Start exploring Pre-Med & Life Sciences summer programs for middle schoolers

Dates:

3 sessions between Jul 3–Jul 31, 2027 (2 weeks and 4 weeks (both sessions) options)

Length:

2 weeks–4 weeks (both sessions)

Cost:

$4,985–$9,970

Location:

Smith College, Northampton, MA

Grades:

Students entering grades 9–12 in fall 2027 (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Priority Feb 1, 2027 · Tuition assistance Mar 1, 2027 · Final May 1, 2027

Residential science and engineering program at Smith College. Students take lab-based courses with Smith faculty in the life sciences, physical sciences, or engineering, in topics such as robotics, genetics, neuroscience, chemistry, and climate science.

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Irvine, CA (UC Irvine campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

Data science for biology and medicine: exploratory analysis, visualization, probability, experimental design, linear models and machine learning, using the R language. Capstone projects use real data from fields such as neuroscience, public health and pharmacology.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Irvine, CA (UC Irvine campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

How cells grow and interact in tissues and how tumors form, studied through lab work with model organisms such as frog eggs and Hydra alongside a mathematical biology course that builds computer models of tissue and tumor growth.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Irvine, CA (UC Irvine campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

How gene expression makes cells different, using skeletal muscle development and dystrophies as a case study, with lab work measuring gene expression, RNA-seq data analysis and small-group research projects.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Irvine, CA (UC Irvine campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

An introduction to brain-computer interfaces: recording brain signals, analyzing and classifying them, and using brainwaves to control devices, combining neuroscience and biomedical engineering.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Irvine, CA (UC Irvine campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

Studies how gut bacteria respond to diet and stresses such as heat, acid and salt, with lab work isolating and identifying bacteria from foods and exploring how stress responses can make bacteria tolerant of antibiotics.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Merced, CA (UC Merced campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

Studies the partnership between the Hawaiian bobtail squid and its glowing bacteria: students culture bioluminescent bacteria, watch infection change squid development under the microscope, run DNA extraction and PCR, explore CRISPR, and design their own experiment.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

La Jolla, CA (UC San Diego campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

How engineering and biology combine to restore or regenerate tissue, from engineered skin to cell-based knee repair.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Santa Cruz, CA (UC Santa Cruz campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

How an animal embryo builds its body from a single cell and how development relates to human disease, with hands-on bioinformatics training in single-cell analysis.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Santa Cruz, CA (UC Santa Cruz campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

Hands-on wet lab work in genetics and molecular cloning, phage biology and model organisms, plus bioinformatics, scientific reading and paper writing; possible field trips to SLAC National Accelerator Lab and the UCSC botanic garden.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Los Angeles, CA (UCLA campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

How brains and artificial neural networks learn, from memory and sleep to machine consciousness: morning lectures link neuroscience and machine learning, and afternoon Python labs build networks that model brain circuits or recognize images.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 5–31, 2027

Length:

4 weeks

Cost:

$5,518 (2026 pricing; housing, meals and field trips)

Location:

Los Angeles, CA (UCLA campus)

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th graders attending high school in California (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Residential

Deadline:

Due Feb 5, 2027

Computational biology from gene prediction and protein sequence comparison to phylogenetic trees and AI protein structure prediction, using real datasets in afternoon labs and ending in a team poster and talk on specific genes and proteins.

Residency restriction: CA residents

Dates:

Jul 19–23, 2027

Length:

1 week

Cost:

$1,000

Location:

Garden City, NY

Grades:

Rising 9th–12th Graders (completed grades 8–11)

Format:

Commuter

One-week commuter academy on Adelphi's Garden City campus. Students spend full days on hands-on projects and career exploration in one focus, with professional mentorship. The healthcare academy covers career paths through workshops and nationally recognized certifications.

Dates:

2 sessions between Jun 21–Jun 27, 2027 (6 days and 7 days options)

Length:

6 days–7 days

Cost:

$3,499–$3,999

Location:

Washington

Grades:

6-8

Format:

Residential / Commuter

Zoo-medicine program held at American University and run with Loop Abroad. Students do veterinary labs, including wildlife blow-dart practice, visit the Smithsonian National Zoo and a working farm, and take a short monuments tour, with a 15:1 student-to-veterinarian ratio.

Dates:

2 sessions between Jun 26–Jul 3, 2027 (6 days and 8 days options)

Length:

6 days–8 days

Cost:

$4,199–$4,599

Location:

Ann Arbor, MI (venue pending)

Grades:

Students currently in grades 7–8

Format:

Residential / Commuter

Middle school medical program with hands-on clinical skills such as suturing and taking blood pressure, disaster-triage and outdoor emergency medicine simulations, and visits to a medical school or simulation center, offered residential or as a day program.

Dates:

2 sessions between Jul 6–Jul 13, 2027 (6 days and 8 days options)

Length:

6 days–8 days

Cost:

$4,099–$4,499

Location:

Emory University, Atlanta, GA

Grades:

Students currently in grades 7–8

Format:

Residential / Commuter

Middle school medical program with hands-on clinical skills such as suturing and taking blood pressure, disaster-triage and outdoor emergency medicine simulations, and visits to a medical school or simulation center, offered residential or as a day program.

Dates:

2 sessions between Jul 24–Jul 31, 2027 (6 days and 8 days options)

Length:

6 days–8 days

Cost:

$4,099–$4,499

Location:

University of California, Berkeley, CA

Grades:

Students currently in grades 7–8

Format:

Residential / Commuter

Middle school medical program with hands-on clinical skills such as suturing and taking blood pressure, disaster-triage and outdoor emergency medicine simulations, and visits to a medical school or simulation center, offered residential or as a day program.

Dates:

7 weekly sessions, Jun 13–Jul 30, 2027

Length:

1 week

Cost:

$1,598–$3,248

Location:

Berkeley, CA

Grades:

Completed 6th-8th grade (ages 12-14)

Format:

Commuter / Residential

One-week academic program for middle schoolers. Students spend the week in one course.

Dates:

2 sessions between Jul 4–Jul 16, 2027 (1 week options)

Length:

1 week

Cost:

$1,848–$3,248

Location:

Washington, DC (Georgetown University)

Grades:

Completed 6th-8th grade (ages 12-14)

Format:

Commuter / Residential

One-week academic program for middle schoolers. Students spend the week in one course.

Dates:

5 weekly sessions, Jun 20–Jul 23, 2027

Length:

1 week

Cost:

$2,048

Location:

New York, NY (NYU Kimmel Center)

Grades:

Completed 5th-8th grade (ages 11-14)

Format:

Commuter

One-week academic program for middle schoolers. Students spend the week in one course. One-week weekday commuter course in MS Medicine at NYU's Kimmel Center, with lunch included. The listed price includes a $250 course supplement.

Dates:

3 sessions between Jul 4–Jul 23, 2027 (1 week options)

Length:

1 week

Cost:

$1,598–$3,248

Location:

San Diego, CA (UC San Diego)

Grades:

Completed 6th-8th grade (ages 12-14)

Format:

Commuter / Residential

One-week academic program for middle schoolers. Students spend the week in one course.

Dates:

Jun 27–Jul 2, 2027

Length:

1 week

Cost:

$1,648–$3,048

Location:

Seattle, WA (University of Washington)

Grades:

Completed 6th-8th grade (ages 12-14)

Format:

Commuter / Residential

One-week academic program for middle schoolers. Students spend the week in one course.

Dates:

Jun 27–Jul 2, 2027

Length:

1 week

Cost:

$1,398–$3,048

Location:

Nashville, TN (Vanderbilt University)

Grades:

Completed 6th-8th grade (ages 12-14)

Format:

Commuter / Residential

One-week academic program for middle schoolers. Students spend the week in one course.

Dates:

July 25-31, 2027 (Pine Bush Equine Services, SUNY New Paltz housing)

Length:

7 days

Cost:

$4,999

Location:

Pine Bush

Grades:

6-8

Format:

Residential

Middle-school-aged (grades 6-8) version of the New York Horse & Large Animal Veterinary Academy, at the same Pine Bush location, with age-appropriate skill development. Run in partnership with Loop Abroad, described as the leading pre-veterinary travel program in the nation. 10:1 student-to-veterinarian ratio, maximum 30 students.