Biology Programs & Competitions for High School Students

Biology extracurriculars span USABO, summer research in university labs, marine and field programs, and biomedical mentorships.

If you are pre-med-curious or research-oriented, a biology program with real lab time is the strongest early signal you can build.

50 verified programs match this page; 20 of the featured listings are completely free; 4 can be done online.

Featured programs

Browse 30+ curated programs for high school students:

• Summit STEM Fellowship (SSF) — Summit Education: The Summit STEM Fellowship (SSF) is a virtual summer program for top STEM students around the world. Students learn from mentors at Harvard, Stanford,
• Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program (SIMR) — Stanford University School of Medicine: Elite 8-week paid research internship at Stanford Medicine. Mentorship from world-class researchers. Highly competitive admission.
• Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS) — National Science Teaching Association & U.S. Armed Services: Research presentation competition with regional and national symposia.
• Whitehead Institute High School Research Program — Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research: Biomedical research program at MIT-affiliated Whitehead Institute. Hands-on experience in cutting-edge life sciences research.
• International Biology Olympiad (IBO) Team USA — Center for Excellence in Education: Only 4 students represent USA at IBO. Extremely prestigious, with team members regularly admitted to Harvard, MIT, Stanford for biology/pre-med.
• Salk Institute High School Research Scholars — Salk Institute for Biological Studies: Research program at iconic Jonas Salk's institute.
• Yale Young Global Scholars - Biology & Biomedical Sciences — Yale University: 2-week intensive in biology and biomedical sciences at Yale.
• Genomics Research Internship Program (GRIP) — Stanford University Department of Genetics: Paid summer research internship in Stanford genetics labs for local high school students underrepresented in biomedical science.
• Summer Cancer Research Experience Program — Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center: Paid 8-week in-person cancer research internship for WNY high school juniors and seniors at Roswell Park.
• GSA High School Research Contest — Genetics Society of America: Showcase your genetics research skills in this hybrid high school competition! Gain hands-on experience, boost your college applications, and present
• WCS High School Internship Program — Wildlife Conservation Society: Explore a paid summer internship at the Bronx Zoo or New York Aquarium! Gain hands-on biology and conservation experience to boost skills and strength
• AMNH Science Research Mentoring Program — American Museum of Natural History: Explore hands-on biology research through a free, year-long high school mentorship program at AMNH. Build STEM skills and boost your college applicati
• USA Biology Olympiad (USABO) — Center for Excellence in Education: Compete in the USA Biology Olympiad to enhance lab skills, deepen biology knowledge, and boost college applications. Open to high school students in g
• UCSC Summer Session: Science Internship Program (SIP) — University of California, Santa Cruz: Explore STEM careers with UCSC's free summer internship for high schoolers. Gain hands-on lab experience in astronomy, biology, and bioinformatics. Pe
• Research in the Biological Sciences (RIBS) — University of Chicago Summer Session: Explore a four-week summer program in molecular biology with hands-on lab research at UChicago. Build skills, boost college applications, and dive int
• Jackson Laboratory Summer Student Program - High School Application — The Jackson Laboratory: Explore genetics in this competitive high school summer program. Gain hands-on research experience, enhance your skills, and boost your college applic
• Heithoff-Brody High School Summer Scholars — Salk Institute for Biological Studies: Gain hands-on lab experience in biology, genetics, and neuroscience through this free summer program for high school juniors and seniors. Boost your c
• Penn Biomedical Research Academy — University of Pennsylvania College of Arts & Sciences: Explore hands-on biomedical research in this summer program for grades 10-12. Gain lab skills, enhance college applications, and dive deep into molecu
• Secondary Student Training Program (SSTP) — University of Iowa Belin-Blank Center: Discover a six-week summer program for high schoolers in grades 10-12 to gain hands-on STEM research experience with Iowa faculty mentors. Boost skill
• Simons Summer Research Program — Stony Brook University: Explore STEM fields in the fully funded Simons Summer Research Program. Conduct hands-on research, gain mentorship, and boost college applications. Pe
• Science Research Mentoring Program (SRMP) — American Museum of Natural History: Explore astrophysics, biology, and earth science in this free hybrid high school research program. Gain hands-on experience and boost your college app
• UC Davis Young Scholars Program (YSP) — University of California, Davis: Immerse yourself in a competitive STEM summer program at UC Davis. Conduct hands-on research in biology, chemistry, or physics and boost college appli
• USA Brain Bee — International Brain Bee - U.S.: Challenge your neuroscience skills in this free high school competition. Build expertise, boost college applications, and compete for a chance at nati
• Partners for the Future — Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory: Gain hands-on research experience in molecular biology, neuroscience, or genetics with this free high school lab placement. Boost college applications
• Clarkson University Pre-College Program — Clarkson University: Pre-college program at Clarkson University for high school students focusing on stem (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics).
• Waksman Institute Summer Experience (WISE) — Waksman Institute of Microbiology, Rutgers University: Two-week molecular biology and bioinformatics research institute at Rutgers where students entering grades 10-12 sequence and analyze duckweed genes a
• Stone Laboratory Summer Courses — The Ohio State University Stone Laboratory: Live and study on Ohio State's Lake Erie island campus: advanced sophomores-seniors earn college credit in week-long field courses like aquatic biolog
• Project FeederWatch — Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Cornell Lab of Ornithology's November-April citizen-science bird survey: count birds at home on your own schedule and submit data used in real ornitho
• Molecular Medicine in Action — Indiana University School of Medicine: Free two-day immersion at IU School of Medicine's Wells Center in Indianapolis where Indiana students in grades 10-12 run real experiments beside phys
• DNA Learning Center On-Demand Virtual Camps — Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory DNA Learning Center: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory's DNA Learning Center ships lab kits to students in grades 6-12 for self-paced virtual versions of its five-day DNA scie

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