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Medical School Internships for High School Students

Updated: Jul 17, 2022

Thinking medical school might be in your future? Consider a medical internship, summer program, or community service project now before you wastes time and money trying to get into a college pr-med major. This guide will explain what experiences are open to you as a high school student, what those experiences involve, and how you will benefit from them.


What Medical Experiences Are Available to High School Students? There are lots of ways to get a taste of what it's like to work in medicine. There are many summer medical programs and summer medical internships for high school students across the country. These opportunities range from research experiences to in-hospital experiences. Some of these programs and internships charge you a fee, some are paid for, and some even pay you to attend. Summer Medical Programs for High School Students: Offer high school students the chance to get hands-on experience in medicine (non-research related) such as learning simple medical procedures, watching surgeries, shadowing doctors, working in hospitals, interacting with patients, and more.

High School Senior Summer Internship Program

  • Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center

  • Cincinnati, OH

  • No cost

  • Interns are paid $9.30 an hour8 weeks

Medical Immersion Summer Academy

  • Mentoring in Medicine and Science

  • Oakland, CA

  • $1400 cost

  • 5 days

Medicine & Health Care Program

  • National Student Leadership Council

  • Various universities throughout the US

  • $3,495- $3,795

  • 9 days

Stanford Medical Youth Science Program

  • Stanford University

  • Stanford, CA

  • No cost

  • 5 weeks

Summer Medical Academy

  • Rady Children's Hospital and UC San Diego

  • San Diego, CA

  • $2,600

  • 12 days

UPenn Summer Academies

  • University of Pennsylvania

  • Philadelphia, PA

  • $5,049

  • 3 weeks

AIM-High (Osteopathic Medicine)

  • NSU Florida

  • Fort Lauderdale, FL

  • $1800

  • 5 days

Medical Research Programs for High School Students: You'll be working in a lab and helping with medical research (i.e. looking at slides under a microscope, recording changes) or assisting with on-going clinical research (i.e. interviewing participants in an on-going trial of new medication, logging participant information in the computer). You are usually paired with a mentor. NOTE: Many of these programs are free or pay stipends, but not every program provides free housing. Make sure you check each program's housing accommodations before you apply!)

Summer Scholars Biology Research Immersion Program

  • Buck Institute for Research on Aging

  • Novato, CA

  • No cost; stipend given

  • 10-12 weeks

Disease Detective Camp

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC

  • Atlanta, Georgia

  • No cost

  • 5 days

Summer Child Health Research Internship

  • Children's Hospital Colorado

  • Aurora, CO

  • No cost. Interns are paid

  • $3,500

  • 8 weeks

Summer Research Program

  • Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute

  • Oakland, CA

  • No cost

  • 9 weeks

Biomedical Research Internship for Minority Students

  • Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center

  • Cincinnati, OH

  • No costs. Interns are paid $9.30 an hour

  • 9 weeks

City of Hope Cancer Center

  • Eugene and Ruth Roberts Summer Student Academy

  • Duarte, CA

  • No cost. Students receive a stipend of $4,000

  • 10 weeks

Summer Experience for Students

  • Coriell Institute for Medical Research

  • Camden, NJ

  • No cost. Students receive a stipend of $1,000

  • 4 weeks

Initiative to Eliminate Cancer Disparities, CURE (Summer Only)

  • Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center

  • Boston, MA

  • No cost

  • 8-12 weeks

Summer Research Program

  • Indiana University Cancer Center

  • Indianapolis, IN

  • No cost

  • 6 weeks

Summer Research Internship

  • Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience

  • Jupiter, FL

  • No cost. Students are paid $11.50/hour

  • 6 weeks

Summer Internships for High School and College Students

  • McLaughlin Research Institute

  • Great Falls, MT

  • No cost

  • 8 weeks

High School Summer Program

  • MD Anderson Cancer Center

  • Houston, TX

  • No cost. Interns are paid $6,000

  • 10 weeks

Diversity Summer Enrichment Programs

  • Medical College of Wisconsin

  • Milwaukee, WI

  • No cost

  • 7 weeks

Werner H. Kirsten Student Intern Program

  • National Cancer Institute

  • Frederick, MD

  • No cost. Students receive a $3,400 stipend

  • 8 weeks

NEI Summer Intern Program

  • National Eye Institute

  • Bethesda, MD & Rockville, MD

  • No cost. Students receive a monthly stipend (amount varies)

  • 8-12 weeks

Summer Internship Program in Biomedical Research

  • NIH Bethesda, MD

  • No cost. Students receive a monthly stipend (amount varies)

  • min of 8 weeks

Summer Student Program

  • National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases

  • Bethesda, MD

  • No cost. Students receive a monthly stipend of $2,080minimum

  • 8 weeks

National Institute on Drug Abuse: Summer Research with NIDA

  • NIDA Various universities throughout the US

  • No cost. Interns are paid $15 an hour

  • 8 weeks

NIDDK Education Program for Underrepresented Persons STEP-UP - High School Program

  • National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

  • Bethesda, MD

  • No cost. Students receive a stipend (amount varies)

  • 8-10 weeks

Summer Internship Program

  • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

  • ResearchTriangle Park, NC

  • No cost. Students are paid per hour (salary varies)

  • 8 weeks

Summer Program in the Neurological Sciences

  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

  • Bethesda, MD

  • No cost. Students receive a stipend (amount varies)minimum

  • 8 weeks

Summer Cancer Research Experience Program for High School Students

  • Roswell Park Cancer Institute

  • Buffalo, NY

  • No cost. Limited, need-based stipends available

  • 7 weeks

Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program

  • Stanford University School of Medicine

  • Stanford, CA

  • No cost. Students receive stipends from $500 to $1500

  • 8 weeks

Summer Student Program

  • The Jackson Laboratory

  • Bar Harbor, ME and Farmington, CT

  • No cost. Students receive a stipend of $6,000

  • 10 weeks

Helios Scholars Program

  • Translational Genomics Research Institute

  • Phoenix, AZ

  • No cost. Students are paid $12.15 an hour

  • 8 weeks

High School Student Research Apprentice Program

  • University of Connecticut Health Center

  • Farmington, CT

  • $1,290 minimum, with discounts for students who enroll in multiple sessions

  • 3 - 6 weeks

Summer Research Scholars Program

  • University of Minnesota Medical School, Lillehei Heart Institute

  • Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN

  • No cost. Students receive a stipend (amount varies)

  • 9 weeks

Travis B. Lewis High School Scholarship Award Program

  • University of Nebraska Department of Pharmacology & Experimental Neuroscience

  • Omaha, NE

  • No cost. Students receive a stipend of $1,500

  • up to 10 weeks

Biomedical Research Training for High School Students

  • University of Texas Medical Branch

  • Galveston, TX

  • No cost

  • 7 weeks

Summer Fellowship Program in Biomedical Research

  • Wistar Institute

  • Philadelphia, PA

  • No cost. Students receive a stipend (amount varies)

  • 8 week

Science Research Programs for High School Students: As a part of your pre-med track, you'll be required to take Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Organic Chemistry, and more. Doing one of these science programs will give you a preview of the coursework ahead of you.


Aspiring Scientists Summer Internship Program

  • George Mason University

  • Fairfax, Virginia

  • No cost

  • 8 weeks

Army Educational Outreach Programs

  • Department of Defense

  • Washington, DC

  • Varies. Some scholarships and grants are available

  • Varies depending on program

Internship Program

  • J. Craig Venter Institute

  • Rockville, MD

  • No cost. Students are paid $15.00 an hour

  • 8-15 weeks

Maine Research Internships for Teachers and High School Students MERITS

  • Maine Space Grant Consortium

  • Augusta, ME

  • No cost. Students earn a stipend (amount undisclosed)

  • 6 weeks

Research Science Institute

  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology - MIT

  • Cambridge, MA

  • No cost

  • 6 weeks

Monell Science Apprenticeship Program

  • Monell Chemical Senses Center

  • Philadelphia, PA

  • No cost

  • 7 weeks

Summer Research Program

  • Monmouth University

  • West Long Branch, NJ

  • No cost. Students are paid about $12 per hour

  • 10 weeks

Summer Youth Internship Program

  • Museum of Science

  • Boston, MA

  • No cost. Positions can be paid or unpaid, depending on program

  • Varies

National Space Club Scholars Program

  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration

  • Greenbelt, MD & Wallops Island, VA

  • No cost. Students received a stipend of $2,100

  • 7 weeks

OARDC Research Internships in Wooster ORIP

  • Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center

  • Wooster, OH

  • No cost.

  • Students receive a stipend of $3,500

  • 10 weeks

Apprenticeships in Science and Engineering (ASE) program

  • Saturday Academy

  • Oregon & Southwest Washington

  • Varies

  • Varies by program, but usually 8 weeks

High School Student Research Education Program

  • Scripps Research Institute

  • Jupiter, FL

  • No cost. Students are paid $4,060

  • 6 weeks

Howard Hughes Medical Institute Program

  • University of Maryland

  • College Park, MD

  • $250

  • 2 weeks

Internships for High School

  • State University of New York College at Oneonta

  • Cooperstown, NY

  • No cost. Interns receive a stipend of $3,000

  • 10 weeks

Student Scholars Program

  • The Forsyth Institute

  • Boston, MA

  • No cost. Students are paid an hourly wage (amount varies)

  • 8 weeks

Geosciences Bridge Program

  • University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Living Marine Resources Cooperative Science Center

  • Princess Anne, MD

  • No cost. Students are paid $500 per week

  • 6 weeks

Summer Research Apprentice Program

  • University of Wyoming

  • Laramie, WY

  • Varies depending on program

  • Varies depending on program

Other Options for High School Students: Volunteering at local hopsital and job shadowing are both great ways to build a resume for college and learn about the medical field. And they are both free and close to home!

Hospital Volunteer - You muat apply (usually on a hospital's website or in pereson), commit to a regular weekly schedule, and perform specific tasks.


Shadowing A Doctor - Reach out to friends or family who work in the medical field. Ask your HS counselor, or call a local hospital or clients to find a doctor to shadow. You will follow a doctor around while they go about their normal activities. You are not there to work, just to see what a doctor does in their daily routine to determine if it interests you.


Author, Dora Seigel

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