Looking to stand out in the medical or pre-medical field of undergraduate study? Or, wondering if there are any hands-on STEM internships in or around the CA Bay Area happening this summer or this spring? Here we share various STEM-related internship opportunities in the Bay Area. We hope this list of unique high school internships in medicine throughout California schools helps you start your search!

1. Buck Institute for Research on Aging Internship

Deadline: 1/17/2023
Location: Novato, CA
Description: “Buck Institute for Research on Aging provides a seven-week research internship to prepare local high school students for careers in biomedical and Geroscience research.”
Duration: 7 weeks
Age Eligibility: Current 9-12th graders who have completed at least one Advanced Placement science course (or equivalent).
Pay/Cost: Cost of $2,500 per intern over and above the support of program sponsors. “Full and partial scholarships are available to students completing 10th and 11th grades based on financial need.”

2. Medical Immersion Summer Academy (MISA) Internship

Deadline: 1/23/2023
Location: Oakland, CA
Description: “The Medical Immersion Summer & Spring Academy (MISA) was founded in 2012 in Oakland, California by Dr. Freeman. Further, MISA works to expose pre-med and pre-health high school students to hands-on clinical experience in a variety of healthcare settings that will provide them with a competitive edge as they begin their own careers in health. Specifically, MISA partners with local health institutions such as Alameda Health Systems, Samuel Merritt University, and private clinicians in the area to bring this valuable experience to high school students from all across the country.”
Duration: 1 week
Age Eligibility: High school students
Pay/Cost: $ Fee-paying.

3. Horizon Academic Programs

Deadline: 5/1/2023
Location: Online
Description: “Horizon Academic is a trimester-long online research program for extraordinary high school students interested in doing undergraduate-level research. To explain, our program is structured to advise students in selecting a topic, conducting research, and crafting a research manuscript under the individualized guidance of a professor or doctoral researcher from a globally renowned university. Students in Horizon Academic choose their own field of inquiry within one of the 15 subjects that we offer. After a trimester of reading, writing, and exploring, students finish their final projects, most often a 20-page research paper. By showcasing a student's very best work, Horizon gives students the opportunity to get letters of recommendation, seek outside recognition of the quality of their work, and demonstrate their exceptional talent to universities. Horizon Academic has always been conducted entirely online, and students complete research projects using desktop research methods, without the need to access any equipment or research facilities. On the other hand, note that admissions are selective - 30% of applicants are admitted.”
Duration: 15 weeks
Age Eligibility: High school students
Pay/Cost: $ Fee-paying.

4. Pioneer Academics Program

Deadline: Announced 1/12/2023
Location: Online
Description: “Pioneer Academics is a U.S.-based organization founded in cooperation with American university professors and international education experts. Its goal is to provide outstanding high school students around the world with challenging and creative research opportunities across a wide range of disciplines. Specifically, we hope to carry out research in the areas of natural sciences, mathematics, social sciences, and humanities.”
Duration: Spring 25 weeks, Summer 10 weeks
Age Eligibility: High school students
Pay/Cost: $6,355. “We offer assistance to about 20% of students, depending on their economic situation, ranging from partial to full.”

5. Polygence Program

Deadline: Rolling
Location: Online
Description: “Polygence is an online research academy founded by Harvard, MIT, and Stanford researchers dedicated to democratizing access to research opportunities for high school students. First, connect with an expert mentor online. Then, develop a research project. Finally, showcase your work and passion through a publication, conference presentation, or creative piece.”
Duration: All-year
Age Eligibility: High school students
Pay/Cost: $ Fee-paying

6. Empowerly Research Scholars Program

Deadline: Fall 22 - Aug 22, 2022, Spring 23 - Nov 14, 2022
Location: Online
Description: “We offer a diverse range of research programs, designed to suit a range of ages and experience levels. Each Program has a Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter session. Create an independent research paper in a pre-designed area of a mentor’s expertise. The program includes
- ?12-16 week research program
- ?individual sessions with a world-class researcher
- ?seminar sessions with a world-class researcher (2-4 students)
- ?individual sessions with a writing coach
- ?workshops on the research process
- ?A research paper
Topics include Biotechnology; The Human Body & Diseases; Psychology of Organizations; Astrophysics; Behavioral Economics; Economics Policy Analysis; Deep Learning; Machine Learning; Software Development Systems; Gender & Education in Global & Comparative Perspectives; Reproductive Politics; ?Civil & Environmental Engineering; Chemical & Biology Engineering; Organic & Inorganic Chemistry; Chemical Kinetics & Dynamics; Technology Adoptions in Firms; International Policy; International Security; Understanding Global Warming; Environmental History of Earth and more.”

Duration: All-year
Age Eligibility: 8th-12th graders
Pay/Cost: $ Fee-paying

7. MIT Think Project

Deadline: 1/1/2023
Location: Online
Description: “Rather than requiring students to have completed a research project before applying, THINK caters to students who have done extensive research on the background of a potential research project and are looking for additional guidance in the early stages of their project. The program is organized by a group of undergraduates at MIT. Selected finalists have weekly mentorship meetings with THINK team members for technical guidance, helpful resources, and updates on the project's progress and are given up to $1,000 in funding for their project. Additionally, if permitting, finalists are invited to a four-day all-expenses paid trip to MIT's campus, where they tour labs, present their research to MIT students and faculty and hang out with members of the THINK team.”
Duration: All-year
Age Eligibility: High school students
Pay/Cost: Free

8. Pediatrics Internship Program at Stanford (PIPS)

Deadline: 2/26/2023
Location: Palo Alto, CA
Description: “The Pediatrics Internship Program at Stanford (PIPS) is a 6-week program in which high school students from diverse backgrounds are invited to learn about science, medicine, and research with Stanford faculty, postdoctoral fellows, students, and researchers on a medically-oriented project. The goals of the program include increasing interest in biological sciences and medicine in high school students, helping students to understand how scientific research is performed, and increasing the diversity of students and researchers in the sciences.”
Duration: Approximately 5 weeks
Age Eligibility: “Currently be rising juniors or seniors, 16 years old or older by the start of the program, and live in Northern California, ideally no more than a 1-hour commute from the Stanford campus.”
Pay/Cost: Free, students in need of financial aid are eligible for a $3,000 stipend.

9. UCSF Program for Investigation and Training for Centers in Health (PITCH)

Deadline: TBA, last yr deadline: 4/29/2022
Location: San Francisco, CA
Description: “Program for Investigation and Training in Careers in Health (PITCH) is a three-week, unpaid internship at UCSF for current high school students. At PITCH, students will conduct research under the guidance of UCSF students, meet with professors, receive college advice, participate in labs, and much more.”
Duration: 3 weeks
Age Eligibility: High school students (preferably local in the Bay Area).
Pay/Cost: Free

10. Science Internship Program at UCSC

Deadline: TBA
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
Description: “SIP is a summer-long research internship program for high-school students in STEM fields. UCSC faculty, graduate students, and post-doctoral researchers provide one-on-one mentoring for these high-school interns. The research projects are real in that they are not made up just for high-school students; instead, students are inserted into existing research projects here at UCSC.”
Duration: 8 weeks
Age Eligibility: Must be 14 (or 16 for some projects) and currently enrolled in high school.
Pay/Cost: $ Fee-paying
- Application fee - $60
- Deposit to hold a spot - $300
- The remainder of academic program fee - $2,700
- Optional campus housing fee per week - $475

11. Cardiothoracic Surgical Skills and Education Center Stanford Summer Internship

Deadline: TBA
Location: Stanford, CA
Description: “This summer internship is an elective course for high school and pre-med students that will provide exposure to the steps towards mastering basic and advanced cardiothoracic surgery (e.g., knot tying, dissection, suturing, coronary artery bypass graft, and aortic valve replacements).”
Duration: 2 weeks
Age Eligibility: Minimum age of 16
Pay/Cost: Application fee of $195 USD; a program fee of $5,500 USD.

12. Stanford Clinical Sumer Internship

Deadline: 2/24/2023
Location: Stanford, CA
Description: “MEDCSI is a rigorous 2-week program in Medicine that is open to highly motivated high school and premed students. Workshops and sessions are taught by Stanford faculty and include hands-on experiences such as performing bedside ultrasounds, dissections, suturing, splinting, and visits to the Stanford emergency life flight station and free clinics. There are two identical sessions each summer. There is a fee to participate.”
Duration: 2 weeks
Age Eligibility: High school students
Pay/Cost: $3,780

After all, these summer internship programs all provide high school students with the rare opportunity to gain their own intern experience. Conducting research at an internship like this definitely stands out to college app officers!

For more help and information about the college admissions process, Empowerly is here to help. Search for answers on our blog or book a free intro call with an expert to discuss our programs. In the end, college counseling can make all the difference in landing the best high school summer internships in medicine.

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