15 STEM Camps for Middle School Students
If you're a middle school student who enjoys solving problems, building things, or just wants to know how the world works, a STEM camp might be exactly what you're looking for. These programs give you early exposure to practical skills, from coding and data analysis to engineering design and scientific research, in an engaging setting. You'll also get the chance to work alongside peers who share similar interests and connect with instructors and mentors who have real industry experience.
How are camps different from other programs in middle school?
Camps are typically shorter and more focused than semester-long courses or broad enrichment programs. Rather than covering a wide range of material, they focus on specific skills, topics, or projects completed over a defined period. Depending on the camp, you will build and program a robot, run science experiments, design an app, or work through engineering challenges that mirror practical problems.
To help with your search, we've narrowed down 15 STEM camps for middle school students.
If you’re looking for online programs, check out our blog here.
1. Northrop Grumman Summer Engineering Camp
Location: USC Main Campus, Los Angeles, CA
Cost: Free
Program Dates: July 13 – 24
Application Deadline: May 4
Eligibility: Rising 6th, 7th, and 8th graders currently enrolled in grades 5–7, with at least a B average in science and math
The Northrop Grumman Summer Engineering Camp at USC is an engineering program hosted on the University of Southern California's main campus. You’ll explore five core engineering disciplines, aerospace, civil, electrical, environmental, and mechanical engineering, through hands-on projects like building rockets, constructing circuits, and designing bridges. Computer science is also part of the curriculum, where you’ll learn to code and build basic apps during the camp. The program actively involves Northrop Grumman engineers, giving you direct exposure to professionals working in the field. With only 32 spots available each year, admission is competitive.
2. Veritas AI: AI Trailblazers
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies by program; Financial aid available
Program Dates: Several cohorts year-round
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort. You can apply to the program here.
Eligibility: Middle school students
AI Trailblazer is a technology-centered program designed to give you an early foundation in artificial intelligence and machine learning. You’ll gain practical experience with how algorithms work by working directly with data, building basic models, and examining the decision-making processes behind AI systems. The curriculum prioritizes applied learning, showing you how AI operates in everyday contexts. Topics also include the ethics of AI development, including issues such as algorithmic bias and the responsible deployment of technology. Through project-based work, you’ll develop the ability to approach complex challenges in a structured, logical way.
3. Dinah Whipple STEAM Academy
Location: UNH Durham Campus, Durham, NH
Cost: Free
Program Dates: July 20 – 24
Application Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: Students entering grades 5–12; open to all backgrounds
The Dinah Whipple STEAM Academy is an immersive program held on the University of New Hampshire's Durham campus that blends STEAM education with an exploration of the Black experience in America. You can participate in the Junior Innovators track, where you’ll tackle hands-on design challenges centered on real-world topics like weather, water systems, and natural resources, and present a community solution at the end of the week. Older middle schoolers can choose from project tracks focused on environmental resilience or robotics and AI, both of which involve building, testing, and presenting their work. You’ll have the opportunity to interact with professional engineers and peer mentors throughout the week.
4. Lumiere Junior Explorer Program
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies by program; financial aid available
Program Dates: Several cohorts year-round
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort. You can apply here.
Eligibility: Middle school students
The Lumiere Junior Explorer Program is a mentorship-driven, research-focused experience tailored for middle school students. You’ll engage in guided research activities alongside a mentor, building core skills such as formulating strong questions, assessing the credibility of sources, and presenting information clearly and organized. Its structure is modeled after the research process used at more advanced academic levels, taking you through the full arc of a project from initial concept to final product.
5. Manchester Tech Camp
Location: UNH Manchester Campus, Manchester, NH
Cost: Free
Program Dates: August 3 – 14
Application Deadline: Check website for latest updates
Eligibility: Students entering grades 5–12 currently attending school in Manchester, priority given to Manchester school district students
Manchester Tech Camp is a STEAM day camp run through UNH's College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, designed for students of all experience levels. The camp provides access to university facilities, advanced technology, and faculty-led instruction. You can participate in tracks like TechSplorers, which rotate through topics such as forensic science, circuit-building, the science of sound, and freshwater ecology through daily activities. The Perceptive Plushies track takes a more focused approach, introducing you to robotics, biosensors, and animatronics by programming stuffed animals to respond to real stimuli. Those who complete all program requirements can earn 0.5 science credits.
6. SigmaCamp
Location: Connecticut
Cost: $1,900
Program Dates: August 1 – 8
Application Deadline: March 15
Eligibility: Middle and high school students aged 12–15
SigmaCamp is a residential STEM summer camp with an intensive academic program covering math, science, and engineering. The core of the program is built around "Semilabs," which combine a seminar and a lab, giving you both theory and hands-on practice in the same class. You'll attend two Semilabs each day, covering subjects that span biology, chemistry, physics, computer science, robotics, and microprocessors. Courses are taught by professors and scientists from institutions including MIT, Yale, Princeton, and Stanford, and you're supported throughout by graduate student counselors. Outside of academics, there's a full range of non-academic activities, including sports, ropes courses, music, and swimming, making it a well-rounded residential experience.
7. AFA CyberCamps
Location: Varies by host organization
Cost: Standard Camp: $1,200 | Advanced Camp: $1,500
Program Dates: Available across 10 weekly sessions; June – August
Application Deadline: Check with your local host organization
Eligibility: Middle and high school students; no prior cybersecurity experience required for Standard Camp
AFA CyberCamps are cybersecurity camps hosted by schools, universities, and community organizations across the country, designed for those who are new to cybersecurity or looking to build on existing skills. The Standard Camp introduces you to core concepts, including cyber ethics, Windows and Linux security, account management, and virtual machines. If you already have a foundation in cybersecurity, the Advanced Camp covers more technical ground, including networking through Cisco NetAcad, advanced command-line tools, and system processes. Both camp formats conclude with a CyberPatriot competition day, where you apply everything you've learned in a head-to-head challenge against fellow campers.
8. Bits & Bytes Summer Camp
Location: Eastern Michigan University (EMU), Ypsilanti, MI
Cost: $50 registration fee
Program Dates: June 23 – 27
Application Deadline: Check website for latest updates
Eligibility: Middle school girls; no prior coding experience required
Bits & Bytes is a week-long computing camp for middle school girls, hosted on the campus of Eastern Michigan University and staffed by members of the Women in Computer Science (WICS) club alongside EMU faculty. The camp introduces computing and technology through a mix of theoretical concepts and applied projects, covering everything from foundational coding to hands-on work with educational software and robots. Student mentors support you throughout the week. The camp wraps up with two standout events: a hackathon where you put your new skills to the test, and a career discovery session that connects computing to real professional pathways.
9. Hands-On Science Camp
Location: California Science Center, Los Angeles, CA
Cost: Half-Day $240 | Full Day $480, Member pricing available
Program Dates: June 15–August 7, weekly sessions
Application Deadline: General enrollment opens February 25
Eligibility: Rising 5th–8th-grade students, select classes based on rising grade level
Hands-On Science Camp is a weekly science camp at the California Science Center offering over 25 classes for students up through 8th grade. You can choose from a range of focused tracks, including a-MAZE-ing Robots, where you design and build a robot that navigates a maze, Radical Reactions, which takes chemistry into hands-on experiments like combustion reactions and liquid nitrogen, and Anatomy Academy, where you explore human biology through dissections and physiology exhibits.
Marine Adventures offers a more unique experience, with behind-the-scenes tours of the Science Center's 188,000-gallon kelp tank and hands-on work with aquatic staff. Classes are available in morning, afternoon, or full-day formats, giving you flexibility to build your own schedule across the summer.
10. Explorations in Aerospace Engineering
Location: Launch Flagship Center 81st + Amsterdam or Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Corner of 65th and CPW
Cost: $775
Program Dates: During the fall
Application Deadline: Check website for updates
Eligibility: Students entering grades 5–7 in Fall
The Explorations in Aerospace Engineering camp by Launch takes middle school students deep into the science and engineering behind rockets, satellites, and space systems.
You'll explore topics like aerodynamics, orbital mechanics, solid versus liquid propellants, and how SpaceX recovers its first-stage rocket boosters, connecting classroom concepts to real developments in the aerospace industry. Throughout the camp, you'll build DIY projects that reinforce the science behind what you're studying, making abstract engineering principles tangible and hands-on.
11. Coding + Game Development
Location: Launch Flagship Center 81st + Amsterdam or Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Corner of 65th and CPW
Cost: $775
Program Dates: During the fall
Application Deadline: Check website for updates
Eligibility: Students entering grades 5–7 in Fall
The Coding + Game Development camp walks you through the game development process, from initial concept to a final public release. You'll work with coding languages including Scratch, App Inventor, and Python, applying logic and math concepts like variables, conditional statements, loops, and Boolean operators to build functional games.
Along the way, the curriculum also covers the creative side of game design, including game mechanics, player engagement, level planning, and point systems, giving you a well-rounded view of what goes into making a game from scratch. The camp wraps up with a release day to showcase what you've built.
12. Science Quest: Discover, Design, and Explore
Location: Ohio State Marion, Science and Engineering Building, Marion, OH
Cost: $185
Program Dates: June 22–June 26
Application Deadline: May 31
Eligibility: Rising 5th–8th-grade students enrolled in any U.S. school
Science Quest is a week-long camp at Ohio State Marion that introduces middle school students to science and engineering through inquiry-based projects, hands-on lab work, and creative problem solving. During the week, you'll build and program a take-home robot, design cardboard boats for the YMCA regatta, and investigate ecosystems in the Larry R. Yoder Prairie Learning Laboratory. A field trip to Recreation Unlimited adds an outdoor dimension to the experience, and biochemistry activities like a blood-typing simulation and molecular gastronomy experiments round out the curriculum.
13. Young Innovators: Engineering the Future
Location: Ohio State Marion, Science and Engineering Building, Marion, OH
Cost: $185
Program Dates: July 6–July 10
Application Deadline: May 31
Eligibility: Rising 5th–8th-grade students enrolled in any U.S. school
Young Innovators is a week-long engineering camp at Ohio State Marion that introduces you to core engineering disciplines through hands-on design challenges, coding, and real-world problem solving. You'll work through a week-long Arduino robotics project and explore 3D printing by engineering and testing prototype designs for strength, flexibility, and performance. Throughout the week, additional engineering pathways may include model rocketry and biomedical engineering demonstrations, such as mobile ultrasound technology. A standout element of the program is a field trip to Honda in Marysville, where you can see firsthand how engineering concepts translate into real manufacturing and innovation careers.
14. OSU STEM Academy Middle School Camps
Location: OSU Campus, Corvallis, OR
Cost: $150 – $200, depending on track; need-based scholarships available
Program Dates: June 23 – July 24; varies by track
Application Deadline: Registration opens March 2
Eligibility: Students entering grades 6–8
Oregon State University's STEM Academy offers a series of distinct, week-long camps across a range of STEM disciplines, so you can choose the subject that interests you most or attend multiple sessions across the summer. The Wild About Wildlife Camp connects you with OSU scientists to explore conservation, ecology, and evolution through both lab and field activities on the Corvallis campus. If technology is more your focus, Making with Microcontrollers teaches you to build and program physical devices using the microbit, while Making Arcade Games walks you through designing and coding multi-level arcade-style games, both with no prior experience required. The AI Camp introduces you to machine learning concepts, including training classifier models and writing code that applies those models to real-world problems, with discussions on AI ethics woven throughout. For students entering grades 7–8, the camp covers digital forensics, encryption, and phishing detection through hands-on challenges, with the opportunity to hear directly from cybersecurity professionals and college students.
15. Camp Tech Revolution
Location: 50+ locations nationwide, including UPenn, UCLA, Rice, and NYU
Cost: Varies by location
Program Dates: Varies by location
Application Deadline: Open enrollment; check the website for your location
Eligibility: Students up to 8th grade
Camp Tech Revolution offers weekly tech camps across the country, covering more than 60 courses in areas like robotics, coding, game design, 3D printing, AI, cybersecurity, and more. Each week focuses on a specific topic, so you can choose the subject that interests you most or attend multiple weeks to explore different areas. Instruction is provided by staff recruited from universities including MIT, Stanford, Harvard, and UCLA, and camps are held at well-known university campuses.
Image source - Lumiere Education Logo