Programs
Discover summer programs, competitions, and research opportunities for high school students.
AFS Global STEM Accelerators Program
The AFS Global STEM Accelerators program is a 12-week virtual exchange for young women aged 15-17.5 interested in STEM, sustainability, and social impact.
TOPSS Competition for High School Psychology Students
The TOPSS Competition for High School Psychology Students is an annual competition organized by the American Psychological Association's Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Scho...
Anthem Essay Contest
The Anthem Essay Contest offers students the opportunity to win up to $2,000 in scholarship prizes by writing about Ayn Rand's novel, Anthem.
High School Essay Contest
The Berkeley Economic Review High School Essay Contest invites high school students to explore economic topics through essay writing.
BioGENEius Challenge
The BioGENEius Challenge is the Biotechnology Institute's flagship competition that enables high school students to gain recognition for outstanding original research in biotech...
Blue Ocean Student Entrepreneur Competition
The Blue Ocean Student Entrepreneur Competition is the largest and most prestigious virtual pitch competition for high school students around the world.
Ocean Awareness Contest
The 15th annual Ocean Awareness Contest is a platform for young people to learn about environmental issues through art-making and creative communication, explore their relations...
True Blue Fellowship
The True Blue Fellowship (formerly the Fellowship Grant Program) aims to connect and empower youth around the world to leverage the creative arts to enact change in local commun...
Breakthrough Junior Challenge
The Breakthrough Junior Challenge is an annual, global science video competition for high-school students.
Cambridge Re:think Essay Competition 2026
The Cambridge Re:think Essay Competition encourages critical thinking and exploration of a wide range of thought-provoking and often controversial topics across diverse subjects.
Research Science Institute (RSI)
The Research Science Institute (RSI) is a cost-free summer science and engineering program for high school students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Civic Innovators Fellowship
The Civic Innovators Fellowship is a free, fully virtual 8-week program run by Civics Unplugged that blends history and civics with emerging technology and personal development...
Climate Science Olympiad
The Climate Science Olympiad is a global competition where participants solve real-world problems related to climate change.
The Conrad Challenge
The Conrad Challenge is a competition that takes students through the process of innovation and entrepreneurship.
Diamond Challenge Competition
The Diamond Challenge, a philanthropic education initiative by Horn Entrepreneurship at the University of Delaware, provides free resources for students, educators, and entrepre...
Exploring Complex Solutions for a Complex World Fellowship
An online, semester-long program for high school students interested in understanding political, economic, and social life.
FIRST Robotics Competition
Combining the excitement of sport with the rigors of science and technology, teams of high school students design, program, and build industrial-sized robots to play an action-p...
Barcelona International Youth Science Challenge (BIYSC)
The Barcelona International Youth Science Challenge (BIYSC) is a two-week international residential science program for high-achieving secondary students, organized by Fundació...
GENIUS Art
GENIUS Art raises public awareness to take action on global environmental problems and solutions.
GENIUS Business
GENIUS Business (now officially called GENIUS Entrepreneurship) raises awareness of environmental values in the business world, from bringing green products and services to mark...
GENIUS Coding
GENIUS Coding allows students to use their coding skills to create innovative solutions to environmental issues.
GENIUS Music
GENIUS Music aims to raise public concern for environmental problems and offer solutions through musical performance.
GENIUS Robotics
Genius Robotics is a student-centric competition that enables students to understand the role of engineering and research in environmental issues.
GENIUS Science
GENIUS Science provides understanding and solutions to environmental problems using scientific knowledge.
GENIUS Short Film
Rich with a variety of stories and purposes, sequential imagery has been used for over 200 years to capture and hold the public’s attention.
GENIUS Speech
GENIUS Speech raises awareness and inspires action on environmental issues through persuasive speeches and talks.
Summer Immersion Program
The Girls Who Code Summer Immersion Program was a free, virtual two-week program where high school girls and non-binary students learned computer science fundamentals in live vi...
Global Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge (GYEC)
The Global Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge (GYEC) is an online 12-hour business idea competition for high school students aged 14 to 18.
HMMT February
The HMMT February tournament is a mathematics competition for high school students held at MIT.
HMMT November
The HMMT November tournament is a mathematics competition for high school students, held at Harvard.
Harvard Model United Nations
Harvard Model United Nations is the oldest, largest, and most prestigious Model UN conference for high school students.
Harvard Model United Nations Australia
Harvard Model United Nations Australia is a four-day international relations simulation for high school students.
Harvard Model United Nations China
The Harvard Model United Nations China (HMUN China) is an annual conference taking place in Guangzhou, China.
Harvard Undergraduate International Relations Scholars Program
The Harvard Undergraduate International Relations Scholars Program (HUIRSP) is a multi-day virtual conference for high school students who are interested in pursuing a career in...
Harvard Undergraduate Ventures-TECH Summer Program (HUVTSP)
This program has been discontinued. The Technology and Entrepreneurship Center at Harvard (TECH), which ran the HUVTSP, permanently closed in 2025 after operating from 2000–2025.
Horizon Academic Research Program
The Horizon Academic Research Program is the oldest 1-on-1 research program in the world, founded in 2016 by Columbia University researchers.
iGEM Competition
The iGEM (International Genetically Engineered Machine) Competition is the world's largest synthetic biology competition, organized annually by the iGEM Foundation.
Imagine Cup
Unlock your startup’s potential with the Imagine Cup, the premier global technology competition for student founders using AI and the Microsoft Cloud to transform their innovati...
International Biology Olympiad
The International Biology Olympiad (IBO) is the world's largest biology competition for secondary school students.
International Brain Bee World Championship
The International Brain Bee World Championship is a high-level academic competition for students who have won their national Brain Bee competitions.
International Chemistry Olympiad
The International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) is an annual academic competition for high school students.
International Linguistics Olympiad
The International Linguistics Olympiad (IOL) is a competition for secondary-school students.
International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO)
The International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) is the World Championship Mathematics Competition for High School students.
International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA)
The International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA) is an annual astronomy and astrophysics competition for high school students.
International Physics Olympiad
The International Physics Olympiad (IPhO) is the most prestigious international physics competition for secondary school students.
International Research Olympiad
The International Research Olympiad (IRO) is an olympiad dedicated to testing science research ability and developing critical thinking and analytical skills.
International Scientific Physics Olympiad
The International Scientific Physics Olympiad (ISPhO) is an opportunity for participants to test their knowledge in theoretical and experimental physics as part of their homelan...
IWSH World Plumbing Day Essay Contest
The IWSH World Plumbing Day Essay Contest is an annual scholarship essay competition organized by the International Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Foundation (IWSH), a public cha...
International Young Physicists' Tournament (IYPT)
The International Young Physicists' Tournament (IYPT), also known as the "Physics World Cup," is a prestigious team-oriented scientific competition for secondary school students.
International Youth Math Challenge
The International Youth Math Challenge is an educational mathematics competition open to students from around the world.
Global Essay Prize
The John Locke Institute Global Essay Prize encourages young people to develop strong writing and critical thinking skills by exploring challenging questions across various subj...
Science Without Borders® Challenge
The Science Without Borders Challenge is an annual international art competition run by the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation that combines art and ocean science to ins...
Online Entrepreneurship BootCamp
The Online Entrepreneurship BootCamp Program is designed to prepare you to start your own business.
Online Entrepreneurship Summer Program
The Online Entrepreneurship Summer Program is a rigorous 5-week program designed with you in mind.
Online Innovation
The Online Summer Innovation Program gives you the chance to solve a real company's business problem.
Online Startup Experience
The Online Startup Experience Program is an 8-week program designed to provide real-world experience by placing participants as interns in real startups.
Individual Research Program
The Individual Research Program is a 12-week research program. It includes 9 individual sessions with a world-class researcher, 2 individual sessions with a writing coach, and 5...
Premium Research & Publication Program
The Premium Research & Publication Program is a 16-week program. It includes 15 individual sessions with a world-class researcher, 4 individual sessions with a writing coach, 5...
Research Fellowship
The Research Fellowship is a 6-12 month program. It includes 24-30 individual sessions with a world-class researcher, 6 individual sessions with a writing coach, 5 workshops on...
Launchpad Accelerator
Launchpad is a program for young founders aged 15-24 to turn impact-driven ideas into reality.
Moonshot Mindset
Moonshot Mindset is a free, 5-month virtual mentorship program for young innovators and impact founders aged 15-24, run by Moonshot Pirates -- a global movement of changemakers...
Shape the Future Challenge
Join our series of global innovation challenges, where young visionaries from around the world collaborate with experts and forward-thinking companies.
NASA International Space Apps Challenge
The NASA International Space Apps Challenge is the largest annual global hackathon.
NSS Roadmap to Space Art Contest
The NSS Roadmap to Space Art Contest is an annual competition organized by the National Space Society's SpacEdge Education Program in collaboration with Blue Origin's Club for t...
2025/26 Competition
The Never Such Innocence 2025/26 Competition invited young people aged 9-18 to explore the theme "In Someone Else's Shoes" through poetry, art, and song.
Research Fellows Program
The Research Fellows program is an 8-week summer research program for high school students.
Research Foundations Program
The Research Foundations Program is a 4-week online program by Non-trivial designed for bright young people aged 14-20 who have not started university.
Research Scholars Program
The Research Scholars Program is the most selective tier of Non-trivial's fellowship pipeline, designed for high school students to lead original, impactful research.
Oxford Saïd Global Climate Tech Challenge
The Oxford Saïd Global Climate Tech Challenge (formerly the Global Climate Change Challenge) is an annual international competition run by Saïd Business School at the University...
PAIR: Program on AI and Reasoning
The Program on AI and Reasoning (PAIR) is an immersive workshop for mathematically talented students who want to explore how minds work—both human and artificial.
International Online Physics Competition
Up to 5 high school students compete from home in a 3-hour long contest in solving physics problems.
Pioneer Research Institute
The Pioneer Research Institute is the world’s only fully accredited online research organization for high school students.
The Global Problem-Solving Institute
The Global Problem-Solving Institute is a virtual innovation lab where outstanding high-school students from across the globe collaborate to solve complex, wicked problems.
PROMYS (Program in Mathematics for Young Scientists)
PROMYS (Program in Mathematics for Young Scientists) is a six-week residential summer program at Boston University designed to encourage strongly motivated high school students...
Red Dot: Junior Award
The Red Dot: Junior Award is a track within the Red Dot Award: Brands & Communication Design, one of the most prestigious international design competitions.
VEX AI Robotics Competition
The VEX AI Robotics Competition pushes the boundaries of robotics competitions by integrating VEX GPS, VEX LINK, and AI Vision System for advanced autonomous robots.
VEX V5 Robotics Competition
VEX V5 Robotics Competition Push Back is played on a 12’ x 12’ square field. Two Alliances of two Teams each compete in matches consisting of a fifteen second Autonomous Period...
The Queen's Commonwealth Writing Competition
The world's oldest international schools' writing competition, delivered by the Royal Commonwealth Society since 1883.
SAKURA SCIENCE High School Program
The SAKURA SCIENCE High School Program (SSHP) invites excellent high school students and supervisors from foreign countries (mainly Asia) to Japan for a week.
Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair
The Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) is the world’s largest international STEM research competition for high school students.
SPARC Summer Program
SPARC (Summer Program for Applied Rationality and Cognition) is a two-week in-person summer program hosted at a college campus in California.
Summer Science Program
Summer Science Program is one of the oldest residential STEM education programs in the nation offering high school juniors hands-on research experience in astrophysics, biochemi...
Stanford Venture Fellowship
The Stanford Venture Fellowship is a one-week, fully-funded fellowship that brings 10 exceptional applicants from around the world to the Stanford ecosystem in Silicon Valley, C...
Stockholm Junior Water Prize
The Stockholm Junior Water Prize (SJWP) is the world's most prestigious youth award for a water-related science project.
SAGE World Cup
The SAGE World Cup is an international competition where top teen entrepreneurs showcase their businesses to a global audience.
TechGirls
TechGirls is a U.S.-based summer exchange program designed to expand the talent pipeline in STEM.
Technovation Girls
Technovation Girls is a global program where girls ages 8-18 team up to build a tech-based solution to a community problem and develop a business plan.
Learning to Be Heard – Global Public Speaking Challenge
The Learning to Be Heard – Global Public Speaking Challenge is a free virtual speaking competition run by TED Summer School, a partnership between TED and Immerse Education.
IWD Global Techathon
In celebration of International Women’s Day, Teens in AI runs annual, distributed Global Techathons inspiring teens aged 12-18 to come together to collaboratively solve a real-w...
Telluride Association Summer Seminar (TASS)
The Telluride Association Summer Seminar (TASS) is a fully-funded, five-week residential summer program for high school sophomores and juniors.
The Adroit Journal Summer Mentorship Program
The Adroit Journal’s Summer Mentorship Program is an online program pairing established writers with high school and gap year students interested in creative writing.
The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award
The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award is a globally recognised non-formal education and learning framework that challenges young people aged 14-24 to develop their skills...
The Earth Prize Competition
The Earth Prize is a $100,000 environmental sustainability competition open to teenage students worldwide.
The European Summer Program on Rationality (ESPR)
The European Summer Program on Rationality (ESPR) is an immersive 10-day workshop for mathematically talented students aged 16-19 with a desire to understand themselves and the...
The Flight School Fellowship
The Flight School Fellowship is a transformative Launch Year program for recent high school graduates, reimagining the gap year as a rite of passage into adulthood.
The Iris Prize
The Iris Prize is an annual award that recognizes the vision and innovation of young leaders who are building a sustainable future, established in memory of Iris Goldsmith.
The Stem Prize
The Stem Prize is awarded to an existing project established recently and on a small scale, with a prize of $10,000.
Camp Rising Sun
Camp Rising Sun is a four-week in-person summer program in upstate New York for high school students from around the world.
The Junior Academy
The Junior Academy is a project-based learning program where students form international teams and work with STEM experts through an online community platform called Launchpad.
How to … : An Informational Writing Contest for Teenagers
Note (April 2026): The "How to..." Informational Writing Contest is not on the 2025-2026 contest calendar.
My List: A Different Kind of Review Contest
My List: A Different Kind of Review Contest is a program offered by The New York Times Learning Network.
Open Letters: Our Opinion-Writing Contest
The Open Letters: Our Opinion-Writing Contest invites students to write public-facing letters to people or groups about issues that matter to them.
Our 16th Annual Summer Reading Contest
The New York Times Learning Network's annual Summer Reading Contest invites students aged 13-19 to share what they are reading, watching, or listening to in The New York Times a...
Our Student Podcast Contest
The New York Times Learning Network invites students to create an original podcast of five minutes or less that informs or entertains.
Tiny Memoir Contest for Students
We invite teenagers to tell a true story about a meaningful life experience in just 100 words.
'Where We Are': A Photo Essay Contest for Exploring Community
For the second year in a row, The New York Times Learning Network invites students aged 13 to 19 in middle or high school to participate in a photo essay contest.
Virtual Program
TKS is a 10-month accelerator program from September 2025 to June 2026. During the program, students attend weekly 3-hour sessions with their cohort.
AI Fellowship
Create a novel AI project independently with 1-1 mentorship over 12-15 weeks. Showcase what you’re passionate with an individual project.
AI Internship Program by Veritas AI
The AI Internship Program by Veritas AI is an 8-week virtual internship where high school students work with VC-backed startups on real-world AI/ML projects.
AI Scholars
Learn the fundamentals of Python and key concepts in Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.
Deep Dive: AI + Finance
Our AI + Finance Deep Dive is curated to help students engage in specialized learning of how AI is transforming financial markets.
Deep Dive: AI + Medicine
Curated to help students engage in specialized learning of how AI is transforming medicine and the healthcare industry.
Vogue Summer School
Vogue Summer School is a pre-college summer program by Vogue College of Fashion (formerly Condé Nast College of Fashion & Design) for high school students in New York City.
Wharton Global High School Investment Competition
The Wharton Global High School Investment Competition is a free, experiential investment challenge for high school students and teachers.
Sony World Photography Awards: Youth Competition
The Sony World Photography Awards: Youth Competition is open to photographers aged 19 and under.
RoboMission
WRO® RoboMission is a challenge-based competition where students design, construct, and program an autonomous robot to solve specific challenges on a field.
RoboSports
RoboSports is a fun and exciting game where two teams each have two autonomous robots on the field playing a sports game.
Yale International Relations Leadership Institute (YIRLI)
The Yale International Relations Leadership Institute (YIRLI) is an intensive, exhilarating summer institute.
Yale Model United Nations Conference
Yale Model United Nations (YMUN) is an annual conference held on Yale's campus in New Haven, CT.
YYAS College Prep Workshop (online)
The Yale Young African Scholars (YYAS) College Prep Workshop is an intensive online program for African secondary school students.
YYAS Residential Leadership Summit
Yale Young African Scholars (YYAS) is an intensive academic and enrichment program designed for African secondary school students who plan to pursue tertiary education and wish...
Innovations in Science & Technology
Innovations in Science & Technology (IST) is designed for students interested in learning about diverse topics in STEM fields and applying scientific principles to real-world ap...
Literature, Philosophy, & Culture (LPC)
Literature, Philosophy, & Culture (LPC) is designed for students with an interest in the expression and interpretation of creativity and culturally significant texts.
Politics, Law, & Economics (PLE)
Politics, Law, & Economics (PLE) is a session aimed at students with an interest in understanding diverse economic theories, the values and practices of government, and legal fr...
Solving Global Challenges (SGC)
Solving Global Challenges (SGC) is designed to equip students with innovative and cross-disciplinary strategies to address the most pressing global issues of the 21st century.
Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) Program
The Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) program provides scholarships for high school students from countries of strategic importance to the United States to spend an a...
Young Writers Awards Contest
Bennington College's Young Writers Awards promotes outstanding writing achievement at the high school level.