If you’re wondering what to do this upcoming summer, attending a pre-college program focused on medicine can be a great way to show colleges how passionate you are about pursuing a pre-med major. Many of these programs are in-person, and offer opportunities to meet students from different backgrounds and live in a college environment while in high school.
Let’s look at some of the best programs for students interested in medicine. Some of these programs are hybrid in-person/online, so you have the option to study from home or on-site. Remember what they say about the best-laid plans of mice and men: changes in the pandemic could push all of these programs online.
The applications for these programs vary, but many will require your high-school transcripts, a letter of recommendation from a teacher, and a personal statement about why you’re interested in the program. Many of the programs are focused on rising juniors and seniors, but others are open to all high-school students.
National Student Leadership Conference – Medicine and Health Care
Location: Eight different universities (Harvard, Duke, Northwestern, etc.)
Overview: The National Student Leadership Conference offers a number of programs for young learners, and the Medicine and Health Care program is a great option for students looking to study medicine. The program features hands-on learning that includes suturing, testing vital-signs, and identifying cranial nerves. Students will also work in groups to identify public health issues and present on their chosen topic.
Age: All HS Students
Application Deadline: Rolling Decision
Dates: Various (~20 different sections across the locations, 9 days in length)
Tuition: $3,595
National Student Leadership Conference—Medicine and Health Care
Location: American University, Washington DC
Overview: The National Student Leadership Conference also offers a longer 18-day intensive program focusing on health care in Washington, DC. This program is similar to the previous one but a bit more in depth—students will learn how to conduct biopsies, ultrasound tests, CPR, and intubation. The program includes medical site visits to nearby hospitals and labs, and also features doctors who will speak on the various career specialties available in medicine. Speakers include the director of the N.I.H. and the current surgeon general.
Age: All HS Students
Application Deadline: Rolling Decision
Dates: June 11th-28th or July 5th-22nd 2022
Tuition: $5,995
UC Irvine Summer Surgery Program
Location: UC Irvine, Irvine, CA
Overview: UC Irvine’s Summer Surgery Program is a great opportunity for high school students to get hands-on practice in simulated medical environments. One day of each session is dedicated to patient simulation at UC Irvine’s medical school, and students will interact with medical professionals at all stages of their careers—professors, doctors, residents, and medical school students. Students learn about human anatomy and get the opportunity to view real surgeries at the UC Irvine Hospital. Two sessions are offered in the summer—the first is for commuter students, and the second includes full room and board.
Age: 16+
Application Deadline: Rolling Decision (24 spaces per session)
Dates: July 11th-22nd or July 25th-August 5th 2022
Tuition: $4,550/5,850
Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program
Location: Stanford, Palo Alto, CA
Overview: Stanford University’s Medicine Summer Research Program Is a summer-long (eight week) program wherein high school students conduct research in partnership with Stanford faculty and fellows. This research-focused program aims to increase student interest and participation in medical research—students conduct one-on-one research in partnership with a faculty mentor. Stanford’s program is planning on in-person learning this summer. This program is very competitive—it’s absolutely free if you can get in, and some students even get a research stipend. Stanford’s application deadline is somewhat early and may have already passed by the time you’re reading this, but consider bookmarking this wonderful program for next year if it’s too late.
Age: Juniors and Seniors, 16+
Application Deadline: February 26th, 2022
Dates: June 13th-August 4th 2022
Tuition: FREE
Stanford’s Cardiothoracic Surgical Skills and Education Center Summer Program
Location: Stanford, Palo Alto, CA or Online
Overview: Stanford University’s Cardiothoracic Surgical Skills Program Is a two-week program focusing on cardiovascular and thoracic diseases and surgery. Students will gain hands-on practice of surgical skills, and practice simulated cardiothoracic surgical procedures. The course is heavily focused on surgery and responses to cardiovascular conditions—students partner with faculty and residents at Stanford Med’s Surgery department. Stanford is currently planning to offer this course in person, but they do warn that it’s possible they’ll have to move it online.
Age: Juniors and Seniors, 16+
Application Deadline: March 7th, 2022
Dates: June 27th-July 8th or July 18th-July 29th 2022
Tuition: $5,500
Columbia Summer Immersion Program
Location: New York City, Online
Overview: Columbia’s Summer Immersion Program has numerous courses focusing on medicine and public health, and students can choose whether they’d like to study in-person or online. Students can choose programs of various lengths, and the program is open to all high-school students. This is a great option for everyone, but it’s especially appealing if you’d like to study from home this summer.
Age: All HS Students
Application Deadline: March 3rd, 2022
Dates: Various dates depending on program/course selected (1 week or 3 weeks, offered at different times in summer.)
Tuition: Varies based on program length and residential/commuter/online
UChicago Summer Immersion Programs
Location: Chicago, IL, Online
Overview: UChicago offers a number of online and in-person courses that focus on medicine and biology. Relevant courses include Research in the Biological Sciences, The Biochemistry of Nutrition, and Introduction to Quantitative Modeling in Biology. UChicago offers many of their programs to all high-school students, but some are only available to seniors and juniors.
Age: All HS Students
Application Deadline: March 9th, 2022 (regular decision), April 7th, 2022 (Extended Decision), May 1st (Rolling)
Dates: Various, courses offered in different sections throughout the summer
Tuition: $4,300–$7,775
Harvard Summer School
Location: Cambridge, MA, Online
Overview: Harvard’s Summer School features both full-summer courses and shorter intensive programs that focus on biology and medicine. Harvard’s programs are only open to students aged 16+, and students can select to study one or more courses for their summer enrichment. Programs are currently both in-person and online, although Harvard states that plans for in-person programs are moved online this summer.
Age: 16 or older by June 18th, 2022
Application Deadline: March 2nd, 2022 (regular decision), May 11th, 2022 (Late Decision)
Dates: June 18th-August 6th, 2022
Tuition: $3,500–$13,200
Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes
Location: Online
Overview: Stanford also offers a full slate of online courses, and many focus on biology and medical science. Stanford’s Summer Institutes are fully online in 2022. This is a great option for students who’d like to work from home but would still like to study under the Stanford umbrella. Stanford’s online courses are also a little cheaper than many of the others offered over the summer.
Age: All HS Students, but certain courses are Juniors/Seniors only
Application Deadline: March 15th, 2022
Dates: June 20th-July 1st 2022 OR July 11th-July 22nd 2022
Tuition: $2,700
UCLA Summer Sessions
Location: UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
Overview: UCLA’s Summer College Immersion Program features a number of courses focused on medicine and biology. Students have the opportunity to select their courses, and can select from options such as Introduction to Human Physiology, Brain Made Simple: Neuroscience in the 21st century, and Introductory Psychobiology. The program will be in person this summer.
Age: Juniors and Seniors
Application Deadline: May 15th, 2022
Dates: June 20th-July 29th, 2022
Tuition: ~$6,500
A lot of these programs’ application deadlines will close soon—the best time to get started on applying is now. If you decide not to attend a summer program, or you’re unsure of how to proceed this summer, just remember that it’s important to do something. Whether it be an online course, independent study, or even lifeguarding at the pool, find something to fill your time (and college application).
If you have any further questions or would like to discuss your summer with us, please feel free to reach out to us here.