15 Research Programs for High School Students in Maryland
Research programs give high school students access to something classroom learning rarely does: real labs, working professionals, and projects that actually matter beyond a grade. You’ll develop practical skills like data analysis, experimental design, lab technique, and scientific writing, all while getting a look at how research actually operates in professional settings. These programs also put you in contact with scientists, faculty members, and researchers who can become mentors, write recommendations, or open doors you didn't know existed. Several prestigious universities, federal agencies, and national research institutions run dedicated programs for high school students.
Why should you attend a program in Maryland?
Maryland is home to universities like Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, as well as major federal agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, the FDA, and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, that offer structured programs for high school students. Depending on where you land, you could be working on biomedical research, environmental science, public health, aerospace, or computational projects, sometimes within the same institution. These programs are a strong fit for Maryland students who want to stay in-state, and equally worth considering if you're an out-of-state student looking for a summer research environment with serious institutional backing.
To help you figure out where to start, we've narrowed down our list to 15 research programs for high school students in Maryland.
If you’re looking for programs in Maryland, check out our blog here.
Key takeaways
Several programs are paid or provide stipends, including NIH SIP, NIA STAR, NLM DSI Scholars, IBBR Internship, Johns Hopkins SARE ($3,000), BRBT, WISE, RAMP, and ORISE at FDA, while programs like NIST SHIP and NASA Goddard Space Club are unpaid but free, making Maryland one of the strongest states for funded high school research experiences.
Programs span a wide range of research fields including biomedical and laboratory research (NIH SIP, Johns Hopkins SARE, BRBT, IBBR), aging and behavioral science (NIA STAR), data science and bioinformatics (NLM DSI Scholars, IGS Bioinformatics), aerospace and engineering (NASA Goddard, ESTEEM/SER-Quest, WISE), AI and machine learning (Veritas AI, Lumiere), and FDA regulatory science and public health (ORISE).
Several programs specifically prioritize students from underrepresented or economically disadvantaged backgrounds, including Johns Hopkins SARE (low-income students only), WISE and BRBT (Baltimore City public school students), RAMP (Baltimore City residents), and Veritas AI and Lumiere (full financial aid available).
Students looking for multi-year or extended programs can apply to RAMP at UMB (two-year program spanning two summers and school year rotations) and IBBR Internship (optional full-year track with academic credit), both of which build sustained research depth over time.
Deadlines are concentrated between February and April, with NIA STAR and NLM DSI Scholars closing February 18, IBBR closing February 13, Johns Hopkins SARE and WISE closing March 1, and NASA Goddard closing April 17, so students should begin identifying programs in the fall and apply to February deadline programs well before winter break.
1. NIH Summer Internship Program (SIP)
Location: NIH main campus, Bethesda, Maryland
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: May 11 – August 31
Deadline: Check the website for the deadline
Eligibility: U.S. citizens or permanent residents; graduating high school seniors who will turn 18 by September 30 and live within 40 miles of an NIH campus
The NIH Summer Internship Program places you inside an active NIH research group for a full summer of work in the biomedical, behavioral, or social sciences. You'll be assigned to a lab directed by a Principal Investigator and contribute to real research, whether that's basic, translational, or clinical across fields like biology, chemistry, epidemiology, bioinformatics, computer science, psychology, and more. The program includes more than just lab hours. Throughout the summer, you’ll have access to professional development programming, career seminars, and a well-being program. The summer closes with two events worth noting: a Graduate and Professional School Fair in July and the NIH-wide Summer Poster Day in early August, where you’ll present your research to the broader NIH community.
2. Veritas AI - AI Fellowship with Publication & Showcase
Location: Virtual
Cost: Varies depending on program type. Full financial aid available
Application deadline: Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September), and Winter (November). You can apply to the program here.
Program dates: Varies by cohort: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.
Eligibility: AI Fellowship applicants should either have completed the AI Scholars program or exhibit experience with AI concepts or Python
Veritas AI focuses on providing high school students passionate about AI with a supportive environment to explore their interests. The programs include collaborative learning, project development, and 1-on-1 mentorship. You are expected to have a basic understanding of Python or are recommended to complete the AI Scholars program before pursuing the fellowship. The AI Fellowship program will allow you to pursue independent AI research projects. You work on your research projects over 15 weeks and can opt to combine AI with any other field of interest. You can find examples of previous projects here and read about a student’s experience in the program here.
3. NIST Summer High School Internship Program (SHIP)
Location: Gaithersburg, Maryland
Cost: Unpaid
Program Dates: June 22 - August 7
Deadline: Opens mid-October
Eligibility: U.S. citizens only; current high school juniors or seniors; minimum unweighted GPA of 3.0; must live within 50 miles of the NIST Gaithersburg campus
SHIP drops you into a NIST research lab for seven weeks, where you’ll work directly with a federal scientist on your own research project. NIST runs some of the country's most precise measurement and materials science research, and the work spans areas like physics, chemistry, data science, engineering, and more, depending on which lab you're placed in. You're assigned a project and expected to contribute to it, with the summer culminating in a poster session where your work is reviewed, and top projects are recognized by a panel of judges.
4. Lumiere Research Scholar Program
Location: Remote , you can participate in this program from anywhere in the world!
Cost: Varies depending on program type. Full financial aid available.
Application Deadline: Varies by cohort.
Program Dates: Varies by cohort: summer, fall, winter, or spring. Options range from 12 weeks to 1 year.
Eligibility: You must be currently enrolled in high school and demonstrate a high level of academic achievement
The Lumiere Research Scholar Program is a rigorous research program tailored for high school students. The program offers extensive 1-on-1 research opportunities for high school students across a broad range of subject areas. The program pairs high school students with Ph.D. mentors to work 1-on-1 on an independent research project. At the end of the 12-week program, you’ll have developed an independent research paper! You can choose research topics from subjects such as psychology, physics, economics, data science, computer science, engineering, chemistry, international relations, and more. You can find more details about the application here, and check out students’ reviews of the program here and here.
5. Johns Hopkins Summer Academic Research Experience (SARE)
Location: Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, East Baltimore, Maryland
Stipend:$3,000 stipend upon successful completion
Program Dates: June 22 to August 13
Deadline: March 1
Eligibility: High school students from households at or below 200% of the federal poverty level, and must also meet at least one additional criterion
SARE is designed specifically for high school students from low-income, educationally under-resourced backgrounds. You’ll spend 70% of your eight weeks inside a Johns Hopkins biomedical research lab, working alongside mentors on active research projects at one of the country's leading academic medical institutions. The remaining 30% is in structured coursework: scientific writing, data analysis, mathematics, and bioethics. Some SARE scholars have even been listed as co-authors on published scientific papers.
6. NIA Summer Training in Aging Research (STAR) Program
Location: National Institute on Aging, Baltimore and Bethesda, Maryland
Stipend: Paid; stipend based on educational level at the time the fellowship begins
Program Dates: May – August (8 to 10 weeks)
Deadline: February 18
Eligibility: Graduating high school seniors enrolled at least half-time; must be 18 years old by June 1; U.S. citizens or permanent residents
The STAR Program provides high school seniors, college, and graduate students with paid access to hands-on aging research within a major NIH division. The science here focuses specifically on the biology and behavioral science of aging: how the body changes over time, what drives those changes, and what they mean for human health. You'll work within an active research group and attend weekly seminars presented by NIA scientists throughout the summer. The program ends with the NIA Summer Student Poster Day, where you’ll present the data and findings from your research project to an audience of scientists and fellow interns.
7. NLM Data Science and Informatics (DSI) Scholars Program
Location: National Library of Medicine, NIH main campus, Bethesda, Maryland
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: Begins in June; runs 8 to 12 weeks
Deadline: February 18
Eligibility: U.S. citizens or permanent residents; graduating high school seniors enrolled at least half-time; must be 18 by program start, or 17 by June 1
The NLM DSI Scholars Program sits at the intersection of data science and biology, specifically, using computational methods to answer questions in biomedicine and health. You're placed inside the National Library of Medicine on the NIH campus in Bethesda and matched one-on-one with a research mentor for the duration of your internship, working on a computational research project. Throughout the summer, you'll participate in seminars and professional development workshops alongside your research. The program closes with presentations at two events: NLM's own Summer Poster Day and the NIH-wide Summer Poster Day.
8. NASA Goddard Space Club Scholars Program
Location: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
Cost: Free
Program Dates: Late June – early August
Deadline: April 17
Eligibility: Current 10th, 11th, or 12th grade students who have completed sophomore year by program start; must be at least 16 by program start; U.S. citizens only; must live within 50 miles of NASA Goddard; minimum 3.0 GPA (unweighted)
The NASA Goddard Space Club Scholars Program is a six-week, onsite work experience at one of NASA's premier research centers, and it's structured like a real job. You're assigned to a technical project and expected to work five days a week for the full six weeks, contributing to actual work in areas like earth and space systems science, computer science, and engineering. This is a genuine look at how research and development operate in a major federal science organization.
9. IBBR High School Internship Program
Location: Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, Rockville, Maryland
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: June 22 – August 7
Deadline: February 13
Eligibility: Montgomery County Public School (MCPS) students only; rising juniors or seniors; must be at least 16 years old; must be authorized to work in the U.S.
The IBBR High School Internship Program places you directly with an IBBR scientist as your mentor, and you spend the summer doing real research across various fields of biotechnology with a professional guiding you through it. You're required to commit to all 8 weeks and participate in a poster presentation at the end of the internship, so this is a program that expects you to follow through, not just show up. There are two ways to participate. The summer-only track is a paid internship lasting 8 weeks. The full-year option adds an academic-year component, during which you continue your internship during the school year and can earn MCPS Internship course credit for both semesters.
10. Biophysics Research for Baltimore Teens (BRBT)
Location: Johns Hopkins University, Homewood Campus, Baltimore, Maryland
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: July 7 – August 7
Deadline: Check the site for the latest application dates
Eligibility: Rising 10th, 11th, or 12th grade students; open to Baltimore City high school students; interest in careers in science, medicine, or public health; competitive admission; race, ethnicity, and other legally protected characteristics are not considered in selection
BRBT is built on biophysics, which means it draws on biology, chemistry, physics, and computer science. Over five weeks on the Johns Hopkins Homewood Campus, you’ll move from learning how to prepare reagents and materials for biophysical studies to microbiology techniques and DNA and protein engineering. The curriculum is designed to give you both the foundational skills for biomedical research and the experience of doing molecular-level work in a professional lab setting. The program pairs research time with classroom instruction, where you’ll study the scientific concepts behind what you're doing in the lab and build the critical thinking skills to go with the hands-on technique.
11. Whiting Internships in Science and Engineering (WISE)
Location: Johns Hopkins University campus, Baltimore, Maryland
Stipend: Paid
Program Dates: Summer program: July 9 – August 7
Deadline: March 1 for the summer program; November 16 for the spring program
Eligibility: Must be enrolled in a Baltimore City public high school; sophomores, juniors, or seniors; As and Bs in all math and science courses; sophomores must have completed two years of high school math; must be eligible to work in the U.S.
WISE places Baltimore City public high school students directly on the Johns Hopkins campus, where they're mentored by JHU researchers on a project in a lab, computer, or field setting. Research areas include materials science, mechanical engineering, electrical and computer engineering, and biomedical engineering, depending on which research group you're placed with. The program runs four weeks in the summer, and you work five hours a day. At the end of the program, you’ll present your research to fellow WISE students, your research lab, your family, and members of the JHU community. Beyond the research itself, the program includes networking sessions with JHU undergrad and graduate students, peer-led lab tours, and a mandatory orientation that also covers admissions and campus life.
12. ESTEEM/SER-Quest
Location: A. James Clark School of Engineering, University of Maryland, Maryland
Cost: Free
Program Dates: July 7 – July 31
Deadline: March 29
Eligibility: Rising high school seniors (12th grade) only; minimum 3.2 GPA with no Cs in math or science; must have completed Trigonometry, Chemistry, and Pre-Calculus with a B or better; demonstrated interest in engineering and serious intent to attend UMD College Park as an engineering major
ESTEEM/SER-Quest is a four-week engineering research program at the University of Maryland's Clark School of Engineering, designed specifically for rising seniors who are genuinely considering engineering as a major. During the four weeks, you’ll develop a research proposal, conduct a literature review, and work through an engineering research project, all while getting exposure to UMD's undergraduate and graduate student community through engineering-focused events and activities. The program also covers the practical side of college: you'll learn about the application process, financial aid, and what it takes to become a competitive candidate. Participation does not guarantee admission to UMD, which the program states directly, but the research experience and exposure to UMD's environment are designed to strengthen your application if UMD is on your list.
13. Research and Mentoring Program (RAMP)
Location: University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) campus, Downtown Baltimore, Maryland
Stipend: Paid through YouthWorks for summer portions; up to $500 for school year research rotations
Program Dates: Five weeks each summer (July – August), with research rotations throughout the school year
Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: 11th or 12th grade students who live in Baltimore City; must be at least 16 years old by the start of the program; strong interest in STEM; on track to graduate high school
RAMP is a two-year program run by the University of Maryland, Baltimore School of Medicine, and it's built around the idea that getting into biomedical research takes more than one summer. The first summer is five weeks on the UMB campus in Downtown Baltimore, where you’ll build foundational lab and clinical research skills, earn certifications like Stop the Bleed and Basic Life Support (CPR/AED), and work on group mini-research projects presented at the end of the summer. You're mentored throughout by local college students majoring in STEM fields, and you’ll hear directly from UMB professors, scientists, and PhD students about different research fields and career paths. The second summer is where the program shifts from learning to doing, where you're placed in an actual research lab at UMB for five weeks, working directly with a lab team on a real project, which you develop and present by the end of the summer. Past RAMP scholars have done projects spanning pharmacology, microbiology and immunology, neurosurgery, neurology, nursing, and reproductive sciences.
14. IGS High School Summer Bioinformatics Program
Location: Hybrid — synchronous online sessions (Zoom) with in-person lab days at the Institute for Genome Sciences or partner organizations, University of Maryland, Baltimore
Cost: Not specified
Program Dates: July 7 – July 31
Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: High School student; Residents of Maryland, Northern Virginia, or Washington, D.C.; application requires a resume and a cover letter describing your interests and reasons for applying
The IGS High School Summer Bioinformatics Program is designed for students who want to understand how biological data is collected, analyzed, and interpreted. Over four weeks, you’ll work through topics like genomics, transcriptomics, and bioinformatics tools, including hands-on work with command line interactions in the Linux operating system and the analysis of real genomic or transcriptomic datasets. The program also includes career sessions and campus tours so you get a sense of what research environments look like in practice. You can pick a biology or bioinformatics topic of your own choosing, conduct an independent study through literature review and database research, and present a 10 to 15-minute oral presentation at the end of the program.
15. ORISE Research Participation Program
Location: Various FDA research centers
Stipend: Paid; monthly stipend based on educational level
Program Dates: Opportunities are listed on a rolling basis year-round; no fixed start or end date
Deadline: No fixed deadline; applications accepted year-round
Eligibility: High school students (pre-college) enrolled in an accredited U.S. institution pursuing coursework in a STEM field; must maintain satisfactory academic progress; selection is made by the individual FDA mentor after a completed application
The ORISE Research Participation Program connects high school students with research opportunities at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, where you’ll work directly alongside FDA scientists on projects tied to the agency's core mission areas. Depending on which opportunity you apply to, your work could fall under biologics evaluation and research, medical devices and radiological health, drug evaluation and research, food safety and nutrition, or toxicological research. You're placed with an FDA mentor who selects participants directly, so each internship or fellowship is tied to a specific lab and research project rather than a general cohort. Working under that mentor's guidance, you'll develop technical and scientific skills while contributing to research that has real implications for public health.
Frequently asked questions
What types of research programs are available for high school students in Maryland?
Options include paid NIH biomedical research internships (NIH SIP, NIA STAR, NLM DSI Scholars), paid university lab internships (Johns Hopkins SARE, BRBT, WISE, IBBR), paid multi-year programs (RAMP at UMB), federal agency internships (NASA Goddard, NIST SHIP, ORISE at FDA), engineering research programs (ESTEEM/SER-Quest, WISE), bioinformatics programs (IGS, NLM DSI Scholars), and virtual research programs (Lumiere, Veritas AI).
Which Maryland research programs offer the most financial support?
Johns Hopkins SARE provides a $3,000 stipend and is specifically designed for students from low-income backgrounds. NIH SIP, NIA STAR, NLM DSI Scholars, IBBR, BRBT, WISE, and RAMP are all paid programs with stipends that vary by educational level or program structure. RAMP also provides up to $500 for school-year research rotations. ORISE at FDA provides a monthly stipend based on educational level.
Which programs are best for students interested in biomedical or laboratory research?
Johns Hopkins SARE places students in active biomedical labs for 70% of eight weeks, with some scholars earning co-authorship on published papers. BRBT at Johns Hopkins covers biophysics, DNA and protein engineering, and microbiology techniques over five weeks. IBBR pairs students directly with a biotechnology scientist as a mentor. RAMP at UMB builds a two-year arc from foundational lab skills to an independent research placement across pharmacology, neurology, and immunology.
Are there research programs in Maryland specifically for Baltimore City students?
Yes, WISE at Johns Hopkins is restricted to Baltimore City public high school students. BRBT at Johns Hopkins is open to Baltimore City high school students. RAMP at UMB is specifically for students who live in Baltimore City. These programs provide local students with access to world-class research environments at Johns Hopkins and the University of Maryland without needing to travel far.
Which Maryland programs are best for students interested in data science or computational research?
NLM DSI Scholars at the National Library of Medicine focuses specifically on using computational methods for biomedical and health research, with one-on-one mentor pairing. IGS High School Summer Bioinformatics Program covers genomics, transcriptomics, and Linux-based data analysis over four weeks. Veritas AI Fellowship offers virtual AI research with publication support. Lumiere Research Scholar Program allows students to pursue independent research in data science or computer science with a Ph.D. mentor.
When should I apply to research programs for high school students in Maryland?
IBBR closes February 13 and NIA STAR and NLM DSI Scholars both close February 18. Johns Hopkins SARE and WISE close March 1. ESTEEM/SER-Quest closes March 29 and NASA Goddard closes April 17. NIH SIP and ORISE at FDA accept rolling applications throughout the year. NIST SHIP applications open in mid-October for the following summer. Students should begin researching in the fall and prioritize February deadline programs well before the winter break.