14 Biology Summer Pre-College Programs for High School Students
Biology pre-college programs can be a useful way for you to explore scientific research and laboratory learning while you are still in high school. Many of these programs introduce you to topics like genetics, neuroscience, molecular biology, and ecology through structured coursework, research activities, and lab-based projects. You can also gain exposure to university research environments and connect with mentors and peers who share similar academic interests.
What are the benefits of a biology pre-college program?
Biology pre-college programs help you build foundational skills in research, data analysis, scientific writing, and laboratory methods through guided academic work. Depending on the program, you can explore areas such as genomics, biomedical engineering, computational biology, or environmental science while learning how scientific research is conducted. Some programs also include opportunities to present your work, earn college credit, or receive mentorship from faculty and researchers.
To help with your search, we have narrowed down a list of 14 biology pre-college programs for high school students.
If you’re looking for free online biology programs, check out our blog here.
1. Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program (SIMR)
Location: Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Cost: Free, with need-based stipends available starting at $2,500, depending on family income
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Extremely selective
Dates: June 8 – July 30
Application Deadline: February 21
Eligibility: U.S. citizens or permanent residents who are juniors or seniors currently attending high school in the U.S. and are at least 16 by the program start date
SIMR is an eight-week research internship at Stanford's Institute of Medicine. You will work one-on-one with a faculty mentor, postdoctoral fellow, or graduate researcher in a lab aligned with one of eight research areas: Immunology, Cancer Biology, Stem Cell Biology, Neuroscience, Cardiovascular Biology, Genetics and Genomics, Bioinformatics, or Bioengineering. A separate bioengineering track offers a team-based alternative, where you work on a real medical device design challenge using Stanford's maker spaces, automation lab, and wet laboratories to develop and test prototypes. Across both tracks, you attend weekly seminars on scientific communication and research practice, meet with researchers across the Institutes of Medicine, and present a final research poster on the last evening of the program. SIMR runs on Stanford's research calendar, so the pace and expectations reflect what working in a university lab actually looks like.
2. Rockefeller University Summer Science Research Program (SSRP)
Location: Rockefeller University, Manhattan, NY
Cost: Free
Acceptance Rate / Cohort Size: Extremely selective, with only around 32 students per cohort
Dates: June 22 – August 6
Application Deadline: January 2
Eligibility: High school juniors or seniors who are at least 16 years old at program start
SSRP places you on a research team in the RockEDU Science Outreach Laboratory at Rockefeller University, where team leads come from Rockefeller, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and Weill Cornell Medicine. The format mirrors the structure of a real research lab and has you actively contributing to the research work. Each team works on a distinct research question aligned with its team leads 'scientific interests, often in areas such as neuroscience, immunology, genetics, or cell biology. An orientation week precedes the start of full research activity. Throughout the seven weeks, you will attend a core series of lectures from scientists across the Tri-Institutional community, participate in elective workshops, and develop your scientific communication skills. The program closes with a research poster symposium, providing a real-time experience in scientific presentation.
3. Tufts University Biomedical Engineering Research Scholars (TUBERS)
Location: Tufts University, Medford, MA
Cost: Free
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Extremely selective
Dates: July 6 – August 14
Application Deadline: April 17
Eligibility: High school students aged 16+ who meet one of the MSLC criteria detailed here.
TUBERS is a six-week biomedical research experience at Tufts' Department of Biomedical Engineering, where you work full-time in a faculty lab for the entire program. Your daily schedule is arranged directly with your lab supervisor, and the work centers on a research project tied to the lab's ongoing investigations. Areas have included tissue engineering, silk-based biomaterials, lipid nanoparticle drug delivery, bioreactor design, and cellular mechanics. You will learn experimental protocols, operate research-grade equipment, apply the full cycle of scientific method from hypothesis through data collection to interpretation, and produce a formal written paper and a presentation at the program's close. These projects can even be submitted to science competitions, including the Massachusetts State Science and Engineering Fair and the Regeneron Science Talent Search!
4. Simons Summer Research Program
Location: Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY
Cost: No tuition, scholars earn a stipend
Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Extremely selective
Dates: June 29 – August 7
Application Deadline: February 5
Eligibility: U.S. citizens or permanent residents currently in 11th grade and at least 16 years old by the start of the program. Requires a school nomination (each school may nominate up to 2 students)
The Simons Summer Research Program pairs you with a Stony Brook University faculty mentor and places you in an active research group for six weeks. Available research areas in biology and life sciences include Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Ecology and Evolution, Marine Sciences, Medicine, Microbiology and Immunology, and Neurobiology and Behavior. You will join an ongoing project, develop specific responsibilities within the research group, and build toward increasing independence in your work over the six weeks. The program includes weekly faculty research talks, specialized workshops, and events organized throughout the summer, all in addition to daily lab work. The experience closes with a formal poster symposium where you present your findings, and participants receive a stipend award at that event. Because entry requires a school nomination, selection into this program is a mark of achievement in its own right.
5. Johns Hopkins ISPEED in Biomedical Engineering
Location: Johns Hopkins University, Homewood Campus, Baltimore, MD
Cost: Fully funded
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly competitive.
Dates: June 29 – July 24
Application Deadline: March 16
Eligibility: U.S. citizens or permanent residents currently in 10th or 11th grade, ages 15–18
ISPEED is a four-week, fully funded residential program run by Johns Hopkins' Biomedical Engineering Department. The curriculum is built around projects rather than lectures: you will spend time in cell and tissue engineering labs, in the BME Design Studio, and in programming and data analysis sessions covering machine learning and computational approaches to biology and medicine. You will tour active Hopkins research labs, meet STEM professionals across the biomedical field, and attend seminars on the college application process and professional skill-building. The program was designed with broadening participation in STEM as a core goal, and students from diverse backgrounds and circumstances are strongly encouraged to apply. The program even offers a one-time need-based stipend to help eliminate financial barriers that would otherwise make a four-week residential program at Hopkins inaccessible for many families.
6. Simons-NYU Science Explorations Program
Location: New York University, New York, NY
Cost: Fully funded
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Extremely selective, with only around 80 students accepted.
Dates: July 5 – July 25
Application Deadline: March 13
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors, seniors, or recent high school graduates who are at least 16 years old. Must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents residing in the U.S.
This three-week free residential program offers a broad overview of multiple scientific disciplines, including but not limited to biology, chemistry, neural science, physics, and psychology, through twice-daily lectures and hands-on lab sessions led by NYU faculty. Biology is a core part of the curriculum throughout the program, and the lab sessions cover techniques in genetics, molecular biology, and cellular biology. Because biology runs alongside chemistry, neuroscience, and physics rather than in a silo, you will start to see how these fields connect, which is closer to how real scientific work actually proceeds. You will use professional equipment in NYU's science facilities and work directly with active researchers. The exploratory, fully funded nature of the program makes it a strong choice for students looking for an introductory program that won't break the bank.
7. CMU Pre-College Program in Computational Biology
Location: Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA
Cost: $10,750 for residential, $8,041 for commuter
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly competitive.
Dates: June 20 – July 18
Application Deadline: February 1 for early decision, March 1 for final
Eligibility: Current 10th or 11th grade students aged 16+, with a minimum 3.0 GPA
This four-week program at Carnegie Mellon's Computational Biology Department splits your day between the lab bench and the hackathon. On the experimental side, you will understand sample collection procedures, isolate bacterial DNA, perform next-generation sequencing, and study microbial diversity and evolutionary relationships. On the computational side, you will write Python programs in small groups to solve problems in metagenomics, genome assembly, and viral evolution, including tracing the origins of SARS-CoV-2 variants. Carnegie Mellon's automation lab adds another dimension: you will work with robotic liquid-handling systems to see how machine learning is reshaping experimental design. The program provides preparatory materials to all admitted students before the program begins, making it a good option even if you’re new to biology.
8. Wake Forest University Biology Research Institute
Location: Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC
Cost: $3,500
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Competitive.
Dates: July 5 – 10 or July 19 – 24
Application Deadline: Rolling, starting November 1
Eligibility: Current high school students.
Wake Forest's Biology Research Institute is a one-week residential immersion run by the Biology Department. Over five days, you will interact with a different faculty researcher each day, rotating through laboratory and fieldwork experiments that span multiple branches of biology, including microbiology, parasitology, plant molecular biology, and ecosystem ecology. Each day introduces new techniques alongside the scientist whose lab you are visiting, and by the end of the week, you will have formulated research questions, collected your own data, and presented your findings to the group. Faculty mentors are active researchers who bring current work from their labs into the program, giving you a look at how biological questions are actually being pursued at the university level. The one-week format keeps each session small and closely mentored, and the dual-session structure means you can choose the week that fits your summer.
9. University of Iowa Secondary Student Training Program (SSTP)
Location: University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
Cost: $7,500, though a variety of merit- and needs-based scholarships are available, as well as financial aid covering up to 95% of the program cost
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: June 17 – July 24
Application Deadline: February 16
Eligibility: Current 10th or 11th grade students
SSTP is a five-and-a-half-week residential research apprenticeship administered by the University of Iowa's Belin-Blank Center. You will be matched with a faculty mentor based on alignment between your essays and the mentor's research area, then embedded in their lab group for the full duration, working alongside undergraduates on active research. Available research departments include Anatomy and Cell Biology, Biology, Biomedical Engineering, Chemistry, Internal Medicine, Neurology, Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Pathology, Psychiatry, and more. You will conduct a comprehensive research project and present a poster at the program's closing session. Evening seminars and weekend activities are built into the schedule. Enrolled students are registered as University of Iowa students and earn three transferable semester hours of undergraduate credit.
10. University of Chicago Research in the Biological Sciences (RIBS)
Location: UChicago, Chicago, IL
Cost: $15,200. Financial aid is available.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: June 15 – July 10
Application Deadline: February 11
Eligibility: Current high school sophomores and juniors who have completed one year of biology
RIBS is UChicago's four-week residential research practicum and the most intensive of its pre-college biology offerings. The first two weeks build foundational lab skills through a broad range of molecular, microbiological, and cell biological techniques. You then spend the final two weeks on an independent research project, applying those techniques to a real question in cell biology, genetics, developmental biology, or cancer biology. Most of the day is spent at the bench, with lectures providing important context and foundational knowledge. You will maintain a detailed lab notebook, complete weekly writing assignments, read primary research literature, participate in group presentations, and attend weekly faculty seminars over lunch. The program concludes with a research forum where you present your project results. Coursework is graded and reported on a UChicago transcript, with each course treated as the equivalent of a full undergraduate course.
11. Penn Biomedical Research Academy
Location: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Cost: $10,050. Philadelphia public and charter school students may be eligible for a full scholarship.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: July 11 – August 1
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions
Eligibility: Current 9th–11th grade students with a minimum 3.3 GPA, who have completed at least one year of high school biology. One year of high school chemistry is also recommended.
Penn's Biomedical Research Academy is a three-week residential program that runs at the intersection of molecular biology and disease. Lectures are delivered by program directors and guest speakers from Penn's Department of Biology and the Perelman School of Medicine, covering genome sequencing, CRISPR/Cas-9, antibiotic resistance, vaccine mechanisms, and bioethics. Across 9 of the 13 laboratory sessions, you will work in Penn's undergraduate wet labs, performing PCR, gel electrophoresis, bacterial transformation, restriction analysis, and ELISA to study gene expression in bacteria and analyze a mock disease outbreak. Four computational lab sessions introduce Python for biological data analysis, with applications in cancer genomics and infectious disease tracking. A journal club runs in parallel, placing you in small groups to read and critique peer-reviewed research.
12. Penn Neuroscience Research Academy
Location: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Cost: $10,050. Philadelphia public and charter school students may be eligible for a full scholarship.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: July 11 – August 1
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions
Eligibility: Current 9th–11th grade students with a minimum 3.3 GPA, who have completed at least one year of high school biology and high school chemistry.
Similar to the Biomedical Research Academy, this program is also a three-week residential academy taught by members of Penn's undergraduate Neuroscience Program and moves through the biology of the brain from the cellular level up. It opens with the structure and function of individual neurons, works through the sensory systems, and ends with higher-order cognitive functions, including memory formation, emotion, and moral reasoning. Twice-daily lectures by Penn faculty are supported by a journal club in which small groups discuss peer-reviewed neuroscience literature and develop their own presentations on assigned papers. You will also take part in a neuroethics discussion group that debates current ethical questions in the field, from brain-computer interfaces to the neuroscience of decision-making. Hands-on lab sessions introduce experimental techniques used in neuroscience research, and past programs have included excursions to the Mütter Museum and the Franklin Institute to ground the biology you're studying in clinical and scientific history.
13. UC Santa Cruz Science Internship Program (SIP)
Location: UC Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA
Cost: $4,250 tuition and $68 non-refundable application fee. Partial and full need-based scholarships are available, and some students receive a stipend to offset the costs of attending.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
Dates: June 15 – August 7
Application Deadline: February 27
Eligibility: Current high school students ages 14–17
SIP is a nine-week research internship at UC Santa Cruz that places you in an ongoing university research project rather than a purpose-built student program. Your mentor, who is typically a graduate student, postdoctoral researcher, or faculty member, guides you through real scientific questions in their own work. Biology-related research areas available through SIP include ecology, evolutionary biology, marine science, genetics, molecular biology, cell biology, environmental science, and computational biology. Three interns share each mentor, making for a small and closely supervised working group. The program ends with Presentation Day, a hybrid event where you share your summer's work with peers, mentors, and guests.
14. UT Austin High School Research Academy (HSRA)
Location: University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
Cost: $4,000
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective.
Dates: June 8 – July 15
Application Deadline: March 22
Eligibility: Rising 10th–12th grade students, ages 15–18, with a priority given to Texas residents
HSRA embeds you in an active College of Natural Sciences lab at UT Austin for five weeks, working alongside undergraduates and faculty on ongoing research. Biology-related research areas include gene expression regulation in cancer cells, fish behavior and stress neurobiology, aquatic ecology and environmental monitoring along Waller Creek, and computational genome analysis. You will work roughly 15–25 hours per week with your assigned group, following the lab's own schedule and research rhythms. Weekly guest speaker seminars bring in faculty from across the College, and the program closes with a poster forum where all participants present their work. You will earn three semester hours of undergraduate credit through UT Austin's extension program.
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