facilitate individual attention and prepare you for advanced high school and college academics.
Location: Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
Cost/Stipend: Fully funded
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Limited spots
Dates: June 9 to June 13
Application Deadline: April 17
Eligibility: Students in grades 7 and 8
This free program by Purdue University teaches you the fundamentals of physics. In this selective program, you discover the fundamental principles of physics as well as their real-world applications. You attend lectures and complete hands-on activities in a lab setting. Faculty and research staff introduce you to contemporary developments in the field as well as their career trajectories. You tour the college campus and facilities as well as nearby landmarks. Thus, from the nano to the astro, you gain a holistic view of physics.
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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