§ Collection

Online and virtual programs for high school students

Remote programs remove travel, housing, and the need for a ride. If transportation or cost is the real constraint, start here.

774 programs currently listed · 594 free or stipend-paying.

What to know

—Remote does not mean low-effort. Several of these are as selective as their in-person equivalents.
—Check the time zone the program runs in before committing.
—Hybrid programs are included — they meet mostly online with a short in-person component.

Programs in this collection

Indiana Commission for Higher Education / Learn More Indiana
21st Century Scholars
Indiana's early-commitment college promise scholarship covering up to 100% of tuition at eligible Indiana colleges for income-eligible students, with a required Scholar Success Program completed during high school.
📍 Statewide, Indiana📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NC State University Global Training Initiative
36 Hours to Save the World / Global Challenge Weekend
Students form remote teams and spend 36 hours developing solutions to global sustainability and policy challenges before presenting to judges.
📍 NC🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
National 4-H Council
4-H Youth Development
Largest youth development organization in the US in agriculture, STEM, civic engagement.
📍 United States⏱ Year-long📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 3–12
Selective
Columbia University
Academic Year Programs
Make the most of the school year with on-campus or online courses, including weekend options.
📍 New York, NY / Remote📅 Fall 2026 applications now open🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Stanford AIMI
Academic Year Research Internship
During the school year, students meet weekly in small groups with their student mentors to work on healthcare AI research projects under the guidance of Stanford researchers.
📍 Virtual🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
SC Governor's School for Science & Mathematics
Accelerate
Three-year live-virtual engineering dual-enrollment program with calculus, physics and engineering coursework plus hands-on summer experiences. Up to 33 college credits.
📍 SC🎓 Grades 9, 10, 12
Moderate
Keene State College
Accelerated High School Program (Keene State College)
Program for NH high school juniors and seniors with at least a B average to earn college credit at half-price tuition, up to a cap of 6 courses or 24 credits.
📍 Keene, NH📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
Plymouth State University
Accelerated High School Program (Plymouth State University)
Lets NH high school juniors and seniors with a B average or better take college courses at half tuition during the school year or summer, earning transferable college credit.
📍 Plymouth, NH📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Highly Selective
Syracuse University
Accelerated Semester Online
Juniors and seniors take eight-week online university courses for college credit during the school year. Fall 2026 enrollment is active.
📍 NY🎓 Grades 11–12
Highly Selective
VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center / American Cancer Society
ACS Cancer Research High School Program
Two-week virtual experience for Virginia high school student leaders interested in STEM, with live cancer research lab instruction using at-home experiment kits and career exploration workshops and panels.
📍 Virginia (virtual)📅 February🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Adam Smith Society
Adam Smith Society HS Essay
Essay contest exploring market economics and policy.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Adobe
Adobe Design Achievement Awards (Semi-Pro)
International student creative awards across graphic design, film, animation, and social impact.
📍 Global📅 June🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
The Adroit Journal
Adroit Journal Summer Mentorship
Online mentorship pairing teen writers with established poets and prose writers. Tuition is $575; fee remission and financial aid are available.
📍 Online⏱ 6 weeks📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
NC State University Global Training Initiative
Advanced Research Duo Track
Ten-week advanced research program in which pairs of students work with an NC State faculty mentor toward conference- or manuscript-level research.
📍 NC🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
American Foreign Service Association (AFSA)
AFSA National High School Essay Contest
An essay contest designed to engage students in thinking about peace and conflict resolution.
📍 Online📅 February 15🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Massachusetts AI Hub (MassTech) with Work-Based Learning Alliance
AI for Massachusetts High Schools Internship Program
A paid, fully virtual internship program in which Massachusetts public high school students work in teams with industry mentors 2-3 hours per week to develop AI-enabled solutions for real business needs across sectors like manufacturing, healthcare, and clean energy.
📍 Massachusetts (statewide, virtual)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
MLH
AI Hackfest
AI focused Hackfest. Digital format.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
UMass Boston Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence Institute (PEAAII)
AI Institute Summer Camp
A five-week, project-based hybrid summer camp (July 27-Aug 28, 2026) where high schoolers build skills in machine learning, computer vision, NLP, generative AI, and robotics, producing a research-style write-up mentored by UMass Boston CS faculty and PhD students.
📍 Boston, MA (UMass Boston campus + virtual)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Washington Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering
AI4ALL at the Allen School
A free, multi-week introductory workshop in data science and artificial intelligence covering data science, geographic information science, machine learning, and equity and bias in urban spaces. No previous coding experience is required.
📍 Online (hosted by UW, Seattle, WA)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
AI4ALL
AI4ALL Open Learning
Girls in grades 6-12 learn AI and Python through interactive virtual classes.
📍 Online⏱ 2 weeks📅 March 1🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
QuantHub
Alabama Data Scholars
Alabama high-school students complete data and AI training and work on a real employer project. The program allows on-site, hybrid, and fully virtual placements.
📍 AL🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
DECA Inc., Alabama Chartered Association
Alabama DECA
Alabama's chartered DECA association preparing high school students for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management through classroom instruction, competitive events, and an annual Career Development Conference.
📍 Chapters statewide, AL; Association Career Development Conference in Montgomery, AL📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Alabama FBLA
Alabama FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America)
A statewide career and technical student organization preparing high schoolers for careers in business, entrepreneurship, IT, management, and finance through classroom curriculum, leadership development, and academic competitions at district, state, and national conferences.
📍 Chapters statewide, AL; State Leadership Conference in Montgomery, AL📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Alabama Academy of Science
Alabama Junior Academy of Science (AJAS) / Gorgas Scholarship Competition
A research-based scholarship competition and high school outreach program in which students in grades 9-12 present original research papers and defend them orally at regional and state symposia, with top competitors advancing to the national Junior Science and Humanities Symposium.
📍 Regional sites statewide (2027 regional conference at Alabama State University), AL📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Alabama Department of Education / SkillsUSA
Alabama SkillsUSA
A career and technical student organization preparing Alabama high schoolers in trade, technical, and skilled service occupations through personal, workplace, and technical skills training, with chapter, district, and state competitions leading to a State Leadership and Skills Conference.
📍 Chapters statewide, AL📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service
Alaska 4-H Youth Development Program
Alaska's statewide 4-H program offers teen members (ages 15-18) project-based clubs and leadership opportunities spanning STEM, agriculture, citizenship, and life skills, taught by certified volunteer leaders across the state.
📍 Statewide, AK📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Alaska Airmen's Association
Alaska Airmen's Association Aviation Scholarships
A set of named scholarships supporting Alaskans, including high schoolers, pursuing pilot training, aircraft maintenance, air traffic control, drone operations, and aerospace engineering careers.
📍 Anchorage, AK📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Alaska Historical Society (Alaska affiliate of National History Day)
Alaska History Day
Alaska's statewide affiliate of National History Day, where middle and high schoolers research a topic tied to an annual theme and present it as a documentary, exhibit, website, performance, or paper, with winners advancing to nationals.
📍 Statewide, AK (online judging, in-person national contest)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Japan Cartoonists Association
All-Japan Manga Competition (Youth)
Youth-open division of the Japan Cartoonists Association's annual manga award.
📍 Japan (submissions welcome globally)📅 Autumn🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association (VBODA)
All-Virginia Jazz Ensembles (AVJE) Auditions
VBODA's statewide honor jazz ensembles select high school wind and rhythm-section players by online audition (major scales, etude with improvisation, sight-reading), registered through the student's band or orchestra director.
📍 Virginia (online audition)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Amazon
Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship
Scholarship for high school seniors planning to study computer science in college.
📍 Nationwide⏱ 4 years scholarship📅 December 1🎓 Grade 12
Selective
ACSL
American Computer Science League (ACSL)
A multi-division computer science competition covering both theory and programming.
📍 Nationwide⏱ School year📅 November 30🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
AICF
American Indian College Fund
Scholarships for American Indian and Alaska Native students attending tribal colleges or other colleges.
📍 United States⏱ Self-paced📅 Spring🎓 Grade 12
Selective
University of Pennsylvania
American Sign Language and Deaf Culture Online Seminar
Two-week online seminar (daily Zoom sessions) teaching basic ASL conversation and narrative skills in an immersion setting, plus Deaf community perspectives through vlogs, lectures and a panel of Deaf professionals. Current 9th-11th graders; non-credit.
📍 Online⏱ 2 weeks (July 13 - 24, 2026)🎓 Grades 9–11
Highly Selective
Amgen Foundation
Amgen Scholars Future Track
Free online biotech simulations and pipeline programs preparing high schoolers for biomedical research.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Amplify Utah (with The Salt Lake Tribune, Utah College Media Alliance and partners)
Amplify Utah High School Newsroom
A statewide initiative building a pipeline for high school journalism, publishing student commentary and stories through media partners including The Salt Lake Tribune. Students submit stories and images by email and are credited when partners republish them.
📍 Utah (statewide, submit online)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Alaska Native Science & Engineering Program (ANSEP) / University of Alaska
ANSEP Summer Bridge
A year-long transition program for Alaska high school seniors admitted to UAA or UAF in an ANSEP-approved STEM degree program, providing academic, social, and professional skill-building before and during freshman year.
📍 Anchorage / Fairbanks, AK (UAA / UAF)📅 March🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Idaho Commission on the Arts (Arts Idaho), administered via the Anthony Quinn Foundation
Anthony Quinn Scholarship
A scholarship for high school students accepted to a recognized pre-college or summer intensive arts program, covering literary arts, media arts (animation, film, video), performing arts, and visual arts.
📍 Idaho (national program, application online)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Australian National University
ANU Extension
University-level courses for high-achieving high school students in Canberra.
📍 Canberra, Australia⏱ 1 year📅 February🎓 Grades 11–12
Highly Selective
Apple Inc.
Apple Swift Student Challenge
Swift coding competition hosted by Apple to showcase creativity and app development skills.
📍 Global⏱ 1 month📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UW-Milwaukee School of Architecture and Urban Planning
Architecture Summer Camp Academy
A mostly virtual week-long camp for students in grades 9-12 teaching the basics of architectural design, digital modeling tools, reading architectural drawings and documenting work, with one optional in-person day in Milwaukee.
📍 Online with optional in-person day in Milwaukee, WI📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Arctic Education Foundation (Arctic Slope Regional Corporation)
Arctic Education Foundation At-Large High School Scholarship
Awards $2,000 each to high school seniors who are Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC) shareholders or descendants, based on academic performance, leadership, and community service.
📍 Statewide (ASRC Region, North Slope)📅 June🎓 Grade 12
Selective
South Dakota Board of Regents
Ardell Bjugstad Scholarship
A scholarship for Native American high school seniors who are enrolled members of a federally recognized tribe with a reservation in South Dakota or North Dakota, intended for students pursuing agribusiness, agricultural production, agricultural sciences, or natural resources degrees at an eligible postsecondary institution.
📍 Statewide, SD📅 Varies🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Argonne National Laboratory
Argonne Exemplary Student Research Program
Chicago-area students conduct year-long research mentored by Argonne scientists.
📍 IL⏱ School year📅 October🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
University of Arizona Cooperative Extension / Arizona 4-H
Arizona 4-H Teen Leadership Programs
Leadership pathways for high schoolers including Healthy Living Ambassadors, STEM and Ag Ambassadors, and Camp G.R.I.T. counselor roles, plus 4-H Foundation scholarships for graduating seniors.
📍 Statewide, AZ📅 September🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) / PlayVS
Arizona High School Esports League
Officially sanctioned interscholastic esports leagues for Arizona high schools competing in titles like League of Legends, Rocket League, Marvel Rivals, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, with varsity and JV divisions culminating in a state championship.
📍 Statewide, AZ📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Arizona Interscholastic Press Association
Arizona Interscholastic Press Association (AIPA)
Statewide association supporting middle and high school journalism programs (newspaper, yearbook, web, broadcast, literary magazine) with a fall contest, Student Journalist of the Year award, and adviser resources.
📍 Statewide, AZ📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Arkansas Activities Association / High School Esports League
Arkansas High School Esports League
Arkansas high schoolers compete on official school esports teams sanctioned by the AAA in titles including Valorant, Rocket League, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Apex Legends, and Counter-Strike 2, with fall and spring seasons and standard academic-eligibility rules.
📍 Statewide, Arkansas (online competition through school teams)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Arkansas PBS / Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival
Arkansas PBS Emerging Filmmakers Program
A statewide student filmmaking showcase accepting narrative, documentary, music video, PSA, and animated shorts from grades 5-12, including an Arkansas Historic Places Student Film Prize specifically for high schoolers, with screenings and workshops at the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival.
📍 Hot Springs, AR (festival); submissions via FilmFreeway📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia Tech Center for Future Work Places and Practices
Artificial Intelligence for Beginners
Three-week online synchronous summer course introducing high school students to machine learning, AI and generative AI, ending with a capstone project and showcase.
📍 Online (Virginia Tech)📅 May🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Ashoka
Ashoka Young Changemakers
Global community of young people (10–20) already leading social innovation projects; selected changemakers receive mentorship, storytelling support, and network access.
📍 Remote (Global)⏱ Ongoing fellowship📅 Rolling · by country🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
APIA Scholars
Asian and Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund
Scholarships for Asian and Pacific Islander American students entering college.
📍 United States⏱ Self-paced📅 Winter🎓 Grade 12
Selective
News Literacy Project
ASNE High School Journalism Institute
Free media-literacy and journalism resources and student programs.
📍 Online📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
National Audubon Society
Audubon Youth Leaders
Stipended conservation-leadership cohorts for teens nationwide.
📍 Multiple📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
EcoRise
Austin Youth Climate Council
A year-long program where Austin-area high school students partner with local community organizations on real-world climate and environmental projects. The 2025-26 cohort had 39 students from 17 schools and awarded $17,000 in total stipends.
📍 Austin, TX📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NCWIT
Award for Aspirations in Computing (AiC)
Award for girls and non-binary students in computing, providing recognition and a cash prize.
📍 Nationwide⏱ One-time📅 April 15🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
AwesomeMath
AwesomeMath Summer Program
Three-week summer math program for talented middle and high school students.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ 3 weeks📅 Spring🎓 Grades 7–12
Moderate
Aspiring Youth Academy / ASU Edson E+I
AYA Innovation Hub (Powered by ASU)
Entrepreneurship and financial-literacy program connecting teens with mentors through monthly events and a free hands-on Spring Break Innovation Camp, deliverable as a class, elective, or after-school club.
📍 Tempe/Scottsdale, AZ (ASU)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
CERN
Beamline for Schools
CERN physics competition where student teams worldwide propose and run an experiment at a real particle accelerator.
📍 Geneva, Switzerland + Remote proposals📅 April🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
MIT Lincoln Lab
Beaver Works Summer Institute (BWSI)
Free MIT-led project-based courses in AI, robotics, cybersecurity.
📍 MA⏱ 4 weeks (summer)📅 Early February🎓 Grade 11
Selective
ELASH / Bebras US
Bebras Computing Challenge (US)
An international computational thinking and informatics competition. Students can take the test remotely or through a local school coordinator.
📍 Online⏱ 45 minutes📅 Early February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Beloit College Center for Language Studies
Beloit College Summer Language Program (Chinese, Japanese, Russian)
A fully virtual, immersive 3.5- or 7-week intensive in Chinese, Japanese or Russian taught Monday-Friday, open to high school juniors and seniors among other learners, earning 8 semester hours of college credit.
📍 Online (Beloit, WI)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 11–12
Highly Selective
Bennington College
Bennington Young Artists Awards
A free competition for high school artists submitting two-dimensional work (paintings, drawings, photographs), three-dimensional work (sculpture, ceramics) or digital media (video, audio, animation up to 2 minutes), with cash prizes and scholarships for winners who enroll at Bennington.
📍 Online submission (Bennington College, Bennington, VT)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Bennington College
Bennington Young Innovators Awards (AI)
A free competition for high school students with three AI-focused submission tracks: creating an original artistic work using AI with a reflective essay, writing a critical essay on AI's ethical, social or cultural impact, or building an AI solution to a real-world problem with a short video demonstration.
📍 Online submission (Bennington College, Bennington, VT)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Bennington College
Bennington Young Musicians Awards
A free competition for high school musicians submitting one original composition of up to five minutes in any form (electronic, song or instrumental), with cash prizes and scholarships for winners who enroll at Bennington.
📍 Online submission (Bennington College, Bennington, VT)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Bennington College
Bennington Young Scientists Awards
A free competition for high school students in the Natural Sciences category, submitting visual work such as field guides, scientific drawings, research posters or process diagrams that show their understanding of the natural world.
📍 Online submission (Bennington College, Bennington, VT)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Bennington College
Bennington Young Writers Awards
A prestigious creative writing competition for students to win cash prizes and publication.
📍 Online📅 January 12🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
BETA Camp
BETA Camp
Eight-week virtual entrepreneurship program for teens 14-18 to build and launch a startup.
📍 Online⏱ 8 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Mountain Lake PBS
Beyond the Peaks Student Film Festival
A student filmmaking festival for ages 14-18 in New York, Vermont and Quebec, with documentary, narrative, thriller, open and 60-second categories and a Red Carpet Showcase each June.
📍 Online submission via Launchpad; showcase in Plattsburgh, NY📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
College Board
BigFuture
A free, comprehensive set of digital resources that helps all students take a productive first step after high school. Includes information on planning for college and scholarships.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute MyImpact Challenge
Civic engagement competition awarding scholarships for student-led community impact projects.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Summer🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Black Girls CODE
Black Girls CODE Workshops
Program that provides coding workshops and tech exposure to young girls of color.
📍 Nationwide⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Hack Club
BLARE
Build your own special alarm clock, get the parts to make it and a custom Hack Club pillowcase! Runs alongside Hack Club's Stardance; its page lists a Sept 30, 2026 end date, but Stardance's deadline has since been extended to Oct 31, 2026. Open to ages 13-18.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
Blue Marble Review
Blue Marble Review
Online literary journal of writing and art by teens worldwide.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Blue Ocean Strategy / various
Blue Ocean Student Entrepreneurship Competition
Free global pitch competition with cash prizes. Teams pitch a novel business idea via video; finalists present live.
📍 Online⏱ 3 months📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Programs
Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Contest
Annual creative contest for teens combining art, writing, film, and music with environmental advocacy.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Spring🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Columbia University Zuckerman Institute
Brain Research Apprenticeships in New York at Columbia (BRAINYAC)
An eight-month neuroscience apprenticeship for NYC 10th/11th graders combining weekend coursework in neuroscience, programming, and lab techniques with a seven-week full-time summer research placement in a Columbia neuroscience lab.
📍 New York, NY (Columbia University)📅 Fall🎓 Grades 10–11
Selective
International Brain Bee
BrainBee Neuroscience Competition
International neuroscience competition for high schoolers with local, national, and global rounds.
📍 Global⏱ 1 day📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Breakthrough Prize Foundation
Breakthrough Junior Challenge
Create a short video explaining a big idea in science or math. Global competition for ages 13–18 with a $250K college scholarship.
📍 Global📅 June🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Brilliant.org
Brilliant.org High School Problem Solving Track
While the physical show has locations, the virtual 'Think Tank' and 'Daily Challenge' offer online logic and math problems for students nationwide.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling (Weekly)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UKMT
British Informatics Olympiad (Open to Int'l)
Solve complex math and computer science problems created by the UK Mathematical Trust.
📍 Global⏱ 1 day📅 November 1🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Brown Pre-College
Brown Environmental Leadership Labs (BELL)
N/A
📍 Off Campus or On Campus🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Brown University
Brown Pre-College
On-campus and online courses across the liberal arts.
📍 Providence, RI⏱ 1-7 weeks📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Brown Pre-College
Brown Pre-College Online
Experience Brown Pre-College wherever you are.
📍 Online📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Schubert Club
Bruce P. Carlson Student Scholarship Competition
An annual classical music competition for young musicians across Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Iowa, with video preliminaries followed by in-person finals at Macalester College and over $70,000 in scholarships awarded across about fifteen instrument and voice categories.
📍 Macalester College, St. Paul, MN📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
BS Biology Club, BS Neuro Club & Medspire
BS Neuroscience Research Initiative (NRI)
A student-led program for high school students interested in neuroscience, biology, medicine and research. Phase 1 is a series of neuroscience education sessions taught by experienced students and Brain Bee competitors. Phase 2 is mentored systematic-review research: choosing a research question, searching the literature, screening and analyzing studies, and learning scientific writing.
📍 Online⏱ Phase 1: Oct 17 to Nov 17, 2026; Phase 2 dates to be announced📅 October 15, 2026🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Built By Girls
Built By Girls Wave Program
A peer-mentorship program connecting high school girls with women in tech.
📍 Online⏱ Ongoing📅 November 15🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Burger King Foundation
Burger King Scholars
Annual scholarships for HS seniors with work, leadership, and academic experience.
📍 United States⏱ Self-paced📅 Fall🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Health Tech Alley / Maryland Innovation Center
Business Analytics, Data Science and AI Youth Apprenticeship Program
A 12-month youth apprenticeship based at the Maryland Innovation Center in Columbia where high school seniors train in data analytics, AI, machine learning, and cloud computing while earning Google and Microsoft industry credentials and completing a year-long research project.
📍 Columbia, MD (Howard County)📅 Varies🎓 Grade 12
Selective
C-SPAN
C-SPAN StudentCam
Annual student documentary competition on public policy.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 January🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
University of Cambridge
Cambridge Chemistry Challenge
Global chemistry problem-solving competition for Y12 / 11th-grade students; open worldwide.
📍 Global📅 Late June🎓 Grade 11
Selective
Zon Lab, Boston Children's Hospital / Harvard Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology
Camp Zon Virtual Summer Research Experience
A paid two-week virtual research experience where Massachusetts high schoolers become part of the Zon Lab team, using zebrafish to study anemia and blood development, designing experiments, generating a hypothesis, and analyzing data alongside top researchers.
📍 Boston, MA (Boston Children's Hospital / Harvard-affiliated Zon Lab)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
University of Waterloo (CEMC)
Canadian Computing Competition (CCC)
Free competitive programming contest run by Waterloo's CEMC; open worldwide and used as a qualifier for the Canadian Computing Olympiad.
📍 Remote (Global)⏱ 3 hours📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah
Cancer Research High School Program
A two-week virtual experience with live online laboratory instruction using an at-home lab kit, followed by career-exploration workshops and panels with research and medical professionals. Sponsored by the American Cancer Society.
📍 Remote (Utah, NV, MT, ID, WY residents)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–10
Selective
State Archives, State Historical Society of North Dakota
Capturing Oral Histories Workshop
A free workshop teaching participants the fundamentals of recording and preserving oral histories, including practical interviewing techniques and tips for documenting personal stories.
📍 Bismarck, ND📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Ulakaia Center (formerly The Aleut Foundation / Aleut Corporation)
Cash for Good Grades
An academic-incentive program from the Aleut Corporation's education arm that pays cash rewards to grades 7-12 students who are Aleut Corporation shareholders or descendants for good grades and attendance.
📍 Statewide (Aleut Region)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Colorado Christian University
CCU Academy
Online concurrent-enrollment college courses taught with a Christian worldview, open to high school students (age 15+) and recent graduates who haven't yet started college.
📍 Online (Colorado Christian University)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Community College of Vermont
CCV Dual Enrollment and Early College
Free pathways for Vermont students to earn college credit before graduating, including up to six free dual enrollment credits for juniors and seniors, Fast Forward credit for technical center programs, and a full senior year of Early College.
📍 Vermont (CCV locations and online)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
CFA Institute
CFA Institute Research Challenge
Global equity research and analysis competition with high school divisions in some regions.
📍 Global⏱ Year-long📅 Fall🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Chapman University
Chapman University Holocaust Art & Writing Contest
A writing contest for high schoolers exploring the impact of the Holocaust through various creative prompts.
📍 Online📅 March 1🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Office of Navajo Nation Scholarship & Financial Assistance (ONNSFA)
Chief Manuelito Scholarship Program
Merit scholarship for Navajo Nation high school graduates who meet GPA and ACT/SAT thresholds and have completed Navajo Language and Navajo Government coursework, providing $7,000 per academic year toward college.
📍 Window Rock, AZ (Navajo Nation)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Freedom Forum
ChiPS Chips Quinn Scholars (pipeline)
Diversity journalism pipeline programs for students of color.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Colorado High School Activities Association / PlayVS
CHSAA Esports (PlayVS Colorado)
Officially sanctioned interscholastic esports leagues for Colorado high schools competing in titles like Rocket League, Marvel Rivals, Splatoon, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, with fall and spring state championships.
📍 Matches online; championships at Localhost, Lakewood, CO📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Connecticut Association of Schools / Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference
CIAC Esports
Connecticut's CIAC-sanctioned varsity esports league, run with PlayVS, competes in titles like Rocket League, Super Smash Bros, and Mario Kart across fall/winter and spring seasons, culminating in state championship events.
📍 Member high schools statewide; 2026 championship at Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CT📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
California Interscholastic Federation / NASEF
CIF Esports Initiative
The official statewide scholastic esports league sanctioned by the CIF, with a nine-week regular season and in-person state finals across League of Legends, Rocket League, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and Mario Kart 8.
📍 Online regular season; in-person State Finals in California📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Chicago International Film Festival / Cinema Chicago
CineYouth Film Festival
Annual festival showcasing films by filmmakers age 22 and under, featuring in-theater and online screenings, hands-on workshops, and live Q&As with industry professionals, with free public admission.
📍 FACETS, Chicago, IL📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The CIRI Foundation
CIRI Foundation Raven Fund Jump Start Scholarship
Provides up to $2,000 per year to Cook Inlet Region, Inc. (CIRI) shareholders and descendants who are concurrently enrolled in high school and college-level coursework, plus up to $500 annually for personal expenses.
📍 Statewide (CIRI Region, Southcentral Alaska)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
World Affairs Council of Philadelphia
Citizen Diplomat Academy
A free virtual exchange program for high schoolers ages 14-18 to meet peers from Philadelphia's Sister Cities (such as Tianjin, Frankfurt, and Kobe) and build cross-cultural understanding through live sessions and activities.
📍 Philadelphia, PA (virtual)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
InsideOut Literary Arts
Citywide Poets (InsideOut Literary Arts)
Free weekly after-school creative writing workshop for Detroit-area high school students, held virtually and at eight school sites. Includes poetry slams, open mics, publication in an annual anthology, an audition-based Performance Troupe, a Youth Advisory Board, and a college scholarship for seniors.
📍 Detroit, MI📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Westminster University Honors College
Civility Scholars High School Essay Contest
Non-partisan 600-word essay contest for Utah high school students on civil discourse in public life. The winner receives a $2,000 cash prize and finalists earn a $1,000 scholarship to Westminster University.
📍 Utah (statewide); Westminster University, Salt Lake City📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
National 4-H Council
CLOVER
4-H's online learning platform helps kids become more confident, resilient and independent. With 300+ interactive online activities and courses across Agriculture, STEM, Healthy Living and Civic Engagement.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
National 4-H Council
CLOVER by 4-H Activities & Courses
4-H's online learning platform helps kids become more confident, resilient and independent. With 300+ interactive online activities available, CLOVER offers a wide range of activities and courses across Agriculture, STEM, Healthy Living and Civic Engagement.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
Coca-Cola Foundation
Coca-Cola Scholars Program
USD 20K college scholarships for 150 graduating seniors annually. Free to apply.
📍 Online application⏱ Senior year📅 October🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Kode With Klossy
CODE-A-BRATION
Join us for a weekend of creativity, code, & community! Free two-day workshop for ages 13-18: Oct 17-18, 2026 in Chicago and Nov 7-8, 2026 in Oakland, plus a virtual option.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
Code2College
Code2College Summer Program
Summer program for Texas students to gain technical skills and professional development.
📍 TX⏱ Various📅 February 15🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
CodeDay
CodeDay Labs Fellowship
High school students are paired with industry mentors to build a real-world software project.
📍 Online⏱ 3 months📅 May 15🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Codeforces
Codeforces Educational Rounds
Free competitive programming platform with weekly contests for students worldwide.
📍 Online⏱ 2 hours📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
Fred Hutch Cancer Center
Coding for Cancer
A four-week virtual program where students learn the R programming language and cancer biology, then carry out an individual research project with support from computational biologists.
📍 Online (Fred Hutch, Seattle, WA)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Coding it Forward
Coding it Forward Civic Innovation Corps
Summer civic-tech fellowship placing students at federal agencies (mostly college, some HS programs).
📍 United States⏱ 10 weeks📅 Winter🎓 Grade 12
Selective
QuestBridge
College Admissions Conferences (through College Prep Scholars Program)
Exclusive access to college admissions conferences as part of the College Prep Scholars Program.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
College Affordability Guide
College Affordability Guide
Provides clear, correct info and advice on the many options students have to reduce the cost of their degree, and to offer a fresh analysis of which colleges are doing the most to make high-quality education affordable.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
North Dakota University System
College Credit in High School — Early Entry & Dual Credit
North Dakota high-school students enroll in college courses through dual-credit or early-entry options, including online and classroom courses.
📍 ND🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Colorado State Chess Association
Colorado Scholastic Chess League
A ten-week online scholastic chess league on Chess.com for Colorado K-12 students (including homeschoolers), with a separate high school (9-12) division and weekly Thursday matches.
📍 Online (Chess.com)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
NASA Colorado Space Grant Consortium / CU Boulder College of Engineering
Colorado Space Grant Consortium - Academic Partner Programs
NASA-affiliated statewide consortium offering high schools free participation in programs like the Colorado Robotics Challenge, DemoSat, Wearables Quest, and CARMA Quest through Academic Partner status.
📍 University of Colorado Boulder (hub); 21 partner institutions statewide📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Columbia University
Columbia Junior Science Journal
Peer-reviewed high-school-authored science journal at Columbia.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Annual (opens July, closes October)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
CSPA
Columbia Scholastic Press Association Awards
Top awards recognizing student newspapers, magazines, and yearbooks.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 Fall🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Virginia Cyber Range (Virginia Tech)
Commonwealth Cyber Cup (Virginia High School Capture the Flag Competition)
Virginia's statewide high school cybersecurity capture-the-flag competition in which teachers sign up student teams to compete in a practice round and an in-person final round to be named the best team in the state.
📍 Virginia (final round at Germanna Community College, Culpeper)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Commonwealth Foundation
Commonwealth Short Story Prize
Global short-fiction prize open to writers from Commonwealth countries.
📍 Commonwealth countries📅 November🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
US House of Representatives
Congressional App Challenge
District-level coding competition open to every US high schooler.
📍 All US districts⏱ Self-paced📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Office of Congressman Jared Golden
Congressional App Challenge - Maine's 2nd District
An annual nationwide coding competition, open to middle and high school students residing in Maine's 2nd Congressional District, who design an original app for desktop, web, mobile, or other devices in any programming language.
📍 Maine's 2nd Congressional District📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Congressional Award Foundation
Congressional Award
Award for ages 14-23 earning bronze/silver/gold for service, fitness, expedition, and personal development.
📍 United States⏱ 6-24 months📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Conrad Foundation
Conrad Challenge
International innovation and entrepreneurship competition addressing global grand challenges.
📍 USA finals + global teams📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Cornell University
Cornell School of Continuing Education Pre-College
Three or six-week pre-college programs in hundreds of subjects on campus or online.
📍 Ithaca, NY⏱ 3-6 weeks📅 Spring🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Brown Pre-College
Course-Based Research Experiences (CRE)
Propose, design, and conduct your own research project, working on topics and seeking answers to questions that are currently unknown to the specific discipline.
📍 On Campus or Online📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Creation Crates
Students receive an at-home engineering kit and meet online with Rose-Hulman faculty to design, construct, test, and analyze experimental apparatus.
📍 IN🎓 Grades 10–11
Moderate
Crisis Text Line
Crisis Text Line Counselor
Volunteers over 18 (or high school seniors) provide mental health support via text; requires 200 hours of commitment.
📍 Online⏱ Ongoing📅 Rolling🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Code.org
CS Principles from Code.org
High-quality AP Computer Science preparation and advanced CS courses.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Harvard University / edX
CS50: Introduction to Computer Science
Harvard's world-famous introduction to computer science. While self-paced on edX, it offers a certificate and a deep dive into programming.
📍 Online⏱ 12 weeks📅 Self-paced🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Harvard / edX
CS50: Introduction to Computer Science
Introduction to computer science from Harvard University available for high schoolers.
📍 Online⏱ 12 weeks📅 Self-paced — no fixed deadline🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Curieux
Curieux Academic Journal
Monthly student-run academic journal publishing research by high schoolers worldwide.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
CyberWyoming Alliance / Wyoming State Library
Cyber-in-a-Box School Video Challenge
An annual school video challenge where teams of up to five students in grades 6-12 script, film and edit a short video; the 2026-2027 topic is Exploring AI and Data Privacy. Teams receive $50-$100 for equipment (or pizza) plus prizes.
📍 Wyoming (school-based teams)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Cyber.org
Cyber.org Range Competitions
Free cybersecurity courses, range exercises, and competitions for K-12.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
CyberPatriot
CyberPatriot
A cybersecurity competition for high school teams to learn and apply cybersecurity skills in a virtual environment. Teams compete to find and fix vulnerabilities in simulated operating systems.
📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Air & Space Forces Association
CyberPatriot National Youth Cyber Defense
National youth cybersecurity competition with middle and high school divisions.
📍 United States⏱ Year-long📅 Fall🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program
DAPCEP (Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program)
Detroit nonprofit offering Saturday classes during the school year and summer camps on college campuses across Southeastern Michigan for elementary through high school students, covering engineering, robotics, coding, AI, renewable energy and drone certification. Participation carries a fee, with a financial aid form available; register through the online portal.
📍 Detroit, MI📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
UPenn Wharton Global Youth
Data Science Competition
A global competition for high school students centered around data science challenges.
📍 Remote📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Davidson Institute
Davidson Fellows
Scholarships of USD 10K, 25K, and 50K for students under 18 with significant work in STEM, literature, music, or philosophy.
📍 Online application⏱ Project-based📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Delaware Press Association
Delaware Press Association High School Communications Contest
Annual statewide journalism and communications contest for Delaware student writers, photographers, and media makers, with first-place winners advancing to a national competition.
📍 Delaware📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
PlayVS / Delaware Department of Education, in partnership with NFHS Network
Delaware Scholastic Esports League
Officially sanctioned high school esports league where Delaware teams compete in titles such as Rocket League, Super Smash Bros., Mario Kart, Overwatch, and Valorant.
📍 Delaware (statewide, online competition)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Delaware State University
Delaware State University Dual Enrollment / Early Bird Program
Program allowing Delaware high schoolers to earn college credit through Hornets Fast Track courses taught at their high school or DSU campus-based courses delivered via Zoom, alongside near-peer mentoring support.
📍 Delaware State University, Dover, DE📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
University of Pennsylvania
Developing the Leader Within Online Seminar
Two-week online seminar (live Zoom, weekdays 9-11 a.m. ET) building leadership skills through interactive sessions, real-world case studies and hands-on challenges. Current 9th-11th graders; non-credit.
📍 Online⏱ 2 weeks (July 13 - 24, 2026)🎓 Grades 9–11
Moderate
University of Delaware Horn Entrepreneurship
Diamond Challenge
Global high school entrepreneurship pitch competition with $100k+ in prizes.
📍 Newark, DE⏱ Academic year📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Mayo Clinic
Discover Mayo Clinic (Career Exploration for High School Students)
Seven-week career exploration series for high school students in grades 10-12 interested in health-related careers, typically held on Monday nights in October and November, with hands-on in-person or virtual options. Apply via Airtable form.
📍 Rochester, MN📅 Varies🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
University of Washington DO-IT Center
DO-IT Scholars (University of Washington)
Prepares Washington high school sophomores and juniors with disabilities for college and careers through two consecutive Summer Study sessions on the UW campus, mentoring, and year-round contact with staff and peers.
📍 Seattle, WA📅 January🎓 Grades 10–11
Highly Selective
MSF USA
Doctors Without Borders Student Outreach
Student outreach, awareness campaigns, and clubs supporting MSF's humanitarian work.
📍 United States⏱ Year-long📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Grand Teton Music Festival
Donald Runnicles Musical Arts Scholarship Competition
A scholarship competition for graduating high school seniors from Wyoming, Idaho or Montana pursuing a music degree; applicants submit a pre-screened video and semi-finalists perform for a panel in Jackson.
📍 Jackson, WY📅 May🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Google
Doodle for Google
Annual K-12 art contest with college scholarships.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 Spring🎓 Grades 1–12
Selective
DoSomething.org
DoSomething Campaigns
Volunteer campaigns with scholarship sweepstakes for participants.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Doyon Foundation
Doyon Foundation High School Award
A scholarship for high school students who are Doyon, Limited shareholders or their children, covering the actual cost of a college-credit course or program up to $1,000.
📍 Statewide (Doyon Region, Interior Alaska)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Southeast Wisconsin Festival of Books
Duane Stein Short Story Contest (Southeast Wisconsin Festival of Books)
A short story contest open to Wisconsin middle and high school students, who submit an original short story of up to 2,500 words for a panel of former students of educator Duane Stein.
📍 Wisconsin (email submission)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Kapiʻolani Community College
Early Admit Program
Dual-credit program letting qualified Hawaii high schoolers take college courses that count toward both high school and college credit at no cost, provided they place into ENG 100 and MATH 82.
📍 Honolulu, Oʻahu (Kapiʻolani CC campus and online)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Fairleigh Dickinson University
Early College Summer
A summer program for rising sophomores through seniors to earn 3-12 college credits (or take non-credit enrichment courses) in subjects spanning chemistry, cybersecurity, Python programming, neuroscience, graphic design, and more, in 3- or 6-week formats on FDU's Metropolitan or Florham campuses or online.
📍 Madison / Teaneck, NJ📅 Varies🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
EarthEcho International
EarthEcho Water Challenge
Global citizen-science program monitoring local water quality with thousands of student volunteers.
📍 Global⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP) / NSTA
eCYBERMISSION Competition
The world's largest youth-led STEM competition focusing on community service and solving problems using the scientific method.
📍 Online / Nationwide⏱ Year-round📅 March🎓 Grades 7–9
Selective
EducationQuest Foundation
EducationQuest Scavenger Hunt Scholarship
Nebraska students complete an online EducationQuest scavenger hunt after creating a ScholarshipQuest profile. Two students receive $500 contributions to a 529 college-savings plan.
📍 NE🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Educators Rising Oregon
Educators Rising Oregon
A statewide network guiding Oregon high schoolers considering teaching careers, offering a free virtual campus, performance-based micro-credentials, chapter competitions, and access to the Educators Rising National Conference.
📍 Statewide, OR📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Eastern Kentucky University
EKU Upward Bound
A free federal TRiO college-prep program for first-generation and income-eligible 9th-11th graders from seven Eastern Kentucky counties, offering tutoring, ACT prep, college visits, cultural trips, and a residential summer program called Summer Chautauqua that pays weekly stipends.
📍 Eastern Kentucky University, Richmond, KY (serving Casey, Estill, Jackson, Lee, Lincoln, Powell, and Wolfe counties)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–11
Selective
Elon University School of Communications
Emerging Journalists Program
Multi-stage journalism program combining virtual instruction, a selective residential summer immersion, college credit and senior-year professional mentoring.
📍 NC🎓 Grade 11
Highly Selective
National Academy of Engineering
EngineerGirl Writing Contest
Annual essay contest with cash prizes for K–12 students.
📍 Online📅 Not yet announced — next contest not yet posted🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
UNM Engineering Student Success Center
Engineering and Computing Summer Academy
A no-cost UNM program introducing high schoolers to engineering and computer science through hands-on activities, with a non-residential option in June and a residential Transportation Institute in June/July; students meet engineering faculty and industry professionals.
📍 Albuquerque, NM📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Friends of the Mississippi River (FMR)
Environmental Stewardship Institute
A paid environmental leadership fellowship for Minnesota high schoolers combining a two-month summer intensive learning from environmental experts and visiting ecologically important Mississippi River sites with a school-year Youth Council for continued leadership and independent capstone projects addressing community environmental concerns.
📍 Twin Cities, MN📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
US EPA
EPA Citizen Science Programs
Hands-on environmental citizen science projects for students.
📍 Multiple states⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
US EPA
EPA P3 Student Design Competition
Sustainability design competition (mostly college, some K-12 partner tracks).
📍 United States⏱ Year-long📅 Fall🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
European Space Agency
ESA Education for Schools
Free space-science education projects, CanSat, Astro Pi for European school students.
📍 Europe⏱ Year-long📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UPenn Wharton Global Youth
Essentials of Leadership
An online program focusing on foundational leadership skills.
📍 remote📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UT Tyler ETX Launchpad
ETX High School Idea Challenge
An entrepreneurship pitch competition open to high school students (grades 9-12) in 40 East Texas counties. Round 1 is a 60-90 second video pitch, and selected teams present a Lean Canvas business model on the UT Tyler campus for scholarship prizes ($5,000 first place).
📍 Tyler, TX (East Texas)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Eunoia Review
Eunoia Review
Open submissions literary journal accepting student poetry and prose.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Girls Inc. at YWCA Minneapolis (with UMN College of Science and Engineering)
Eureka! Girls STEM Program
A five-year STEM pipeline program for girls in grades 8-12 combining summer weekday sessions at UMN's College of Science and Engineering with school-year enrichment at YWCA Midtown, including mentorship from STEM professionals, career exploration, and completion stipends.
📍 Minneapolis, MN📅 Varies🎓 Grades 8–12
Selective
University of New Mexico Health Sciences / Project ECHO
Exploring Health Career Pathways in New Mexico ECHO
Free live online series where New Mexico high-school students meet health-professions students, learn career pathways and receive advice on applications, personal statements and paying for college.
📍 NM🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Federal Reserve
Fed Challenge
Free team competition analyzing monetary policy — top teams present at the Federal Reserve.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ Year-long competition📅 October🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
FinAid
FinAid
Links to scholarships, grants, loans, and graduate aid.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UPenn Wharton Global Youth
Financial Decision Making
An online program to teach students about making sound financial decisions.
📍 Remote📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
The Loft Literary Center
Finding Your Story Through Images: Writing with Visual Art
A single-session online workshop for teen writers ages 15-18 that pairs visual art with creative writing prompts, taught by a Loft instructor as part of the Loft's year-round Young Writers' Program for ages 6-18.
📍 Online (The Loft Literary Center, Minneapolis, MN)📅 November🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
FIRST
FIRST LEGO League
LEGO-based STEM challenge for grades 4-8.
📍 Global⏱ Year-long📅 Fall🎓 Grades 4–8
Moderate
Fordham University
Five-Week Pre-College Program
Rising seniors take actual Fordham undergraduate summer courses for college credit, with commuter and online options.
📍 NY🎓 Grade 12
Moderate
Florida FCCLA (Family, Career and Community Leaders of America)
Florida FCCLA Scholarships
Florida FCCLA offers several annual scholarships for graduating senior members pursuing Family and Consumer Sciences-related fields, including bachelor's degree, associate/certificate degree, and leadership development scholarships, plus a Johnson & Wales University scholarship for CTSO members.
📍 Florida (application-based)📅 March🎓 Grades 11–12
Highly Selective
Poetry Society
Foyle Young Poets of the Year
International poetry award for ages 11-17; free to enter.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 Annual — 2027 dates not yet announced🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Poetry Society (UK)
Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award
International poetry prize for writers aged 11–17.
📍 Global📅 Annual — 2027 dates not yet announced🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
From the Top
From the Top's Scholarship & Radio Program
A national competition for classical music performers for a chance to perform on the radio.
📍 Online / Boston, MA📅 April 15🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UPenn Wharton Global Youth
Future of the Business World
An online program exploring emerging trends and the future landscape of business.
📍 Remote📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Generation Citizen
Generation Citizen Student Leadership Board
Action civics program enabling students to lead community campaigns on local policy issues.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ Year-long📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Generation Citizen
Generation Citizen Youth Council
National civic action council for high schoolers.
📍 Online⏱ Academic year📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Genes in Space
Genes in Space
Design a DNA experiment to be performed on the International Space Station. Annual competition with no entry fee.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 April🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
University of Pennsylvania
Genomics & Bioinformatics Seminar
Genomics, computational biology and bioinformatics.
📍 PA🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Moderate
GenZ Girl Gang
GenZ Girl Gang Virtual Internship Program (Open to all GS)
A network for students to find virtual internships in tech, non-profits, and policy. Focuses on social impact projects led by youth.
📍 Online⏱ 8-12 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
George Fox University
George Fox Early College
Dual/direct-credit and early-college options for high-school students, distinct from GFU's summer Pre-College Institute.
📍 OR🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Moderate
Gila River Indian Community Tribal Education Department
Gila River Indian Community Student Scholarships
Scholarships for Gila River Indian Community members including the El Paso Natural Gas Scholarship for high school students at private/preparatory schools and the Honeywell Scholarship for STEAM-focused high schoolers.
📍 Sacaton, AZ (Gila River Indian Community)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Girls Who Code
Girls Who Code Summer Immersion
Free two-week virtual program teaching CS to high school girls and nonbinary students.
📍 Online⏱ 2 weeks📅 Winter🎓 Grades 9–11
Highly Selective
Girls Who Code
Girls Who Code Virtual Summer Programs
Free online coding workshops for girls and non-binary students focusing on web development, game design, and AI.
📍 Online⏱ 2 weeks or 6 weeks📅 Spring/Summer cycles🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MLH
Global Hack Week: API Week
Global Hack Week focused on API development. Digital format.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
MLH
Global Hack Week: Open Source Week
Global Hack Week focused on Open Source. Digital format.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
Pioneer Academics
Global Problem-Solving Institute
Tackle the world’s most complex challenges alongside high school students from around the globe in a 12-week virtual innovation lab. Guided by four university professors, you’ll apply design- and systems-thinking to real-world problems, collaborate in interdisciplinary teams, and earn college credits through the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
📍 Online, Globally Accessible📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
NC State University
Global Training Initiative Admissions Academy
International high-school students receive intensive preparation for U.S. college applications, essays and admissions through online or campus formats.
📍 NC🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
The Climate Reality Project
Global Youth Climate Network
International youth climate leadership and action network.
📍 Global📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NFTE
Global Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
International youth pitch competition and entrepreneurship curriculum.
📍 International📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
The World Food Prize Foundation
Global Youth Institute
An international organization that empowers students to research and propose solutions to the global food security crisis.
📍 Des Moines, IA/Global⏱ Year-long📅 January 15🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
United Nations / WHO
Global Youth Mobilization Fellowship
An online-based global youth leadership accelerator focused on the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.
📍 Online⏱ 3 months (Learning)📅 May (Annual)🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
NASA / University of Toledo
GLOBE Mission EARTH (GME)
A year-long club-based program where students engage in data-driven environmental justice projects and present to scientists.
📍 Online / Various⏱ Year-round📅 October 31🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Google
Google Code-in Archive Projects
Archive of the Google Code-in competition tasks for self-guided open source learning.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Google Official
Google Generation Scholarship (Americas)
Google's scholarship aimed at supporting students with disabilities pursuing CS degrees.
📍 Nationwide⏱ One-time payment📅 Varies🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Google
Google Summer of Code — Contributor
Paid open-source contribution program. Now open to any newcomer to open source 18+, worldwide.
📍 Global📅 March🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Hack Club
Hack Club
Free worldwide network of student-run high school coding clubs and hackathons. Travel grants for in-person events.
📍 Worldwide⏱ Flexible📅 Year-round🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Hack Club
Hack Club Outernet & Events
Network of student-run coding clubs and hackathons.
📍 Multiple states⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Clemson University
Harry & Ina Durham High School Ethics Case Competition
Teams analyze and defend ethical positions before judges.
📍 SC🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Moderate
Harvard International Review
Harvard International Review Academic Writing Contest
A rigorous economics essay competition organized on a global scale.
📍 Online📅 October 1🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Harvard Student Agencies
Harvard Student Agencies Case Competition (HSACC)
An individual, two-round online business case competition run by Harvard Student Agencies in which high schoolers submit a written strategy deck and then a video pitch, competing for cash prizes and internship scholarships.
📍 Cambridge, MA (run by Harvard Student Agencies)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Hawaiʻi Council for the Humanities
Hawaiʻi History Day
Year-long project-based history and civics program for grades 4-12, in which students research an annual theme and present at district, state, and national competitions.
📍 Statewide (district and state fairs)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UH Mānoa CTAHR Extension
Hawaiʻi State 4-H Program
Statewide youth development program for ages 5-19 offering clubs and projects in agriculture, environmental science, technology, and leadership, including teen-specific initiatives like the PONO disaster-preparedness training and the Read to Me community service program.
📍 Statewide (Oʻahu, Maui, Kauaʻi, East and West Hawaiʻi)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah
HCI-RISE Virtual Summer Research Experience
A virtual summer program introducing high school students from rural Mountain West communities to cancer research and healthcare careers through interactive workshops, career panels, and small-group activities.
📍 Remote (Utah, ID, MT, NV, WY residents)📅 April🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
University of Cambridge
HE+ Cambridge
Free supracurricular resources, subject taster videos, and reading lists from Cambridge academics — designed to stretch Year 12/13 students preparing for competitive applications.
📍 Remote (UK/Global)⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling · anytime🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
George Mason University
Health Services Mentorship Program (HSMP)
A free, fully virtual program in which high school students design and carry out their own health services and clinical research studies under PhD-student guidance, meeting 2-3 times a month and presenting at the HSMP Colloquium.
📍 Virginia (virtual)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Belin-Blank Center, University of Iowa
Heartland Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS)
Iowa and Nebraska's regional STEM research symposium where high schoolers submit original research papers and the top 15 present orally to judges for scholarships, with winners advancing to nationals.
📍 Regional symposium in Iowa/Nebraska📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
URI College of Pharmacy
HERBAL
NIH-supported biomedical-science program combining virtual research laboratories with hands-on investigation of medicinal plants, natural products and analytical chemistry.
📍 RI🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Moderate
Northern Vermont Area Health Education Center / UVM Larner College of Medicine
HERO Mentoring Program (Northern Vermont AHEC)
A no-cost online one-to-one mentoring program that pairs high school students with trained UVM medical students for health career exploration, goal setting and human biology modules.
📍 Online (northern Vermont counties)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UW Carbone Cancer Center and Medical College of Wisconsin (American Cancer Society funded)
HERO: Healthcare Experience and Research in Oncology (Virtual)
Two-week synchronous virtual program for Wisconsin high school students: at-home Drosophila lab work on nutrition and genetic cancers, faculty speakers, cancer career panels and a patient case study.
📍 Virtual (Wisconsin students)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–11
Selective
Hawaii High School Athletic Association / PlayVS
HHSAA Esports State Championships
Sanctioned varsity esports competition for Hawaii high schools with spring and fall seasons in League of Legends and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, culminating in state championship banners.
📍 Statewide (online play via PlayVS)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Black Rock & Sage (Idaho State University student journal)
High School Creative Writing Contest
A poetry, short fiction, and creative nonfiction contest run by ISU's student literary journal for high schoolers in southeastern Idaho, with the winner published and invited to read at the journal's launch party.
📍 Southeastern Idaho (submissions by email to Idaho State University)📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Duke Summer Session
High School Credit Course Options
Duke Summer Session offers credit course options for high school students.
📍 Durham, NC and remote🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Federal Reserve Bank of New York (and others)
High School Fed Challenge
High school teams compete to solve real-world economic problems and demonstrate their understanding of central banking.
📍 Regional Fed Banks⏱ Semester📅 February 15🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
High School Fed Challenge (Cleveland Fed region)
A team competition where high school students research an assigned economics theme and produce an analytical paper/podcast evaluated by Federal Reserve staff; the Cleveland Fed hosts the regional round for Ohio, western PA, eastern KY, and northern WV.
📍 Cleveland, OH📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Michigan Council on Economic Education
High School Fed Challenge (Michigan)
A research and writing competition for grades 9-12 in which student teams author an original economics research paper on an annual theme (2025-26: the economics of music), with selected entries published in the Journal of Future Economists.
📍 Michigan (statewide, virtual submission)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Colorado Boulder, New Venture Challenge
High School New Venture Challenge (CU Boulder)
A free, multi-round entrepreneurial pitch competition open to any Colorado high schooler (public, private, or homeschooled), guided by an adult venture coach, culminating in an in-person final at CU Boulder.
📍 University of Colorado Boulder (finals)📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
High School to Health Care (HS2HC)
A grant-funded program (NIGMS-backed) introducing rural Tennessee high school students and their teachers to careers in medical laboratory sciences and public health information technology through a dual-enrollment course and summer camp.
📍 Ripley, TN📅 May🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
HSF
Hispanic Scholarship Fund
Need- and merit-based scholarships for Hispanic American students. Awards from USD 500 to USD 5K annually.
📍 Online application⏱ Annual📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Horatio Alger Association
Horatio Alger Scholarship
Need-based scholarships for HS seniors who have overcome adversity.
📍 United States⏱ Self-paced📅 Winter🎓 Grade 12
Highly Selective
Horizon
Horizon Academic Research Program
Individual research mentorship program producing a college-level paper; open worldwide.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ 10 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Hawaiʻi Pacific University
HPU 500 Summer Courses
Summer college courses open to current high school freshmen through seniors in Arts & Humanities, Computer Science, Criminal Justice, Leadership, Math, and Science, earning transferable college credit.
📍 Honolulu, Oʻahu (on-campus and online)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
HSCTF Association
HSCTF (High School Capture the Flag)
One of the largest student cybersecurity competitions, featuring crypto and web exploits.
📍 Online⏱ 2 weeks📅 November 15🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Michigan Technological University, College of Business
Husky Investment Tournament
A semester-long virtual stock portfolio competition where teams of three to four high school students manage $1,000,000 in simulated funds, building and defending an investment strategy over several weeks.
📍 Houghton, MI (virtual competition)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Boise State Writing Project, Boise State University (regional affiliate of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers)
Idaho Writing Region - Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
Idaho's regional affiliate of the national Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, through which Idaho students submit writing across genres for regional recognition with a path to national medals.
📍 Idaho (online submission via Boise State Writing Project)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Troy University, IDEA Bank / Small Business Development Center
IDEA Bank Youth Entrepreneurship Academy
A summer entrepreneurship academy teaching business planning, financial literacy, marketing, brand development and pitching skills, culminating in a Pitch Competition awarding a $2,000 Troy University scholarship.
📍 Troy, AL📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Illinois High School Esports Association
Illinois High School Esports Association (IHSEA)
Nonprofit league organizing interscholastic esports competition for Illinois high schools across titles including Valorant, Rocket League, Overwatch 2, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, plus a Unified Esports initiative run with Special Olympics.
📍 Illinois (matches online; state finals at NIU)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Idaho Music Educators Association (IMEA)
IMEA All-State Honor Groups
Idaho's statewide honor ensembles (Concert Band, String Orchestra, Small Schools Wind Ensemble, Treble Choir, and Mixed Choir) selected through recorded auditions, open to grade 9-12 students in a school concert ensemble whose director is an IMEA/NAfME member.
📍 Statewide auditions; honor group performances at host high schools in Idaho📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Immerse Education
Immerse Education Essay Competition
Free international essay contest; winners receive 100% scholarships to Immerse summer residencies at Cambridge, Oxford, and elsewhere.
📍 Global📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Ball State University
Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Humanities
A selective, tuition-free two-year public residential high school on the Ball State campus for high-ability juniors and seniors, offering college-level courses, AP classes, and Ball State dual-credit options.
📍 Muncie, IN📅 Varies🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Indigo Research
Indigo Research
One-on-one mentored research projects with university faculty.
📍 Online⏱ 3-6 months📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Maine Coast Waldorf School
Inkblot Writing Contest
A free fiction and poetry contest open to all Maine students in grades 4-12, judged within three grade divisions including 9-12, with cash prizes for winners and runners-up in each category.
📍 Freeport, ME (statewide submissions)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Jacobson Institute, University of Iowa
Innovator Competition
A pitch competition open to U.S. high school students in grades 9-12 with a business, product, or invention idea, no business coursework required, culminating in a Zoom pitch to a panel of entrepreneurs for seed capital.
📍 Remote (University of Iowa, Iowa City)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MaineHealth / Maine Medical Center / Tufts University School of Medicine
Inside Medicine Summer Program
A free virtual statewide program where Maine high school students explore medical careers, hear from MaineHealth clinicians, learn healthcare terminology, and solve medical mystery cases guided by Tufts University medical students.
📍 Virtual (statewide), ME📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
University of Virginia Northern Virginia (Fairfax)
Inspire Summer (UVA Northern Virginia Pre-College Classes)
One- to two-week summer classes for rising 10th-12th graders to explore new interests, with in-person (9am-4pm, Monday-Friday, Friday excursions) and online options in topics such as business, engineering and creative writing.
📍 Fairfax, VA and online📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Highly Selective
Inspirit AI
Inspirit AI Scholars
AI research mentorship by Stanford/MIT alumni for HS students.
📍 Online⏱ 10 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Moderate
Inspirit AI
Inspirit AI Scholars (Aid)
AI research projects mentored by Stanford/MIT grads. Need-based aid covers full tuition.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ 10-25 hours📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix
InstaMed
Free statewide virtual healthcare program using two-hour clinical scenarios and guided discussions to expose students to medical careers and develop clinical reasoning and critical-thinking skills.
📍 Statewide📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Institute for Youth in Policy
Institute for Youth in Policy (Economics Dept)
A youth-led organization providing resources for high schoolers to conduct and publish research in economics.
📍 Online⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
IEFTA
International Emerging Film Talent Association
International youth film mentorship and festival access programs.
📍 International📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Terra Science
International Journal of High School Research
Open-access peer-reviewed journal for HS research across disciplines.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
NACLO/UKLO/OzCLO
International Linguistics Olympiad — National Rounds
National linguistics olympiads (NACLO, UKLO, OzCLO, etc.) that select for the IOL — many are open worldwide via school registration.
📍 Global (national organizers)📅 January–February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
IMMC
International Mathematical Modeling Challenge
International team-based math modeling competition for high schoolers.
📍 International📅 March🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
International Philosophy Olympiad
International Philosophy Olympiad (IPO) - US Qualifiers
An annual philosophy essay competition for pre-university students globally.
📍 Online📅 January 31🎓 Grades 10–12
Highly Selective
International Songwriting Competition
International Songwriting Competition (ISC)
A world-renowned songwriting competition that has launched the careers of many famous artists.
📍 Online📅 February 1🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Edu Mithra
International Space Olympiad
International olympiad on space science, astronomy, and rocketry with online prelims.
📍 India + Global📅 Autumn🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
IYPT US / USAYPT
International Young Physicists' Tournament (Online Regional)
Global physics competition for teams to solve 7 open-ended problems and present their results in online 'Physics Fights'.
📍 Online/Global⏱ Intermittent (matches)📅 February (Registration)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
IYRC
International Youth Research Conference & Mentorship
Student-run research group providing mentorship and resources for high schoolers to conduct and publish original research.
📍 Online⏱ Flexible📅 May (for summer/fall)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Cooper Union
Introduction to Architecture Online
A five-week online foundation studies and portfolio-development course in architectural thinking and design, with live synchronous sessions, instruction in Rhino and Adobe Creative Suite, and a final portfolio review.
📍 New York, NY (hosted by The Cooper Union, delivered online)📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Iowa Conservation Education Coalition
Iowa Envirothon
A team-based environmental problem-solving competition for grades 9-12 covering aquatic ecology, forestry, wildlife, soils, and current environmental issues, with the state winner advancing to the international NCF-Envirothon.
📍 Regional online exams statewide; state finals at Jester Park Nature Center, IA📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Iowa Academy of Science
Iowa Junior Academy of Science
A mentoring program connecting middle and high school students with Iowa scientists, supporting original research projects, proposal writing, and presentations at the Academy's annual spring meeting.
📍 Statewide, Iowa📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach 4-H Youth Development
Iowa State 4-H Council
A leadership role for about 30 high school juniors and seniors who serve as statewide 4-H ambassadors, plan the Iowa 4-H Youth Conference, and represent 4-H at the Iowa State Fair.
📍 Central Iowa (retreats) and statewide outreach📅 January🎓 Grades 10–11
Selective
University of Cambridge
Isaac Physics
Free platform of physics and math problem sets with online mentoring, mastery levels, and printable revision sheets used by GCSE, A-level, and international students worldwide.
📍 Remote (UK/Global)⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling · anytime🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Institute for Systems Biology
ISB High School Summer Internship and DREAM-High
For current 11th graders: an in-person eight-week, roughly 300-hour summer internship at the Institute for Systems Biology, or the six-week virtual or in-person DREAM-High experience in which students learn R and Python to analyze genomics and clinical data from cancer cells.
📍 Seattle, WA📅 January🎓 Grade 11
Selective
Society for Science
ISEF Categories and Subcategories
Definitions and details of the categories of competition for Regeneron ISEF.
📍 Remote🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Society for Science
ISEF Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to questions for students, parents, and teachers about the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Society for Science
ISEF International Rules and Guidelines
Official rules and guidelines for competition at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Society for Science
ISEF Project Database
Searchable database of abstracts from Regeneron ISEF projects from 2014 to 2026.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Junior Achievement of Arizona
JA Be Entrepreneurial
Modular entrepreneurship program for grades 9-12 covering Lean Canvas business planning, design-thinking problem solving, and entrepreneurial mindset, deliverable in classroom, remote-live, or after-school formats, with a path to the JA Social Innovation Challenge.
📍 Statewide, AZ📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Junior Achievement of Arkansas
JA Be Entrepreneurial (Think Like an Entrepreneur)
A three-module high school program using Design Thinking to help students generate a business idea and build a one-page business plan, delivered in classrooms, after-school clubs, or virtually.
📍 Delivered in partner schools statewide, Arkansas📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Junior Achievement of New York
JA Business Plan Competition (BPC)
An intensive entrepreneurship education experience where high school teams develop a viable business plan for a product or service over six 45-minute sessions, competing through online and live rounds for cash prizes.
📍 New York State (partner schools)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Junior Achievement of Greater Boston
JA Company Program
A semester- or year-long entrepreneurship program in which high school students conceive, launch, and manage their own business venture, learning business planning, financial management, marketing, and sales under the mentorship of business volunteers.
📍 Boston, MA (delivered in-school or after-school statewide)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Junior Achievement of Maine
JA Company Program
A hands-on entrepreneurship program in which Maine high school students conceptualize, fund, and manage their own student-led business venture with mentorship from community volunteers, with a path to the JA Company of the Year national competition.
📍 Statewide, ME🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Junior Achievement of Maine
JA Titan
A simulation-based program where Maine high school students compete as CEOs running a virtual phone company, making production, marketing, and R&D decisions over five mentored weeks before a statewide competition.
📍 Statewide, ME🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Young Scholars
Five-year pre-college scholarship for high-achieving 7th graders with financial need.
📍 United States⏱ 5 years📅 Spring🎓 Grade 7
Selective
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation
Jack Kent Cooke Young Scholars
Free 5-year program for 7th-grade high-achieving low-income students. Includes summer programs, college advising, and scholarships.
📍 Nationwide⏱ 5 years📅 April🎓 Grade 7
Selective
Hack Club
Jame Gam
A community of teenagers who enter game jams together. Build a game, get prizes.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
John Locke Institute
John Locke Institute Essay Competition
Free essay competition in philosophy, politics, economics, history, psychology, theology, and law. Open worldwide, ages up to 18.
📍 Global📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
John Locke Institute
John Locke Institute Global Essay Competition
International essay competition across philosophy, politics, economics, history, psychology, theology, and law.
📍 Global📅 Late June🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
JEI (Harvard)
Journal of Emerging Investigators
Free peer-reviewed publication venue for middle/high school STEM research. Real PhD reviewers.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
JHSS
Journal of High School Science
STEM and humanities journal for high school students.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
JRHS
Journal of Research High School
Multidisciplinary peer-reviewed HS journal.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
JSR
Journal of Student Research
Peer-reviewed academic journal for high-school and undergraduate researchers.
📍 Online📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Pennsylvania
Journal of the Penn Manuscript Collective
Undergraduate humanities journal welcoming exceptional HS work.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Oregon State University, SVPDA Academy
JumpstART Pre-College Art Program
A one-week pre-college intensive for grades 9-12 covering drawing, painting, sequential art/comics, graphic design, and photography, taught by professional artists and JumpstART alumni with both day and residential options.
📍 Corvallis, OR📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Kaggle
Kaggle Competitions
Global data-science competition platform with beginner "Getting Started" tracks, community notebooks, and cash-prize challenges accessible from anywhere.
📍 Remote (Global)⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling · anytime🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Hack Club
Keeb
Keeb is a YSWS (Your Special Weekend/Summer) where you can make a keyboard from scratch. Start with nothing, design everything, add an optional twist, and build it yourself!
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission / Fort Smith International Film Festival / Arkansas Cinema Society
Keep Arkansas Beautiful Statewide High School Video Contest
Students in grades 9-12 create a 30-second-or-shorter video commercial promoting environmental responsibility, litter prevention, or recycling in Arkansas, submitted free through FilmFreeway.
📍 Statewide, Arkansas (submissions via FilmFreeway)📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Indiana University Kelley School of Business
Kelley Women's Leadership Institute
High-school students explore business and leadership with Kelley faculty through case-based activities, teamwork, and exposure to business majors and careers. Fall 2026 virtual sessions are available to current sophomores, juniors, and seniors.
📍 IN🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Kenyon Review
Kenyon Review Young Writers (Online Program & Publication)
The official high school literary magazine of the Kenyon Review, accepting poetry and prose globally. Virtual workshops also available.
📍 Online/Kenyon College⏱ Annual publication📅 May (Summer Review)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Kenyon Review
Kenyon Review Young Writers Summer Online Workshops
Multi-genre workshops meet every day for one week in June.
📅 Not yet announced — check official site for next cycle🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Kenyon Review
Kenyon Review Young Writers Winter Online Workshops
Workshops focused on a specific genre, topic, or craft element meet online once a week for six weeks.
📅 Not yet announced — check official site for next cycle🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Khan Academy / Medline Plus
Khan Academy Health & Medicine Pathway
Learn the science behind medicine and the human body through interactive coursework developed by top universities. Ideal for medical-track HS students.
📍 Online⏱ Flexible (1-year access)📅 Self-paced🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Khanservatory / Khan Academy Affiliate
Khan Academy Student Ambassador Program
High school students from the US can serve as 'International Ambassadors' to help with online math tutoring and outreach.
📍 Online⏱ Ongoing📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Kentucky High School Athletic Association
KHSAA Esports (powered by PlayVS)
Kentucky's only officially sanctioned varsity high school esports league, played through PlayVS across titles like Rocket League, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and Street Fighter 6, with coach-led teams competing in fall and spring seasons that end in state championships.
📍 Online play statewide; season championships announced through KHSAA📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Knight Foundation
Knight Foundation High School Journalism
Various Knight-funded high school journalism programs and fellowships.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Knowledge Society
Knowledge Society (TKS) Innovate
Selective ten-month innovation program for teens 13-17 in emerging tech (AI, biotech, blockchain).
📍 Multiple cities⏱ 10 months📅 Spring🎓 Grades 8–12
Moderate
University of Pennsylvania
Knowledge@Wharton Comment & Win
Monthly free contests where students comment on Knowledge@Wharton articles for cash prizes.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Monthly🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wharton/Penn
Knowledge@Wharton High School
Free online business journal and articles plus essay competitions for high schoolers.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wharton/UPenn
Knowledge@Wharton High School Comment & Win
Monthly essay/comment contest on business topics.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Monthly🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens
LA Zoo Teen Council for Conservation
A nine-month leadership program for about 30 LA high schoolers representing each City Council district, focused on conservation and environmental justice, culminating in a youth-led Conservation Symposium.
📍 Los Angeles Zoo, Los Angeles, CA📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
LaunchX
LaunchX
Summer entrepreneurship programs with seed funding.
📍 Multiple sites⏱ 4 weeks📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
LaunchX
LaunchX Entrepreneurship Summer Program
Four-week intensive where students launch a real startup; held at Northwestern, Michigan, or virtual.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ 4 weeks📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Learn To Be Foundation
Learn To Be Tutor
A 1-on-1 online tutoring program for low-income K-12 students. High schoolers can apply to tutor and earn volunteer hours.
📍 Online⏱ Flexible📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
LeetCode
LeetCode Weekly Contest
Free weekly competitive programming contests.
📍 Online⏱ 90 min📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
Let's Get Ready
Let's Get Ready College Access
Free SAT prep and college advising from near-peer mentors.
📍 Online📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Texas Center for the Book, Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Letters About Literature (Texas)
A free reading-and-writing contest in which Texas students write a letter to an author explaining how the author's work changed their view of themselves or the world. The grade 9-12 category awards cash prizes of $100-$300 and a travel stipend to the Texas Library Association conference.
📍 Texas (statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission (WV HEPC)
LevelUpWV Dual Enrollment
A state-funded dual enrollment program that lets high school juniors and seniors take college courses in career pathways including Health Care, Information Technology, Advanced Manufacturing, Engineering and Education.
📍 West Virginia📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Southeastern Louisiana University
Lion's Code CyberCamp
A free coding and cybersecurity camp for grades 8-12 requiring no prior experience, using NICERC curriculum with virtual capture-the-flag scenarios and lessons on encryption and cyber careers.
📍 Hammond, LA📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Lumiere Education
Lumiere Education Individual Research
One-on-one research mentorship with PhDs producing a publishable paper.
📍 Online⏱ 3-6 months📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Lumiere Education
Lumiere Research Scholar (Aid)
Independent research papers with PhD mentors. Need-based financial aid up to 100%.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ 12 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Lumiere Education
Lumiere Research Scholar Program
Independent research program mentored by PhDs; open to high schoolers worldwide.
📍 Global📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Madison College Center for Entrepreneurship
Madison College Pitch
A business pitch competition for area high school students who submit a 2.5 to 3 minute video covering the problem, solution, target market and financials, with finalists presenting live to judges at the Madison College Truax campus.
📍 Madison, WI📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
CyberWyoming Alliance
MAGIC Capture the Flag Cybersecurity Puzzle Challenge
An entry-level, beginner-friendly cybersecurity puzzle challenge open to high school, college and nontraditional students, played virtually from school computer rooms.
📍 Wyoming (online)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Maine / Margaret Chase Smith Library
Maine National History Day
A year-long research and project-based competition for grades 6-12 in which students create a paper, exhibit, documentary, performance, or website on a historical topic tied to an annual theme, advancing from classroom to state to national competition.
📍 Orono, ME (University of Maine)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Maine Press Association
Maine Press Association Scholarship
A need-based scholarship for Maine high school seniors and college students pursuing journalism, awarded based on internship or student-news experience, a cover letter, resume, and writing samples.
📍 Statewide, ME📅 February🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Maine College of Art & Design (MECA&D)
Maine Region Scholastic Art Awards
The Maine affiliate of the national Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, open to students in grades 7-12 to submit original artwork across eighteen categories including painting, photography, sculpture, and video game design for scholarships and national recognition.
📍 Portland, ME (MECA&D; digital submission)📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Waterville Creates (Maine Film Center)
Maine Student Film + Video Festival
A free, no-entry-fee film festival open to Maine residents 19 and under in grades K-12, judging student-made Narrative, Documentary, and Creative (animation/experimental) films of up to 10 minutes.
📍 Waterville, ME📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MaineHealth / The Opportunity Alliance
Maine Youth Action Network (MYAN)
A statewide youth leadership network for ages 14-18 focused on community advocacy around substance use, mental health, and bullying prevention, including local Youth Policy Boards and an annual Youth Leadership Conference.
📍 South Portland, ME (statewide network)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Maine Youth for Climate Justice (MYCJ)
Maine Youth for Climate Justice High School Cohort
Free, peer-led statewide cohort connecting Maine high school climate and environmental activists, offering mini-grants and outreach support for student-led school and community sustainability projects; no prior organizing experience required.
📍 Statewide, Maine📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MLH
Major League Hacking (MLH) Digital Events
MLH partners with dozens of online student-led hackathons throughout the year accessible to any student with an internet connection.
📍 Online⏱ 24-48 hours📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MLH
Major League Hacking High School Hackathons
Calendar of student hackathons; many high school-friendly.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MLH
Major League Hacking Local Hack Day
Free worldwide student hackathons run by MLH. Beginner-friendly tracks.
📍 Worldwide⏱ 1-2 days📅 Year-round🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Marshall Society (Cambridge)
Marshall Society Essay Competition
Global economics essay prize run by the Cambridge Marshall Society.
📍 Remote (Global)📅 August🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Robert H. Mollohan Family Charitable Foundation
Mary Olive Eddy Jones Art Scholarship
A $1,000 scholarship for a West Virginia high school senior majoring in an art-related field (or a college sophomore or junior at a West Virginia institution majoring in art), paid to the student's college.
📍 West Virginia📅 May🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Duke Health / Durham YouthWorks
MaryAnn Black Summer Internship
Durham youth explore dozens of health professions through hands-on activities, mentoring and workplace exposure within Duke Health.
📍 NC🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Maryland
Maryland High School Business Plan Competition
A statewide competition open to Maryland high school freshmen, sophomores, and juniors who submit an executive summary of a new venture idea in teams of one to five for a chance at up to $10,000 in cash and prizes.
📍 College Park, MD📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–11
Selective
Maryland Council on Economic Education (MCEE)
Maryland Personal Finance Challenge
A free two-stage competition where Maryland high school teams demonstrate personal finance knowledge through online testing, then compete at the Federal Reserve's Baltimore branch with a case-study presentation and Quiz Bowl round.
📍 Federal Reserve Bank of Baltimore, MD📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Maryland-DC Scholastic Press Association (MDCSPA)
Maryland-DC Scholastic Press Association
A nonprofit partnered with the Philip Merrill College of Journalism that offers free membership to high school journalism students and teachers, hosting J-Day, a Fall Workshop, and the Maryland Journalist of the Year contest.
📍 Maryland and DC region📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Boylston Chess Club / Massachusetts High School Chess League
Massachusetts High School Chess League (MHSCL)
A completely student-run, free chess league for Massachusetts high schoolers, hosting both virtual and in-person team tournaments at the Boylston Chess Club with the main event crowning a season-long league champion.
📍 Boston, MA (Boylston Chess Club)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Massachusetts Scholastic Press Association (MASPA)
Massachusetts High School Journalist of the Year
An annual statewide award honoring the top individual high school journalist in Massachusetts, with the winner advancing to the National High School Journalist of the Year competition.
📍 Massachusetts (statewide)📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Massachusetts Historical Society (National History Day state affiliate)
Massachusetts History Day
A year-long historical research program in which students in grades 6-12 investigate a topic using primary and secondary sources and present their findings as a documentary, website, performance, paper, exhibit, or podcast at regional and state contests.
📍 Massachusetts (statewide, sponsored by the Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MATHCOUNTS Foundation
MATHCOUNTS
Premier US middle school math competition with school, chapter, state, and national levels.
📍 United States⏱ Year-long📅 Fall🎓 Grades 6–8
Selective
Matriculate
Matriculate Advising Fellows
Free virtual one-on-one college admissions advising for high-achieving low-income high-school students.
📍 Online📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Matter of Trust
Matter of Trust Citizen Science
Free citizen-science volunteer projects in oil-spill remediation and sustainability.
📍 Nationwide⏱ Flexible📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Hawaiʻi Space Grant Consortium / Maunakea Observatories
Maunakea Scholars
Program pairing Hawaiʻi public high school students with professional astronomy mentors to write research proposals and compete for observing time on Maunakea's world-class telescopes.
📍 10 partner high schools across Oʻahu, Maui, Molokaʻi, and Hawaiʻi Island📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
McGill University
McGill Mini-Med School
Lecture series introducing high school and community members to medical science and clinical topics.
📍 Montreal, Canada⏱ 8 weeks📅 October🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Maryland Blockchain Association (MDBA) & Blockchain Legal Institute
MDBA Youth Blockchain Hackathon
A fully virtual hackathon for grades 10-12 with an AI & Machine Learning track (building decentralized data meshes and AI verification protocols) alongside blockchain and legal-tech tracks, judged with bounty prizes up to $25,000.
📍 Virtual (Maryland-based organization)📅 November🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
Mechanics of Writing for High School (UW Youth & Teen Programs)
Builds high school students' writing mechanics, including grammar, sentence and paragraph structure, and organization for narrative, expository and argumentative essays.
📍 UW Seattle campus, Seattle, WA (one session online via Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
MERIT Baltimore / CollegeBound Foundation
MERIT Health Leadership Academy
A multi-year, out-of-school academic and career mentorship program for underrepresented Baltimore high schoolers pursuing healthcare careers, combining Saturday college-prep classes, progressive summer internships (bioengineering/math, then clinical shadowing, then research), and longitudinal mentorship.
📍 Baltimore, MD📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MDDC Press Foundation
Michael S. Powell High School Journalist of the Year
An annual $1,500 cash award honoring an outstanding senior member of a high school newspaper staff in Maryland, Delaware, or DC, presented at the MDDC Editorial Awards ceremony.
📍 Maryland (statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Michigan Health Council / University of Michigan
Michigan Health Sciences Pre-College Exposure Academy (SPEA)
A free, hybrid academic-enrichment program for 10th-11th graders interested in health equity, offering college-prep coursework in English, chemistry, biology, and math alongside workshops on health disparities and tours of UM Medical School and hospital facilities.
📍 Ann Arbor, MI📅 Varies🎓 Grades 10–11
Selective
Microsoft Corporation
Microsoft High School Internship Program (Redmond Area)
Paid summer internship doing technical research or development at Microsoft.
📍 Redmond, WA⏱ 4-10 weeks📅 February 1🎓 Grade 12
Moderate
Western Washington Fellowship of Reconciliation
Mike Yarrow Peace Fellowship
Year-long Seattle-based training in active nonviolence for high school and college-age youth ages 14-23, including an online intensive and a self-designed nonviolent social change project.
📍 Seattle, WA (online intensive training)📅 July🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Tufts University
Mini Dental School
An intensive 'Mini Dental School' program.
📍 Boston Health Sciences Campus📅 Not yet announced — check official site for next cycle🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Tufts University
Mini Med School
An intensive 'Mini Med School' program for high school students.
📍 Boston Health Sciences Campus📅 Not yet announced — check official site for next cycle🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
Mini-Medical School
A six-week hybrid program for high school juniors/seniors in the greater Newark area, led by medical students and faculty, covering cardiology, neurology, infectious disease, mental health, and health equity, with hands-on clinical-skills electives and a graduation ceremony.
📍 Newark, NJ📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
Minnesota State IT Center of Excellence
Minnesota Data Derby
An annual data analytics competition open to Minnesota high school, undergraduate, and graduate students, featuring a one-day 'Datagon' debate-format contest and a multi-week 'Datathon' where teams analyze a real dataset (e.g., education costs) and present solutions at Hennepin Technical College.
📍 Eden Prairie, MN📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Minnesota Council on Economic Education (MCEE) / Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis
Minnesota Economics Challenge
A statewide quiz-bowl style competition where teams of high school students take online tests on economic fundamentals, microeconomics, macroeconomics, and international economics, with top teams advancing to the state tournament and potentially the National Economics Challenge.
📍 Online qualifying rounds; in-person state tournament, Minnesota📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Minnesota CFANS (World Food Prize Foundation network)
Minnesota Youth Institute (MNYI)
Part of the World Food Prize Youth Institute network, MNYI has Minnesota high schoolers write a research paper on a global food security challenge connecting agriculture, nutrition, economics, and policy, then present it in small roundtable discussions with experts at a spring event hosted by the University of Minnesota. Top participants can advance to the Global Youth Institute in Des Moines and earn a $1,000 CFANS scholarship.
📍 St. Paul, MN📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Mississippi Council on Economic Education (MCEE)
Mississippi Economics Challenge
A free team-based online economics quiz-bowl competition for Mississippi high schoolers in two divisions (advanced and introductory), with regional qualifying rounds and a state championship carrying college scholarship prizes.
📍 Statewide, Mississippi (State Championship in Jackson, MS)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Mississippi Center for the Book
Mississippi Poetry Project
A free statewide poetry-writing initiative for students in grades K-12 built around an annual prompt, with school-selected winners published in a contest anthology and honored at a public reading.
📍 Statewide, Mississippi📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MIT
MIT LaunchX
Entrepreneurship program; teams build startups with mentorship.
📍 Cambridge, MA📅 Not yet announced — 2027 program dates listed as "coming soon"🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
MIT
MIT MITES Semester
Free six-month online STEM program for HS juniors.
📍 Online⏱ 6 months📅 February🎓 Grade 11
Highly Selective
MIT
MIT THINK Scholars
Funded research mentorship; finalists travel to MIT for an all-expenses-paid weekend.
📍 Online📅 Not yet announced — 2026-27 cycle not yet posted🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Major League Hacking
MLH Fellowship
A 12-week fellowship for aspiring software engineers to contribute to Open Source projects.
📍 Online⏱ 12 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Major League Hacking
MLH Member Hackathons
A season of student-run hackathons across the world where students build software/hardware.
📍 Global⏱ 24-48 hours📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Actuarial Foundation
Modeling the Future Challenge
Free actuarial science / data analysis competition for HS students with cash scholarships.
📍 Online⏱ Year-long📅 Fall🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, Edvest and Wisconsin Coalition on Student Debt
Money Smart Wisconsin Scholarship Contest
An essay contest for Wisconsin high school seniors planning to attend a Wisconsin college, who estimate higher education costs, identify funding sources and plan their finances for a chance at an Edvest 529 scholarship contribution.
📍 Wisconsin (online or emailed application)📅 March🎓 Grade 12
Selective
UPenn Wharton Global Youth
Moneyball FLEX
A flexible online program for sports analytics, building on the Moneyball concept.
📍 Remote📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
UPenn Wharton Global Youth
Moneyball: Training Camp
An online training camp focused on sports analytics, similar to the Moneyball Academy.
📍 Remote📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Montana Learning Center / Montana Space Grant Consortium
Montana Aerospace Scholars — Freshmen & Sophomore Program
Two-stage Montana-resident program beginning with online aerospace assignments; successful students qualify for a summer residency involving mission design, space exploration and STEM-career experiences.
📍 MT🎓 Grades 9–10
Moderate
Montana Historical Society / Montana 250 Commission / Montana OPI
Montana Challenge
Online 20-question challenge covering Montana history, geography and government. Students scoring at least 80% earn a certificate and enter a drawing for one of hundreds of $25 prizes; the remaining 2026 prize round occurs in December.
📍 MT🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Montana Digital Academy
Montana Digital Academy High School Courses
Montana's state-sponsored online school offers over 200 original-credit courses, including AP classes, taught by Montana-licensed teachers to high schoolers who remain enrolled at their local public school.
📍 Online, statewide📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Morehouse College
Morehouse Summer Pre-College Program
Morehouse's Summer Pre-College Program lets rising high school juniors and seniors with a 3.2+ GPA earn Morehouse College credit in hybrid online/synchronous courses taught by Morehouse faculty.
📍 Morehouse College, Atlanta, GA (hybrid online instruction)📅 March🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Maine Press Association
MPA Journalism Scholarship
A scholarship of up to $2,000 for Maine high school seniors headed to college who show a demonstrated commitment to journalism through internships, employment, or student news work, plus financial need.
📍 Statewide, ME📅 February🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Michigan Public Health Institute
MPHI-PHIRE: Public Health Initiative for Resourceful Education
Six-week virtual summer program for incoming high school sophomores, juniors and seniors introducing public health careers and education, held weekly over Microsoft Teams. Free to students, who receive a $500 stipend, a certificate and a letter of recommendation on completion; requires a 2.75 GPA, service or leadership record and two recommendations. The 2026 cohort applied by May 29.
📍 Michigan (virtual)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
University of Michigan Department of Family Medicine
MYHealth
Southeast Michigan high-school students participate in a nine-month virtual health-research program, learn research fundamentals, select youth-health questions, collect data through surveys or activities, and present their findings.
📍 MI🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UT Austin Center for Space Research (NASA SEES)
NASA & UT Austin SEES High School Summer Intern Program
A competitive two-week on-site summer internship at UT Austin (plus virtual project work) where rising juniors and seniors work with NASA scientists on Earth and space science data. U.S. citizens who are 10th or 11th graders, 16 by early July.
📍 Austin, TX (University of Texas at Austin)📅 February🎓 Grades 10–11
Moderate
NASA
NASA App Development Challenge
Open team coding challenge from NASA. Teams build a visualization of mission data. No fee; finalists visit Johnson Space Center.
📍 Online⏱ 12 weeks📅 December🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
NASA
NASA Citizen Science
Dozens of free NASA citizen-science projects. Your contributions co-author published papers.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Anytime🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NASA
NASA High School Internship Program (OSTEM)
Students participate in NASA's mission-driven projects through unique internship experiences at NASA centers across the country.
📍 Nationwide⏱ 10 weeks📅 January 15🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
NASA
NASA Internships (HS / OSTEM)
Search portal for NASA STEM internships and challenges, including high school programs.
📍 United States⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Rhode Island Space Grant Consortium (Brown University)
NASA Rhode Island Space Grant Consortium: Lunar Challenges
A NASA-funded consortium led by Brown University that runs student-facing programs including the Build the Moon and Plant the Moon classroom challenges for middle and high schoolers, alongside teacher partnerships bringing NASA-focused research into Rhode Island classrooms.
📍 Providence, RI (Brown University; challenges run through RI schools statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
NASA / UT Austin
NASA SEES Internship
Earth and space science research mentored by NASA scientists.
📍 TX / Remote (nationwide eligibility)⏱ Virtual spring + 2-week onsite📅 February🎓 Grades 10–11
Selective
NASA
NASA Space Apps Challenge (Student Track)
A data science competition where students use real NASA data to solve problems.
📍 Global⏱ 48 hours📅 April 30🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NASA / Future Engineers
NASA TechRise Student Challenge
Teams design space-bound experiments. Winners receive USD 1500 and their payload flies on a high-altitude balloon.
📍 Online⏱ School year📅 November🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
NAQT
National Academic Quiz Tournaments (NAQT)
Major US quiz bowl organization running middle school, high school, and college tournaments.
📍 United States⏱ Year-long📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 6–12
Moderate
NCL
National Cyber League
Twice-yearly cybersecurity capture-the-flag competition with high school division.
📍 Online⏱ 8 weeks📅 Fall🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Council for Economic Education
National Economics Challenge
Team economics competition with state and national rounds. Open to all US high schoolers; many states offer scholarships.
📍 State + national⏱ Multi-round📅 March-April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Council for Economic Education
National Economics Challenge - Tennessee
A statewide economics competition in which teams of three to four high school students take a 30-question rapid-fire exam testing micro/macroeconomics and the world economy, competing in the David Ricardo (first-time) or Adam Smith (AP/IB/honors) division. State winners advance to national semi-finals.
📍 Statewide (online exam)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NFMC
National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) Competitions
A prestigious scholarship competition for vocalists, instrumentalists, and composers.
📍 Online📅 March 15🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
National Geographic
National Geographic GeoBee Archive
Historical archive and resources for geography competition (paused after 2020) plus successor programs.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 4–8
Selective
National Geographic
National Geographic Slingshot Challenge
Annual video competition for ages 13-18 on environmental solutions with cash prizes.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Winter🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
NHSJS
National High School Journal of Science
Free peer-reviewed online journal publishing high school students' STEM research.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
International Academic Competitions
National History Bee and Bowl
National history quiz competitions for grades 4-12.
📍 United States⏱ Year-long📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 4–12
Moderate
National History Day
National History Day
Year-long historical research project competition culminating at the national contest.
📍 College Park, MD⏱ Academic year📅 Spring🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
Idaho State Historical Society (National History Day Idaho affiliate)
National History Day in Idaho
A year-long research program where students in grades 9-12 (Senior Division) create a historical paper, documentary, performance, exhibit, or website tied to an annual theme, competing through regional contests to the state contest and on to nationals.
📍 Regional sites statewide and virtual; state contest at The College of Idaho, Caldwell📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
State Historical Society of Iowa
National History Day in Iowa
A year-long research and presentation program where students create documentaries, exhibits, papers, performances, or websites on a historical topic, advancing from district contests to the state contest in Ames and on to nationals.
📍 Statewide with state contest in Ames, IA📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Minnesota Historical Society
National History Day in Minnesota
A co-curricular historical research program for students in grades 6-12 who choose a topic tied to an annual theme and present original research as a paper, exhibit, documentary, performance, or website, competing at school, regional, state, and national levels.
📍 Regional and state contests across Minnesota📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Nevada Center for Civic Engagement
National History Day in Nevada
Nevada's affiliate of the National History Day competition, where students research an annual theme and present findings as a documentary, exhibit, paper, performance, website, or podcast, advancing through regional and state contests toward nationals.
📍 Nevada (regional contests statewide; state contest in Las Vegas/virtual)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
South Dakota State University, SD Agricultural Heritage Museum
National History Day in South Dakota
A yearlong research and creative-project competition for students in grades 6-12 who create a documentary, exhibit, paper, performance, or website on an annual history theme, competing first at one of four regional contests, then at the state contest hosted at SDSU.
📍 Statewide, SD (state contest at SDSU, Brookings)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
NMSC
National Merit Scholarship
PSAT-based scholarship recognizing top US high-school juniors.
📍 Online📅 No fixed deadline — entry is via the PSAT/NMSQT, administered each October by individual high schools🎓 Grade 11
Selective
APHA
National Public Health Week Student Challenge
Annual student challenge for high schoolers to advocate for public health issues.
📍 Online⏱ 1 week📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Concord Review, Inc.
National Writing Board
The National Writing Board assesses academic expository writing against an independent standard endorsed by Harvard, Michigan, Princeton, Stanford, Virginia, Yale, and 33 other selective colleges and universities.
📅 rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
YoungArts
National YoungArts Foundation Competition
National arts competition for ages 15-18 across 10 disciplines; finalists receive cash and YoungArts Week.
📍 Miami, FL⏱ Self-paced📅 Fall🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
YoungArts
National YoungArts Photography
Photography track of the YoungArts national competition.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 October🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
NFTE
National Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
Pitch competition for student entrepreneurs from NFTE programs.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ Academic year📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
North Carolina Council on Economic Education
NC Personal Finance Challenge
High-school teams begin with a statewide online personal-finance examination; top teams advance to an in-person state championship and potentially nationals.
📍 NC🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NCW Libraries and Write On The River
NCW Libraries Teen Short Fiction Competition
An annual spring short fiction contest for 9th-12th grade students in Chelan, Douglas, Okanogan, Grant and Ferry counties, with cash prizes; entries are original, unpublished work of up to 2,000 words.
📍 North Central Washington📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
National Center for Women & Information Technology
NCWIT Aspirations in Computing (AiC) Award & Community
While many awards are in-person, NCWIT provides a massive online community, virtual mentorship, and networking for girls in tech nationwide.
📍 Online/Nationwide⏱ Lifetime membership📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
New England Newspaper & Press Association
NENPA Journalism Scholarships
Scholarships of up to $2,000 for New England high school seniors, including Vermont residents, who plan to study journalism, plus the MacGregor Fiske Award for an exceptional student journalist.
📍 New England (Vermont residents eligible)📅 Varies🎓 Grade 12
Selective
NFTE
Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) Summer
Free summer entrepreneurship programs for underserved students.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ 6 weeks📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Case Western Reserve University
Neuroscience Pre-College Program
An online course exploring the anatomy of the nervous system and how the brain communicates with the spinal cord, designed by CWRU faculty for students considering neuroscience, medicine, or psychology.
📍 Online (Case Western Reserve University)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Barbara Schick Center for Economic Education / Nevada Council on Economic Education (UNLV)
Nevada Stock Market Game
A statewide simulation in which teams of Nevada students invest a hypothetical $100,000 portfolio over a 10-week session, learning economics, investing, and personal finance.
📍 Nevada (classroom-based, statewide)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda
New Hampshire FBLA
State chapter of Future Business Leaders of America preparing high school students for business careers through competitive events, professional development workshops, and a State Leadership Conference.
📍 Statewide, NH📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NASA / Rutgers University
New Jersey Space Grant Consortium (NJSGC)
A NASA-funded statewide consortium headquartered at Rutgers that funds K-12 'bridge' STEM programs connecting NJ high schoolers with university researchers — historically including support for Liberty Science Center's Partners in Science and Rutgers engineering outreach for girls — plus fellowships for aerospace-related research.
📍 New Brunswick, NJ (statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
New Mexico Arts / New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs
New Mexico Ekphrastic Poetry Contest
An annual statewide ekphrastic poetry contest in which New Mexicans write poetry inspired by artworks on display at state cultural institutions, with a dedicated Youth (ages 10-18) category.
📍 Statewide New Mexico (online submission)📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Supercomputing Challenge Outreach
New Mexico Supercomputing Challenge
A unique research program in New Mexico that places high school students in state-of-the-art laboratories through the Supercomputing Challenge.
📍 Los Alamos, NM⏱ Year-round📅 January 31🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Student Press Law Center
New Voices Student Press Freedom
Youth advocacy network defending student press freedoms.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
New York Math Circle (hosted at NYU Courant Institute)
New York Math Circle High School Summer Program
An intensive three-week summer math program for high schoolers covering topics like number theory, graph theory, and knots and surfaces, offered in-person at NYU or remotely via Zoom with TA support.
📍 New York, NY (NYU Courant Institute)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Cornell University (lead institution, NASA Space Grant)
New York Space Grant Consortium
A NASA-funded statewide consortium of colleges, universities, and industry partners that funds K-12 STEM engagement, student project teams, and competitions to prepare New York students for careers with NASA and the aerospace/high-tech workforce.
📍 Ithaca, NY (Cornell University) and statewide partner campuses📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
NYSSEF
New York State Science & Engineering Fair
ISEF-affiliated statewide competition for original student research across science and engineering.
📍 NY🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
The New York Times Learning Network
New York Times Personal Narrative Contest
Annual personal narrative writing contest for teens 13-19.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Fall🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Stanford AIMI
NextGen Tech Talks
Live online webinar series tailored specifically for high school students. Join renowned experts as they share their professional journeys, unveiling the transformative potential of technology in healthcare.
📍 Multiple📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NIACC Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center
NIACC Youth Entrepreneurial Academy
A free hands-on entrepreneurship program for North Iowa high school students that combines weekly in-person sessions with online instruction, culminating in a Pitch Night competition for seed money.
📍 North Iowa (Mason City area)📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
New Jersey Cybersecurity & Communications Integration Cell (NJCCIC)
NJCCIC High School Internship Program
A state-run cybersecurity internship with a Basics track (one intensive week) and an Advanced track (weekly sessions July-October) for NJ high schoolers interested in cybersecurity careers, run by the state's cyber threat intelligence agency.
📍 New Jersey (state program)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
National Library of Medicine (NIH)
NLM Data Science & Informatics (DSI) Scholars Program
An 8-12 week paid summer internship (fully remote or at NIH Bethesda) pairing high school seniors with an NLM research mentor on computational research projects applying data science and informatics methods to biology and health.
📍 Bethesda, MD (remote option available)📅 February🎓 Grade 12
Selective
EduTech / North Dakota state partners
North Dakota Cyber Madness High School Tournament
Teams of up to five students solve cybersecurity challenges in virtual qualifying rounds before finalists compete face-to-face.
📍 ND🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Northland Hackathon (Minnesota nonprofit)
Northland Hackathon
Billed as the Midwest's largest free student hackathon, this one-day remote event has Minnesota high school and college students build web and app projects in teams over seven hours with mentorship from engineers at companies like Google, Amazon, and Square. No coding prerequisites are required.
📍 Minnesota (remote/statewide)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Norwich University School of Architecture + Art
Norwich High School Architecture Design Competition (Story Space)
Free design competition for high school students to design an outdoor performance structure for storytelling gatherings of five and fifty people.
📍 Online (Northfield, VT)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NPR
NPR Student Podcast Challenge
Free annual podcasting contest. Submit a 3-8 minute podcast. Winning student is featured on NPR.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 April🎓 Grades 5–12
Selective
National Scholastic Press Association
NSPA Best of the High School Press
National recognition program for student publications.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 Fall🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
The New York Times
NYT Learning Network Contests
Free monthly writing, photo, and podcast contests for teens 13–19 worldwide.
📍 Global📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
The New York Times
NYT Personal Narrative Contest
Annual short personal narrative contest for teens. 600 words. Free entry.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The New York Times
NYT Student Editorial Contest
Free annual contest for students aged 13-19 to write a 450-word evidence-based editorial. Top entries are published by the Times.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The New York Times
NYT Summer Academy
Journalism, filmmaking, and writing courses taught by Times journalists. Limited need-based aid.
📍 NY / Remote (nationwide eligibility)⏱ 2 weeks (summer)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
The New York Times
NYT Summer Reading Contest
Each summer week, students pick a Times piece and write 350 words about it. Free; winners published.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 June-August🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Programs
Ocean Awareness Contest
International student contest in visual art, film, writing, and music addressing ocean conservation.
📍 Global📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Oklahoma Council on Economic Education
OCEE Economics & Personal Finance Challenges
Statewide student competitions including the Economics Challenge, Personal Finance Challenge, Stock Market Game, and Outstanding Economics Student Awards, run by OCEE to build economic and financial literacy among Oklahoma high schoolers.
📍 Edmond, OK (statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Oklahoma Wesleyan University
OKWU Prep
High-school juniors and seniors take online/on-campus college courses for dual or early credit.
📍 OK🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
Duke Summer Session
Online Courses (High School)
High school students can take a variety of Duke courses online for college credit during the summer.
📍 remote📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Indiana University Cinema Academy
Online Filmmaking Bootcamp
Students remotely develop a story, shoot footage, and learn editing and filmmaking fundamentals with Cinema Academy instructors.
📍 IN🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Purple Comet! Math Meet
Online Math Team Championship (OMTC) / Purple Comet!
An international online math competition focused on high-level problem solving, often allowing students from rural areas to compete.
📍 Online⏱ 1 week📅 Late August (yearly)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NC State University Global Training Initiative
Online Research Academy
Four-week virtual research experience pairing high-school students with NC State faculty on projects spanning AI, engineering, medicine, genomics, mathematics and sustainability.
📍 NC🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Columbia University Pre-College Programs
Online Summer
Dive into the Ivy League experience with Columbia’s world-class instructors and a rigorous and collaborative online experience.
📍 Multiple🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Oregon
Oregon Cybersecurity Challenge Cup
Three-person high-school teams solve cybersecurity challenges; no previous capture-the-flag experience is required.
📍 OR🎓 Grades 9, 12
Moderate
Oregon Council on Economic Education
Oregon Economics Challenge
Teams test economics knowledge through online qualifiers and a state championship.
📍 OR🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Moderate
Portland State University
Oregon Inquiry
Remote/hybrid liberal-arts college-credit curriculum supplemented by Portland field experiences.
📍 OR🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Moderate
Oregon State University
Oregon State Environmental Science Internship
A program for high school students from underrepresented backgrounds to participate in environmental research and data science.
📍 Corvallis, OR⏱ 6 weeks📅 March 15🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
The Public Health Museum in Massachusetts
Outbreak! High School Program
A free experiential-learning program for students entering grades 10-12 interested in public health careers, mixing expert talks and hands-on activities on topics like health equity, infectious disease, and emergency preparedness, culminating in an outbreak-simulation project.
📍 Tewksbury, MA (Public Health Museum, in-person and Zoom sessions)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education (CAEE)
Outstanding Young Environmental Leader Award
An annual nomination-based award recognizing Coloradans aged 14-23 for outstanding leadership in creating or implementing environmental education programs in their community.
📍 Colorado (statewide nominations)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Oxbridge Launchpad
Oxbridge Launchpad Essay Competitions
Rolling essay competitions across STEM, humanities, and social sciences for global high school students.
📍 Remote (Global)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Parsons / The New School
Parsons Pre-College Academy
Online and in-person pre-college art and design courses.
📍 New York, NY⏱ 4 weeks📅 Spring🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
VFW
Patriot's Pen Essay Contest
Patriotic-themed essay contest for grades 6-8 with $5,000 top prize.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 October🎓 Grades 6–8
Selective
PBS
PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs
Network of student newsrooms producing stories for PBS.
📍 Multiple states⏱ Academic year📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Peace First
Peace First Mini-Grants
Digital platform and mini-grants (up to $250) for 13–25-year-olds anywhere in the world to design and launch a project responding to injustice in their community.
📍 Remote (Global)⏱ Project-based📅 Rolling · anytime🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Penn Math Contest (student-run, University of Pennsylvania)
Penn Math Contest (PMC)
A student-run math competition offering individual and team contests throughout the year for high schoolers of all levels, held in person on Penn's campus or online, with prizes and certificates for winners.
📍 Philadelphia, PA (University of Pennsylvania campus, or online)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
QuestBridge
Personalized Support (through College Prep Scholars Program)
Personalized support for the college application process as part of the College Prep Scholars Program.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Philadelphia Youth Film Festival
Philadelphia Youth Film Festival (PHYFF)
A student-run, free-to-enter film festival for filmmakers ages 14-19 worldwide, accepting narrative, documentary, experimental, and screenplay submissions, with a culminating public screening event in Philadelphia.
📍 Philadelphia, PA📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Portland State University
Philosophy Summer Camp
College-credit philosophy program covering ethics, political philosophy, philosophy of science/art and Indigenous philosophy.
📍 OR🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
Carnegie Mellon CyLab
picoCTF
Free annual cybersecurity capture-the-flag competition for students.
📍 Online⏱ 2 weeks📅 March🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Pioneer Academics
Pioneer Academics (Aid)
Accredited college-level research with US professors. Need-based aid up to full tuition.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ 15 weeks📅 Multiple cycles🎓 Grades 10–12
Highly Selective
Pioneer Academics
Pioneer Academics Research Program
One-on-one online research program with US professors across humanities, social sciences, and STEM; produces publishable paper.
📍 Online⏱ 4-6 months📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Pioneer Academics
Pioneer Co-Curricular Summit
Join Dr. Francis Collins, former director of the Human Genome Project and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), for his insights on cultivating wisdom through integrity.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Highly Selective
Pioneer Academics
Pioneer Research Institute
The world's first and only fully accredited online research program for high school students. Work directly with leading professors to conduct original research projects and earn four college credits. Participants engage in research group seminars, literature review, and 1:1 mentorship to develop an original, undergraduate-level research paper.
📍 Online, Globally Accessible📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Washington State Arts Commission (ArtsWA)
Poetry Forward (ArtsWA)
A statewide original poetry writing program open to Washington schools serving grades 9-12, in which each school selects a student poet to enter the statewide contest for awards.
📍 Washington (statewide)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Utah Division of Arts & Museums
Poetry Ourselves Utah Original Poetry Competition
An original writing competition where grade 9-12 Utah students submit one or two original poems (or up to ten haiku) in English or Spanish. Students register and submit directly.
📍 Utah (statewide)📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Idaho Commission on the Arts (Arts Idaho), in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts
Poetry Out Loud Idaho
The Idaho leg of the national poetry recitation contest, where students in grades 9-12 memorize and perform poetry from an official anthology, advancing from school contests to state semifinals and finals in Boise.
📍 Statewide school contests; state finals in Boise, ID📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Southern Cities Student Coalition (SCSC) / Minnesota State Arts Board
Poetry Out Loud Minnesota
A statewide recitation competition in which high school students memorize and perform classic and contemporary poems, advancing from regional competitions to a state championship, with the Minnesota champion representing the state at nationals in Washington, DC.
📍 Regional sites and state championship, Minnesota📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Nebraska Arts Council
Poetry Out Loud Nebraska
A free national poetry recitation program for grades 9-12 where students memorize and perform poems, advancing from classroom and local competitions to the Nebraska State Finals and a chance at the national competition in Washington, D.C.
📍 Statewide Nebraska; State Finals in Kearney, NE📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia Commission for the Arts / Wayne Theatre
Poetry Out Loud Virginia
A poetry recitation contest for high school students that moves from classroom and independent competitions to virtual semifinals and a state final, with the state champion going to the national competition in Washington, D.C.
📍 Waynesboro, VA📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Point Foundation
Point Foundation LGBTQ Scholarship
Scholarships and mentorship for LGBTQ students from high school through graduate school.
📍 United States⏱ Self-paced📅 Winter🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Polygence
Polygence Core Program
One-on-one online research mentorship with PhDs in any field; produces a tangible project.
📍 Online⏱ 3-6 months📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Polygence
Polygence Press
Symposium and publication outlets for high school student researchers in any field.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Polygence
Polygence Research Mentorship
1-on-1 online research mentorship with graduate students across any field; open globally.
📍 Global📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Polygence
Polygence Scholars (Financial Aid)
1:1 research mentorship with PhDs across any field. Full financial aid for qualifying students.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ 10-20 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Polyphony Lit
Polyphony Lit Editorial Internship
International literary magazine staffed by high school students; editors and writers worldwide.
📍 Online⏱ Academic year📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Poolesville High School Math Team
Poolesville Math Tournament
An online high school math competition billed by organizers as Maryland's premier high school math competition, open to student teams statewide.
📍 Online (Maryland)📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Pratt Institute
Pratt Fall and Spring PreCollege Classes
Spend Saturdays developing your skills in classes designed to fit a high school schedule. With both online and in-person options, students collaborate with peers from near and far while receiving expert guidance on their projects.
📍 Brooklyn, New York (and remote)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Pratt Institute
Pratt Online Summer Program
Join a global community of students in live online classes, held Monday through Thursday. Through demos, critiques, and guided projects, instructors help students sharpen their skills and create polished, portfolio-quality work.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Brown University
Pre-Baccalaureate
Brown University for-academic credit program for high school students.
📍 Online📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
University of Pennsylvania
Pre-College Online Program
Online version of Penn's Pre-College Program: students take one or two credit-bearing undergraduate courses taught by Penn faculty, alongside Penn undergraduates. Current 10th-11th graders. Session I runs May 26 - July 1 and Session II July 2 - August 7, 2026.
📍 Online⏱ Session I (May 26 - July 1) or Session II (July 2 - August 7), 2026🎓 Grades 10–11
Highly Selective
Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt)
Pre-College Summer Studios
A four-week, credit-bearing studio intensive modeled on MassArt's Studio Foundation year, in which high school juniors and seniors take core courses in 2D Fundamentals, 3D Fundamentals, and Issues & Images plus an elective of their choice.
📍 Boston, MA (MassArt, Huntington Avenue)📅 May🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
University of Colorado Denver
Pre-Collegiate Development Program (CU Denver)
A year-round academic enrichment program for first-generation, college-bound 9th-11th graders, combining monthly Saturday Academies with summer sessions offering math, English, and college-seminar coursework.
📍 University of Colorado Denver📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–11
Selective
Princeton University
Princeton Ten-Minute Play Contest
Annual playwriting contest for 11th-grade students judged by Princeton's Lewis Center faculty.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Spring🎓 Grade 11
Selective
Princeton University Press
Princeton University Press Junior Reviewers
Various junior reviewer / reader programs and writing contests in the humanities.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Virginia Space Grant Consortium
Private Pilot Ground School (Virginia Space Grant Consortium)
A free statewide hybrid course for Virginia high school students interested in a private pilot license, covering weather, navigation, flight systems and FAA regulations.
📍 Virginia (statewide, online)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Ohio State University John Glenn College of Public Affairs
Public Service Scholars: High School Internship Program
A program for Ohio high school seniors enrolled in College Credit Plus at OSU that pairs an introductory public-affairs course with a supervised internship (80+ hours) at a government, nonprofit, or public-serving organization, earning six college credits.
📍 Columbus, OH (internship placements statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Green Bank Observatory / WVU / NANOGrav
Pulsar Science Collaboratory
An out-of-school citizen science project in which, after training, members analyze radio astronomy data from the Green Bank Telescope to search for new pulsars; students aged 13 and up and teachers can join.
📍 Online (with optional Green Bank, WV events)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Art of Problem Solving
Putnam-Style Online Practice
Free competition math forums, classes, and practice for K-12 students.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
Royal Commonwealth Society
Queen's Commonwealth Essay Competition
The world's oldest international schools' writing competition; open to any student in the Commonwealth aged 18 or under.
📍 Commonwealth countries📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
QuestBridge
QuestBridge College Prep Scholars
Junior-year program with summer scholarships and admissions support for low-income students.
📍 Online📅 Not yet announced — 2027 cycle date not yet posted (historically late March)🎓 Grade 11
Selective
QuestBridge
QuestBridge National College Match
Full four-year scholarships matching low-income HS seniors with partner colleges.
📍 United States⏱ 4 years📅 Fall🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Quill and Scroll
Quill and Scroll International Writing Contest
Writing and photography contest for student journalists.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Rhode Island Press Association
R.I. Press Association Journalism Scholarship
An annual $1,000 scholarship competition for Rhode Island high school seniors or college students planning a journalism career, requiring a letter of nomination from a teacher plus a resume and writing samples.
📍 Rhode Island (statewide)📅 April🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Ralph Munn Creative Writing Contest
An annual creative writing contest for high school students (grades 9-12) in Allegheny County, accepting short prose (fiction/nonfiction up to 4,000 words) and poetry (up to two pages), with up to two entries per student.
📍 Pittsburgh, PA (Allegheny County)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Federal Reserve Banks
RBA / Federal Reserve Essay Contests
Various regional Fed essay and case competitions for high schoolers.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
American Red Cross
Red Cross Youth Volunteer
Youth volunteer roles in disaster relief, blood services, education.
📍 Multiple states⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Society for Science
Regeneron ISEF Categories
Finalists at Regeneron ISEF compete across 22 different scientific categories, covering a wide range of STEM fields.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Society for Science
Regeneron Science Talent Search (STS)
Unique among high school competitions, the Regeneron STS focuses on identifying, inspiring, and engaging the nation’s most promising future leaders in STEM. Each year, around 2,600 students enter Regeneron STS, submitting original research in critically important scientific fields of study and full application for holistic review. $3.1 million in awards are distributed annually, including the first place prize of $250,000. It is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious science research competition for high school students.
📍 Washington, D.C. (Finals Week, if selected), Remote (Application)📅 November 5, 2026🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Rhode Island FBLA
Rhode Island FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America)
The Rhode Island high school chapter network of FBLA, open to all full-time secondary students, offering a Fall Leadership Conference, a Leadership Breakfast, and a State Leadership Conference with competitive business events each year.
📍 Rhode Island (statewide, chapter-based)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Rhode Island FFA / Rhode Island Farm Bureau
Rhode Island FFA
The Rhode Island state association of FFA, an intracurricular organization for students interested in agriculture, food science, and related careers (not just farming), organized through local chapters including Narragansett, Chariho, Ponaganset, and Exeter West Greenwich FFA.
📍 Rhode Island (statewide, chapter-based)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Rhode Island HOSA
Rhode Island HOSA (Future Health Professionals)
The Rhode Island state chapter network of HOSA, building leadership and technical competencies for students in health science education through Fall Leadership and State Leadership Conferences leading up to the International Leadership Conference.
📍 Rhode Island (statewide, chapter-based)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
RI Council for Economic Education
Rhode Island Personal Finance Challenge
Personal finance and financial decision-making.
📍 RI🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
Rhode Island College
RIC Dual Enrollment
Campus/online college courses available to qualifying high-school students.
📍 RI🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
RISD Continuing Education
RISD Teen Online Courses
Online art/design courses with live meetings and project work.
📍 RI🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Moderate
Schmidt Futures × Rhodes Trust
Rise
A lifetime program for 15- to 17-year-olds worldwide; the top ~500 finalists receive scholarships, mentorship, and career support to work on problems that matter.
📍 Remote application + summer residency⏱ Ongoing📅 Late January🎓 Grades 10–11
Selective
Rise
Rise (Schmidt Futures × Rhodes Trust)
Global program identifying brilliant young people who need support. Scholarships, mentorship, funding.
📍 Multiple + Remote (nationwide eligibility)⏱ Lifetime support starting at age 15-17📅 January🎓 Grades 9–10
Selective
University of Minnesota, College of Science and Engineering
Rooted in STEM
A two-year pipeline program (10th through 12th grade) for Twin Cities students from groups historically underrepresented in STEM, meeting one Saturday per month for CSE faculty presentations, lab tours, and industry-alumni panels, plus summer enrichment. Graduates who enroll in CSE can receive a $40,000 3M scholarship.
📍 Minneapolis, MN📅 December🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Jane Goodall Institute
Roots & Shoots
Youth-led community action for people, animals, environment.
📍 Multiple states⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 1–12
Selective
RoundPier
RoundPier Networking & Competition Portal
An online platform where students can find curated digital internships, summer courses, and research opportunities specifically for HS.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Running Start
Running Start High School Program (Young Women's Political Leadership)
A leadership program that empowers young women to increase their political efficacy and leadership skills.
📍 Washington, D.C. / Online⏱ 1 week📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Rutgers University Extension
Rutgers Master Gardener Youth Programs
Support for community garden initiatives and school composting programs led by NJ high schoolers.
📍 NJ⏱ Ongoing📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community
Salt River Higher Education Scholarship Program
Financial assistance and college/career advising for enrolled Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community members, including dually enrolled high school students taking college coursework for credit.
📍 Scottsdale, AZ (Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Sanford Health
Sanford Aspire Student Programs (MedX & EMT Certification)
Sanford Health's K-12 Aspire initiative gives high schoolers a behind-the-scenes look at health care careers through Sanford MedX career-exploration days with facility tours and hands-on activities, plus a hybrid online/live EMT certification course for seniors that leads to the National Registry EMT exam and college credit.
📍 Sioux Falls, SD📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
SC Speech & Debate
SC Speech & Debate / NSDA District Tournament
District speech/debate tournament with online debate the preceding week.
📍 SC🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Moderate
George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts
Scholarship Art Contest
An annual visual art competition open to all Louisiana high school juniors and seniors (public, private, charter, or home school), judged on concept, technical skill, and creativity, awarding a total of $19,000 in college scholarships to ten finalists.
📍 Statewide, LA📅 Varies🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Alliance for Young Artists & Writers
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
The longest-running recognition program for creative teens in the US — writing, visual art, photography, film.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ Year-long competition📅 December-January (regional)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Alliance for Young Artists & Writers (Arlington Public Schools; Fine Arts Center for the New River Valley)
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards - Arlington and Southwest Virginia Regions
The Alliance's regional directory lists the Arlington County Art Region (Arlington Public Schools) and the Southwest Virginia Art Region (Fine Arts Center for the New River Valley) as Virginia affiliates where students in grades 7-12 enter art for regional Gold Key, Silver Key and national recognition.
📍 Arlington and Southwest Virginia📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Alliance for Young Artists & Writers / School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards - Massachusetts Writing Region
The Massachusetts regional affiliate of the nation's longest-running writing recognition program for teens, through which students in grades 7-12 submit work in categories like poetry, short story, and personal essay for regional and national Scholastic Awards.
📍 Massachusetts (regional partner: School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University, Boston)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Plains Art Museum
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards - North Dakota Art Region
The North Dakota regional affiliate of the national Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, inviting students in grades 7-12 to submit original artwork in categories such as painting, photography, sculpture, and architecture for Gold Key, Silver Key, and Honorable Mention recognition.
📍 Fargo, ND (Plains Art Museum region)📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Red River Valley Writing Project at NDSU
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards - North Dakota Writing Region
The North Dakota regional affiliate for the writing categories of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, open to students in grades 7-12 submitting poetry, flash fiction, journalism, screenwriting, and other original writing.
📍 Fargo, ND📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Visual Arts Center of Richmond (VisArts) / Alliance for Young Artists & Writers
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards - Richmond Region (VisArts)
VisArts is the regional affiliate that receives art and writing submissions from students at schools in Richmond City, Hanover, Henrico and Chesterfield; Gold and Silver Key work is exhibited and Gold Keys advance to the national awards.
📍 Richmond, VA📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Harris County Department of Education
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards (Houston Region)
The Houston-area regional round of the national Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, where students submit original art or writing across 28-29 categories for regional Gold Key, Silver Key and national recognition.
📍 Houston, TX📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Alliance for Young Artists & Writers / School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University
Scholastic Art Awards - Massachusetts Art Region
The Massachusetts regional affiliate of the Scholastic Art Awards, through which teens in grades 7-12 submit original artwork across categories such as painting, photography, and design for regional and national recognition.
📍 Massachusetts (regional partner: School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University, Boston)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Alliance for Young Artists & Writers
Scholastic Writing Awards
Regional and national recognition for student writers in 11 categories. Need-based fee waivers available.
📍 Regional + national⏱ Self-paced📅 Sept-Dec by region🎓 Grades 7–12
Moderate
Eudora Welty House & Garden / Alliance for Young Artists & Writers
Scholastic Writing Awards - Mississippi Region
The Mississippi regional affiliate of the national Scholastic Writing Awards, where students in grades 7-12 submit original work across ten categories including critical essay, poetry, short story, and journalism.
📍 Jackson, MS (Eudora Welty House & Garden awards ceremony)📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Schoolhouse.world
Schoolhouse.world Tutor
A non-profit platform providing free, peer-to-peer tutoring in SAT prep and Math to students worldwide; volunteers can lead 'series' or 'sessions'.
📍 Online⏱ Flexible📅 Ongoing🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
National Geographic / Disney+ / Hulu
Science Fair: The Series
A three-part docuseries following young innovators, engineers, and scientists on their way to the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair.
📍 Remote🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland (Ed Snider Center)
SELF: CEO of ME (Snider Enterprise and Leadership Fellows)
A summer program where high schoolers become the 'CEO of ME, Inc.,' learning entrepreneurship, leadership, economics, strategy, and personal finance while building a venture pitch, with in-person commuter, residential, and fully online options.
📍 University of Maryland, College Park, MD📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Office of Senator Jack Reed / Rhode Island Art Education Association (RIAEA)
Senator Reed High School Art Competition
An annual statewide art competition co-sponsored by Senator Jack Reed and RIAEA in which each participating Rhode Island high school submits up to three student artworks for judged exhibition and awards.
📍 Warwick, RI (Warwick Mall exhibit)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
SETI Institute
SETI Institute REU and Education
Astronomy and astrobiology education programs including HS workshops.
📍 Mountain View, CA⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Sierra Club
Sierra Student Coalition
Youth-led grassroots environmental network with trainings, fellowships, and campaigns.
📍 United States⏱ Year-long📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UNLV
SISTEM (Student Interactions with Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)
A free, semester-long series of talks and hands-on interactions that lets any Nevada high school student learn about STEM careers and research directly from STEM professionals, with an in-person track for students near UNLV and a remote option for students elsewhere in the state.
📍 Las Vegas, NV (remote option statewide)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
SIU Project Upward Bound
Free federally funded TRIO college-prep program for first-generation, low-income, or academically at-risk high schoolers, offering tutoring, academic counseling, a six-week summer program, and university field trips.
📍 Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Southern Illinois University Carbondale (STEM Education Research Center)
SIU STEM Research Academy
Four-week research camp for students in grades 9-12 to conduct authentic research alongside SIU faculty, choosing from 17 projects spanning physics, biology, computing, and environmental science.
📍 Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
SkillsUSA Rhode Island
SkillsUSA Rhode Island
The Rhode Island state association of SkillsUSA, a partnership of students, teachers, and industry building career and technical skills through school-based chapters, culminating in the annual State Leadership & Skills Conference (SLSC).
📍 Rhode Island (statewide, chapter-based; conference at rotating sites)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Saint Louis University
SLU Visiting Young Scholars
A dual-enrollment opportunity for qualified high school juniors and seniors to take college classes on SLU's St. Louis campus, its Spain campus, or online, earning college credit before graduation.
📍 Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
Tufts University
SMFA Studio Art
An intensive studio art program offered by SMFA.
📍 Tufts University📅 Not yet announced — check official site for next cycle🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Youth Engagement
Internships across Smithsonian museums and research centers.
📍 Washington, DC⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UW-Madison Badger Precollege
Social Impact Leadership Online (Badger Precollege)
An online course for high school students to design and carry out a project addressing a community issue while building leadership, teamwork and public-speaking skills with peers worldwide.
📍 Remote (UW-Madison)📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
SC Council on Economic Education
South Carolina Economics Challenge
Teams test economics knowledge through online qualifiers and a state championship.
📍 SC🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
Arts South Dakota / U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
South Dakota Junior Duck Stamp Contest
A free art and conservation-science contest open to students in kindergarten through high school, who research waterfowl and wetlands conservation and submit an original drawing or painting of a duck, goose, or swan; entries are postmarked by March 15, and the state Best of Show winner advances to the national Junior Duck Stamp contest.
📍 Statewide, SD📅 March 15🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
South Dakota State Legislature
South Dakota Legislative Page Program
A year-long fellowship for South Dakota high school students to engage in state policy-making and legislative observation.
📍 Pierre, SD⏱ 1 year📅 April 1🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
SGAC
Space Generation Advisory Council
Global network for 18–35 year-olds interested in space policy, engineering, and exploration. Local events and scholarships.
📍 Various📅 Rolling🎓 Grade 12
Selective
SPARK SMP
SPARK Summer Mentorship Program
Free 1:1 mentorship with industry researchers. Started by WA students, now nationwide.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ 8 weeks (summer)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The EdVenture Group / West Virginia Department of Education
SparkWV Student Business Pitch Competition
A statewide business-idea competition for middle and high school students with a Big Idea (invention or tech concept) track and a Small Business track, culminating in live finals during Bridging Innovation Week.
📍 Online submissions via VentureDash; finals at Bridging Innovation Week, Charleston, WV📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Special Olympics
Special Olympics Youth Activation
Youth leadership and unified sports programs.
📍 Multiple states⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
University of Michigan, Stamps School of Art & Design
Stamps Pre-College Portfolio Prep Program
An intensive portfolio-development program for current high schoolers in grades 9-11, offered in virtual and residential formats, structured like a first-year Stamps studio experience to prepare a competitive art school application portfolio.
📍 Ann Arbor, MI (virtual and residential options)📅 February🎓 Grades 9–11
Moderate
Stanford University
Stanford Intersect Journal
Undergraduate journal of science, technology, and society (high schoolers may submit).
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Stanford Pre-Collegiate Studies
Stanford Math Circle
Stanford Math Circle offers after-school classes for elementary, middle & high-school students interested in math to improve academic and extracurricular performance.
📍 Stanford, CA📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Stanford
Stanford Mathematics Camp (SUMaC)
Three-week intensive abstract math program.
📍 Stanford, CA⏱ 3 weeks📅 February🎓 Grades 10–12
Highly Selective
Hack Club
Stardance
The largest STEM event of the summer: make anything you want and earn free prizes. In partnership with NASA, AMD, and GitHub.
📍 Multiple🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Selective
Virginia Council on Women
STEAM-H Essay Contest Scholarship (Virginia Council on Women)
An annual essay contest that awards merit-based and need-based scholarships to female Virginia high school seniors planning careers in science, technology, engineering, arts, math or healthcare, with one recipient chosen from each of five regions.
📍 Virginia (online submission)📅 January🎓 Grade 12
Selective
STEM Fellowship
STEM Fellowship Big Data Challenge
International data science competition with publication in STEM Fellowship Journal.
📍 Online⏱ 8 weeks📅 Fall🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
STEM Fellowship
STEM Fellowship Journal
Peer-reviewed journal publishing student STEM research.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Center for Excellence in Education (CEE)
STEM Lyceums
STEM Lyceums are virtual events that connect high school students with leading STEM professionals, providing insights into various STEM fields and career paths.
📍 Virtual📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
Step Up to STEM
Multi-summer STEM enrichment pathway for North Carolina students featuring hands-on science, mathematics and engineering experiences.
📍 NC🎓 Grades 9–10
Selective
SIFMA Foundation
Stock Market Game
Free K-12 simulation of investing in real-world markets used in classrooms nationwide.
📍 Online⏱ 10-14 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 6–12
Selective
National Security Agency (NSA)
Stokes Educational Scholarship Program
Scholarship and internship program for students interested in a career in cybersecurity.
📍 Nationwide⏱ Varies📅 December 15🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Stone Soup
Stone Soup Magazine
Magazine of writing and art by children and teens up to age 14.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 5–9
Selective
Morgan State University
Summer Academy of Actuarial and Mathematical Sciences (SAAMS)
A rigorous, primarily virtual (with one on-campus week) enrichment academy for rising 11th/12th graders in mathematics, actuarial science, and computer science, including college-level coursework, Excel training, professional development, and field trips.
📍 Baltimore, MD📅 March🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Purdue University
Summer College for High School Students
Purdue's precollege program lets high school students take real college courses (online or on campus) alongside undergraduates across more than 650 course options.
📍 West Lafayette, IN📅 February🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Emory University
Summer College Program
A 6-week program where high school students can earn college credit by taking one course. Letter-based grading (A-F). This is a non-residential program with on-campus and online instruction options. Students take classes with current Emory undergraduates.
📍 Atlanta, GA (on-campus & online)📅 June 5🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Stanford AIMI
Summer Health AI Bootcamp
Two-week virtual bootcamp offers a curated curriculum that covers the fundamentals of machine learning in healthcare settings.
📍 Virtual📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
IUP Cook Honors College
Summer Honors Program: Design, Build, Play
A dual-enrollment summer course (HONR 281) combining a week of on-campus residential instruction with online learning before and after, covering games and storytelling with an English professor and creative engineering in the STEAMSHOP with a math professor.
📍 Indiana, PA (Indiana University of Pennsylvania)📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Boston University
Summer Journalism Academy
A journalism training program for high school students, offered either residentially on the BU campus for students with prior journalism experience or remotely for students ages 14-18 of any experience level, giving participants a hands-on sample of life as a news reporter under working journalists.
📍 Boston, MA (Boston University) or remote📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Ohio State University Department of Linguistics
Summer Linguistic Institute for Youth Scholars (SLIYS)
A one- to two-week live-online program introducing high schoolers to linguistics through daily sessions on language structure, data-collection fieldwork with native speakers of languages such as Chinese, German, Greek, and Korean, and experimental linguistics activities.
📍 Remote (hosted by Ohio State University, Columbus, OH)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Stanford AIMI
Summer Research Internship
Two-week virtual opportunity to explore technical and clinical aspects of AI in healthcare.
📍 Virtual📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Thiel College
Summer Scholars Courses
Discounted college-credit on-campus/online courses.
📍 PA🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
Sundance Institute / George S. and Dolores Dore Eccles Foundation
Sundance Film Festival Student Screening Program
Free screenings of specially curated festival films for Utah secondary students, with content advisories and Q&A sessions with filmmakers. Screenings are offered online and at festival venues in Salt Lake City.
📍 Utah (online and Salt Lake City festival venues)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Maine Policy Institute
Susan K. Hamill Summer Internship Program
A nine-week internship at a Maine public-policy think tank open to high school, undergraduate, and graduate students, working in public policy, development, or digital media and gaining research, fundraising, and communications skills.
📍 Yarmouth, ME📅 February🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Buffett Foundation
Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation Scholarship
A program providing financial support and mentoring for Nebraska high school students from underprivileged backgrounds pursuing higher education.
📍 Lincoln, NE⏱ Multi-year📅 January 31🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Sutton Trust
Sutton Trust US Programme
Fully-funded programme helping state-school students in the UK apply to US universities — includes a residential week in the US, SAT prep, and application support.
📍 UK + week in USA⏱ 1 year📅 January (Year 12)🎓 Grade 11
Highly Selective
Institute for Systems Biology
Systems Thinkers in STEM Ambassadorship (STiSA)
Free micro-courses, workgroups and events that build systems thinking skills in STEM, covering systems medicine, environmental systems, community action and scientist talks, with a Slack community.
📍 Online (Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, WA)📅 January🎓 Grades 10–11
Selective
Texas Association of Journalism Educators (TAJE)
TAJE Student Scholarships
TAJE awards $1,000 college scholarships to high school seniors in journalism programs and up to six $150 scholarships to help students attend summer journalism workshops. Applicants need an adviser who is a current TAJE member.
📍 Texas (online application)📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Concord Review, Inc.
TCR Academic Coaches
Provides academic coaches to help students with their historical writing and research.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
SC Governor's School for Science & Mathematics
TEAM UP
Virtual engineering/STEM pathway extending GSSM instruction statewide.
📍 SC🎓 Grades 9, 10, 12
Moderate
University of Wyoming Speech and Debate
Team Wyoming Free Debate Coaching
Free supplemental debate coaching for Wyoming and Mountain West high school debaters, with weekly Zoom coaching from University of Wyoming staff, practice rounds with feedback, shared prep files and an online Q&A forum.
📍 Online (University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
UNLV IT Workforce Talent Pipeline
Tech Ready Rebels
A year-long program for Nevada high school juniors and seniors combining dual-enrollment college courses (CS135, CS202), a workplace readiness class, CompTIA/AWS certification training, and a structured paid summer corporate internship in information technology.
📍 Las Vegas, NV📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
Technovation
Technovation Girls
Global tech entrepreneurship challenge for girls 8-18.
📍 Online⏱ 12 weeks📅 October🎓 Grades 3–12
Selective
TED-Ed
TED-Ed Student Talks
Free, self-run program that helps students discover, develop, and share their own ideas in TED-style talks; open to schools and clubs anywhere in the world.
📍 Remote (Global)⏱ Self-paced club📅 Rolling · anytime🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Columbus Zoo and Aquarium
Teen Eco Summit
A free, year-long, student-driven program where teams of 4-7 high schoolers and a faculty advisor create Conservation Action Plans to make their school or community more eco-friendly, beginning with an in-person kickoff and ending with a spring celebration event.
📍 Powell, OH (Columbus Zoo and Aquarium)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Young Authors Foundation
Teen Ink
An award-winning monthly print and online magazine by and for teens.
📍 Online / Jersey City, NJ📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
Teen Science Cafés
Free monthly events where teens interact directly with working scientists through talks, activities and informal Q&A.
📍 NC🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Teen Stylin' Fashion Program at VMFA
A free, 12-week fashion program for teens in grades 6-12 in which participants learn from professional designers and create garments inspired by VMFA's collection, showcased in a juried runway exhibition; an independent-study option serves students statewide.
📍 Richmond, VA (statewide independent study option)📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
TeenTix
TeenTix Newsroom
Teen arts-journalism program in which writers attend arts events for free, write reviews that are edited one-on-one by teen editors, and are paid for their writing.
📍 Seattle, Washington area📅 Varies🎓 Grades 8–12
Selective
Tennessee Historical Society (National History Day state affiliate)
Tennessee History Day
The Tennessee affiliate of National History Day, in which students research and present original historical projects through a multi-level competition of District, Regional, State, and National contests across six Tennessee regions.
📍 Statewide, TN📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
NASA Johnson Space Center
Texas Aerospace Scholars (NASA Johnson Space Center)
A free, year-long NASA STEM program for Texas high school students combining an online course, a virtual summer design challenge with NASA mentors, and a residential week at Johnson Space Center for top teams. A Junior Experience and a Senior Experience are offered.
📍 Houston, TX📅 September🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Texas A&M University McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship
Texas High School Ideas Challenge
A statewide entrepreneurship competition for Texas high school students ages 14-18, individually or in teams of up to six. Ideas go through an online pre-screen round, and finalists pitch at Texas A&M for cash prizes; the 2027 challenge is scheduled for spring 2027 with applications opening early 2027.
📍 College Station, TX📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Texas Association of Journalism Educators (TAJE)
Texas Journalist of the Year (JOY)
A portfolio-based state competition for Texas high school seniors across reporting, editing, design, broadcast, photojournalism, web and law/ethics. The winner advances to the national JEA Journalist of the Year competition.
📍 Texas (online submission)📅 February🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Texas Space Grant Consortium
Texas Space Grant Plant the Moon Challenge
An 8-week team science experiment in which students grow crops in lunar or Martian soil simulant, submit research reports and can present at a virtual symposium with NASA scientists. Teams of 1-5 students participate.
📍 Texas (statewide, team-based)📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
5 Gyres Institute
The 5 Gyres Institute Ambassador Program (Youth)
Young leaders working to solve the ocean plastic crisis through local policy change.
📍 Online/Nationwide⏱ Ongoing📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Amy Lowell Trust
The Amy Lowell Poetry Traveling Scholarship
One of the most valuable writing scholarships for high school seniors, based on a portfolio.
📍 Online📅 January 21🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Susquehanna University
The Apprentice Writer
National literary magazine of high school student writing published by Susquehanna.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Concord Review
The Concord Review
The only quarterly journal publishing high school history research essays. Students submit 5K-9K word papers; selected essays are printed and indexed.
📍 Online submission⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
The Concord Review
The Concord Review Submissions
The Concord Review is the only quarterly journal in the world to publish the academic research papers of secondary students. Students are encouraged to submit their history papers for consideration.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Daphne Review
The Daphne Review
An independent literary journal specifically for middle and high school writers and artists.
📍 Online📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Diana Award
The Diana Award
International charity honoring young people (9–25) for social action or humanitarian work; programmes include mentoring, anti-bullying, and the Legacy Award.
📍 Remote (Global)⏱ Varies📅 Nominations open year-round🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Earth Foundation
The Earth Prize
Global environmental sustainability competition with $200k in prizes for student teams.
📍 Global📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
San Francisco State University
The Great Sunflower Project (Citizen Science)
A massive collaborative project where students collect soil samples and perform data analysis for ecological research. Hybrid model.
📍 Nationwide⏱ Ongoing📅 Early March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Knowledge Society
The Knowledge Society (TKS) Virtual Program
A 4-week virtual accelerator where high schoolers solve real-world problems for top companies like Microsoft and TKS partners.
📍 Online⏱ 4 weeks (Trial) / 10 months (Pro)📅 Rolling (Monthly cohorts)🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Scholarship Academy
The Scholarship Academy
Offers curriculum to help students identify tailored scholarship options and build solid scholarship profile.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Aspen Institute
The Stevens Initiative Virtual Exchange
A high school program focusing on international affairs and cultural exchange between US and Middle Eastern students. Online workshops.
📍 Online⏱ 6 months📅 Early February🎓 Grades 9–11
Selective
SALA / Global Leaders
The Summer Academy for Global Leadership (Virtual)
An intensive 4-week program for students to learn community organizing, civic engagement, and effective altruism. Often has online cohorts.
📍 Online/Regional Chapters⏱ 4 weeks📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Weight Journal
The Weight Journal
An online literary magazine that curates the best of student writing in various genres.
📍 Online📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
The Young Researcher
The Young Researcher
Peer-reviewed journal for IB Extended Essay and similar research.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
America250 Idaho (Idaho's 250th Anniversary Commission)
Thomas Jefferspud Writing Contest
A statewide essay/short-story contest for Idaho students ages 12-18 about a revolutionary-era figure instrumental in the nation's founding and why they should still be honored today, tied to America's 250th anniversary.
📍 Idaho (online/mail submission)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Alabama
Tide to Success
A six-hour, self-paced online college-readiness course for Alabama high-school students covering ACT preparation, majors and careers, scholarships, and college planning.
📍 AL🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
TiE Oregon
TiE Young Entrepreneurs (TYE) Oregon
A project-based entrepreneurship curriculum where seasoned entrepreneurs and mentors teach Portland-area high schoolers invention, design thinking, and customer validation, culminating in a state competition that feeds into the Global TYE Competition.
📍 Portland Metro, OR📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Utah Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute
Tim Draper High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge
A statewide business-idea competition for Utah high school students with an online application, top-20 selection, finalist video submissions, public online voting, and an in-person final.
📍 Salt Lake City, UT📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Toshiba / NSTA
Toshiba ExploraVision
K-12 team STEM competition forecasting future technologies.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 January🎓 Grades 1–12
Selective
Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance (LOSFA)
Trey LaBostrie Visual Arts Scholarship
A scholarship for Louisiana high school seniors (and college students) who submit original artwork -- paintings, drawings, sculpture, photography, digital art, short films, or music videos -- with an artist statement addressing grief, healing, or joy.
📍 Statewide, LA📅 October🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Tufts University
Tufts College Experience
A six-week residential or commuter program that allows you to live on campus and get a preview of what it would be like to be a college student. You will take 2 traditional courses with Tufts faculty, earn college credit, take College Prep 101, go on local college tours, have a dedicated student support advisor, and gain life experience as you explore the city with new friends.
📍 Medford, MA📅 Not yet announced — check official site for next cycle🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Tufts University
Tufts Dual Enrollment Courses
Ambitious high school students have the opportunity to learn from renowned faculty and experience rigorous academics at a leading higher education institution.
📍 Tufts University🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Tufts University
Tufts Summer Research Experience
High school students have the opportunity to learn from renowned faculty and experience rigorous academics at a leading higher education institution.
📍 Medford, MA📅 Not yet announced — check official site for next cycle🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
UCLA
UCLA Summer Sessions for HS
Six-week and short-term pre-college academic courses at UCLA.
📍 Los Angeles, CA⏱ 2-10 weeks📅 Spring🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
University of Washington School of Medicine Office of Healthcare Equity (WIHSE)
UDOC High School Program (UW Medicine)
A free six-week hybrid summer residential program (three weeks virtual, three weeks in person on the UW campus) for Washington high school juniors interested in medicine, dentistry, public health, pharmacy, nursing, therapy and research, with hands-on activities and mentorship.
📍 Seattle, WA📅 March🎓 Grade 11
Highly Selective
University of Mississippi Pre-College Programs
UM Writing Competition (Celebrations)
An annual literary competition for grades 7-12 in poetry, short stories, and essays tied to a yearly theme, with winners published in the Celebrations literary magazine and awarded summer-program scholarships.
📍 Oxford, MS (University of Mississippi)📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Maryland, Baltimore
UMB CURE Scholars Program
A year-round pipeline program for 6th-10th graders from West Baltimore offering after-school, Saturday academy, and summer enrichment in biomedical research and public health, with high schoolers completing paid summer internships through Baltimore City's summer employment program.
📍 Baltimore, MD📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–10
Selective
United Nations
UN Youth Opportunities Board
Curated board of fellowships, internships, and youth advisory roles across the UN system.
📍 Various📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
UPenn Wharton Global Youth
Understanding Investing
An online course covering the basics of investing and portfolio management.
📍 Remote🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
UPenn Wharton Global Youth
Understanding Your Money
An online course to help students understand personal finance and money management.
📍 Remote🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC)
Underwood-Smith Teaching Scholars Program
A competitive scholarship of up to $10,000 per year ($40,000 total) for 25 current high school seniors each year who commit to teach math, science, special education or elementary education in West Virginia for five years.
📍 Online application; open to seniors in and outside West Virginia📅 Varies🎓 Grade 12
Selective
UNESCO
UNESCO Youth Programmes
Rolling list of UNESCO calls: youth forums, writing prizes, sustainability grants. Open to youth worldwide.
📍 Various📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UNICEF USA
UNICEF Clubs
Student-led advocacy for global child welfare.
📍 Multiple states⏱ Academic year📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UNCF
United Negro College Fund (UNCF) Scholarships
Hundreds of scholarships for African American students attending college.
📍 United States⏱ Self-paced📅 Rolling🎓 Grade 12
Selective
UNLV Cyber Clinic
UNLV Cyber Clinic Junior Member Program
Free high-school cohort offering weekly online workshops on cybersecurity, OSINT, social engineering and defensive/offensive security concepts, plus internal competitions and college guidance.
📍 NV🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of New Mexico
UNM Albuquerque Dual Credit
Eligible juniors and seniors at partner schools can enroll in regular UNM college courses, including online options, while still in high school. Tuition and general fees are waived.
📍 NM🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
UPchieve
UPchieve Volunteer Tutor
An ed-tech nonprofit that provides free, online, 1-on-1 tutoring to low-income students. Tutors must be high school students with high GPAs.
📍 Online⏱ Semester-based📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
University of Pennsylvania
UPenn Summer Programs
Pre-college summer programs across business, biomedical research, social justice, and academic.
📍 Philadelphia, PA⏱ 3-6 weeks📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Center for Excellence in Education
USA Biology Olympiad (USABO)
Free 3-round biology olympiad. Top 20 attend a residential training camp; top 4 represent the US at the International Biology Olympiad.
📍 Online + training camp⏱ Multi-round📅 Jan-Apr🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
USACO
USA Computing Olympiad
Free online programming contests held four times a year. Top US students earn an invitation to the summer training camp and the IOI team.
📍 Online⏱ Multi-round📅 Dec-Apr contests🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
USACO
USACO Training Resources and Historical Contest Problems
Hundreds of hours of free on-line training resources and historical contest problems (complete with solutions) that students can use to improve their programming and computational problem-solving skills.
🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UT Dallas Computer Science / K-12 Outreach
UT Dallas Summer Research Program for High School Students
An 8-week summer program offering lab internships in UT Dallas computer science labs, research workshops, and a deep-dive AI workshop. Aimed at advanced students finishing 10th or 11th grade, with in-person and virtual options.
📍 Richardson, TX📅 March🎓 Grades 10–11
Moderate
Utah Area Health Education Centers (AHEC)
Utah AHEC Virtual Job Shadowing
Virtual job-shadowing experiences that let high school and college students learn from Utah healthcare providers in medicine, dentistry, nursing, physical therapy, physician assistant, occupational therapy and pharmacy. Participants hear about daily practice, lifestyle and board certification, and earn a certificate on completion.
📍 Online (Utah AHEC)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Utah Attorney General's Office
Utah Attorney General's Student Advisory Council
A council of 53 junior and senior high school students who meet monthly, alternating virtual and in-person sessions at the Utah State Capitol, for seminars with legislators, prosecutors and policy experts. Members discuss issues like online safety and youth crime and can track legislation in real time during the session.
📍 Utah State Capitol, Salt Lake City, UT📅 Varies🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Utah College Media Alliance (with Utah Press Association, Utah Education Network, Amplify Utah)
Utah High School Future of Journalism Awards
Statewide awards recognizing excellent journalism by Utah high school students in writing, photo/multimedia, and video/broadcast, judged by college journalists, journalism professors, and professionals. Includes Coverage Cup and High School Journalist of the Year honors.
📍 Utah (statewide; awards ceremony at the University of Utah)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Utah Symphony
Utah Symphony Salute to Youth Concerto Competition
A concerto competition for Utah's young musicians in piano, strings, winds, brass, percussion, harp, voice and small ensemble, with up to two winners per age division performing as soloists with the Utah Symphony.
📍 Abravanel Hall, Salt Lake City, UT📅 July🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Utah Office of State Treasurer
Utah Treasurer's Investment Challenge
A free, statewide 10-week stock market simulation in which teacher-led teams of 3-5 students manage a virtual portfolio using real market data. Top teams in the high school division receive recognition and prizes including college savings certificates.
📍 Utah (statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Vermont Professional and Continuing Education
UVM Pre-College Courses (for-credit)
High school sophomores through seniors take for-credit UVM courses online or on campus in fields including psychology, economics, political science, history, philosophy, art history, film studies, music and English.
📍 Burlington, VT📅 Varies🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
University of Washington Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center
UW INSIGHT High School Program
Four-week summer program introducing high school students to public health, biomedical research and medicine, with seminars, group work and a capstone project on injury and violence prevention presented at a symposium.
📍 Online (University of Washington, Seattle)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Washington Summer Sessions
UW Summer Sessions for U.S. High School Students
High school students who have completed eighth grade can take regular UW summer courses for college credit on the Seattle campus or online, with 100-level courses usually the best fit.
📍 University of Washington, Seattle, Washington (on campus or online)📅 June🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
UW Youth Programs: Algorithmic Thinking - Programming Logic Fundamentals
Live online course on algorithms and data structures used in computer engineering, including recursion, stacks, searching, sorting, lists, binary trees and parsing, in any language.
📍 Online (live via Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
UW Youth Programs: Coding in Java I
Introductory two-week Java course for incoming 9th-12th graders with no programming experience, covering core computer science concepts, control structures, data structures and Java best practices.
📍 UW Seattle campus or live online (Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
UW Youth Programs: Coding in Python I
Introduction to Python for incoming 9th-12th graders with no prior experience, covering variables, loops, functions, lists, dictionaries and file handling, ending in a text-based game project.
📍 UW Seattle campus or live online (Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
UW Youth Programs: Introduction to Data Analysis
Students learn to collect, clean and analyze data and present findings with data-driven storytelling using spreadsheet tools.
📍 Online (live via Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
UW Youth Programs: Introduction to Data Visualization
Students use Tableau to turn large amounts of information into charts, graphs and maps and explore how organizations use data visualization.
📍 Online (live via Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Valley Press Club
Valley Press Club Scholarship
A set of $1,000 scholarships (including The Republican Scholarship, the 22News Scholarship, and the Rhonda Swan Memorial Scholarship) for western Massachusetts and northern Connecticut high school seniors committed to pursuing journalism careers.
📍 Springfield, MA (western Massachusetts region)📅 April🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Vans
Vans Custom Culture Art Competition
National high school art competition to design custom Vans shoes for cash and supply grants.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veritas AI (Harvard alumni)
Veritas AI
AI research mentorship and publishing program. Financial aid available.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ 8-15 weeks📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Vermont Association of Broadcasters
Vermont Association of Broadcasters Judy Simpson Memorial Scholarship
A scholarship of up to $1,000 per year for Vermont residents and Vermont high school graduates accepted to college who are pursuing broadcast media or communications degrees.
📍 Vermont📅 October🎓 Grade 12
Selective
University of Vermont Undergraduate Admissions
Vermont Pitch Challenge
A business pitch competition for high school students worldwide, with a full UVM tuition scholarship for the grand prize and cash prizes for runners-up; entries are a written proposal, video or audio pitch.
📍 University of Vermont, Burlington, VT📅 February🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Brattleboro Museum & Art Center
Vermont Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
Vermont regional affiliate of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards for grades 7-12, with entries in 27 art and writing categories and Gold Key, Silver Key and Honorable Mention awards exhibited at BMAC.
📍 Brattleboro, VT📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Vermont State Youth Council
Vermont State Youth Council
Council of up to 28 Vermont youth ages 11-18 that advises the Governor and General Assembly on policies affecting young Vermonters, serving three-year terms.
📍 Vermont📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Sundog Poetry (with Urban Word, the Flynn, Ruth Stone House and Young Writers Project)
Vermont Youth Poet Laureate
A statewide contest in which teen poets submit three original poems plus community and civic engagement information; the Laureate receives a cash prize, public readings in Vermont and an invitation to the regional competition of the National Youth Poet Laureate Program.
📍 Vermont (online submission at youthlaureate.org)📅 February🎓 Grades 8–12
Selective
REC Foundation
VEX Robotics World Championship
World's largest robotics competition with VEX IQ (middle) and VEX V5 (high school) divisions.
📍 Global⏱ Year-long📅 April🎓 Grades 6–12
Moderate
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of California
VFW Voice of Democracy - California
An audio-essay scholarship contest for grades 9-12 on a patriotic theme, entered through local VFW Posts, with over $2 million awarded in scholarships nationally each year.
📍 California (submitted through local VFW Posts statewide)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Kentucky
VFW Voice of Democracy - Kentucky
An annual audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12 in which Kentucky students record a patriotic essay on a set theme through their local VFW Post, competing for a share of over $2.3 million awarded nationally, including a $35,000 top scholarship.
📍 Submitted through a participating VFW Post in Kentucky📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Montana
VFW Voice of Democracy - Montana
An audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12 on a patriotic theme, judged at the local VFW Post level with winners advancing to state and national competition.
📍 Submitted through local Montana VFW Posts statewide📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Department of North Dakota
VFW Voice of Democracy - North Dakota
A patriotic audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12; students record a 3-5 minute essay on an annual democracy/veterans theme, with winners advancing from the local VFW Post to department and national judging.
📍 Statewide, ND (entries submitted through local VFW Posts)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Rhode Island
VFW Voice of Democracy - Rhode Island
An audio-essay competition in which high school students record a patriotic-themed essay responding to an annual prompt, with local, state, and national scholarship prizes.
📍 Rhode Island (statewide, submitted through local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of South Dakota
VFW Voice of Democracy - South Dakota
An audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12 on a patriotic/democratic theme, run nationally by the VFW since 1947 with nearly 40,000 student participants a year; South Dakota's Department first-place winner receives at least $1,000 and an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C. for national judging.
📍 Statewide, SD📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Colorado
VFW Voice of Democracy (Colorado)
An audio-essay scholarship competition for students in grades 9-12 who record and submit a patriotic-themed essay through a local VFW post via the Scholars App.
📍 Entry through local VFW posts statewide📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of New York
VFW Voice of Democracy (Department of New York)
An audio-essay scholarship competition for high school students who record a 3-5 minute essay on an annual patriotic theme; New York's 2026-2027 entries are due to local VFW posts by October 31, 2026. The national grand prize is a $35,000 scholarship, with nearly 80,000 students competing nationwide.
📍 New York (submit through local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of North Carolina
VFW Voice of Democracy (Department of North Carolina)
An audio-essay scholarship competition for high school students on an annual patriotic theme, administered through local NC VFW posts with entries due October 31, followed by District judging by December 15 and Department judging by January 10. The national grand prize is a $35,000 scholarship.
📍 North Carolina (submit through local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Iowa
VFW Voice of Democracy (Iowa)
An annual audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12 on a patriotic theme, with Iowa's state winner advancing to the national contest for a shot at a $35,000 top scholarship.
📍 Submitted through local VFW Posts, Iowa📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Minnesota
VFW Voice of Democracy (Minnesota)
A national audio-essay scholarship contest in which grades 9-12 students write and record a 3-5 minute essay on an annual patriotic theme, starting at the local VFW Post level and advancing through district, state, and national rounds.
📍 Local VFW Posts statewide, Minnesota📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Ohio
VFW Voice of Democracy (Ohio)
An audio-essay competition for grades 9-12 on a democratic/patriotic theme, submitted through a sponsoring local VFW post, with the Ohio first-place winner earning at least $2,500 and a shot at national scholarships up to $35,000.
📍 Submitted through local Ohio VFW posts📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars Department of Texas
VFW Voice of Democracy (Texas)
An audio-essay scholarship competition for high school students expressing their views on democracy through a recorded essay. Entries go through a local VFW post, with state and national scholarship prizes.
📍 Texas (statewide)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW Department of Vermont
VFW Voice of Democracy (Vermont)
Audio-essay scholarship contest for grades 9-12; entries are submitted through a local VFW post and Vermont department winners receive at least $1,000.
📍 Vermont📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars Department of Washington
VFW Voice of Democracy (Washington)
Audio-essay scholarship contest for Washington high school students in grades 9-12 on the 2026-27 theme "What a Veteran Taught Me About America", judged at the Post, District, Department and national levels.
📍 Washington (entries uploaded online, judged through local VFW Posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Wyoming
VFW Voice of Democracy (Wyoming)
An audio-essay scholarship competition for high school students entered through a local VFW post. The 2026-27 theme is "What a Veteran Taught me about America."
📍 Wyoming (entries via local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Arizona
VFW Voice of Democracy Arizona
Audio-essay scholarship competition for students in grades 9-12 on an annual patriotic theme, judged from the local VFW post level up through the department and national levels.
📍 Statewide, AZ📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW Department of Virginia
VFW Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Contest (Virginia)
A 3-5 minute audio essay contest for grades 9-12 on the theme "What a Veteran Taught Me About America," judged from local VFW Posts up to the Department (state) level.
📍 Virginia (entries through local VFW Posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Tennessee
VFW Voice of Democracy Audio-Essay Scholarship (Tennessee)
Annual VFW audio-essay competition for high school students, entered through a local Tennessee VFW post and judged at post, district, and department levels before national judging. The VFW Department of Tennessee lists Voice of Democracy among its state programs.
📍 Tennessee (entries submitted through a local VFW post)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Delaware
VFW Voice of Democracy Delaware
Audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12 on an annual patriotic theme, submitted through local Delaware VFW Posts, with the state winner earning a trip to the Spirit of America Youth Leadership Program.
📍 Delaware (submit via local VFW Post)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW Department of Illinois
VFW Voice of Democracy Illinois
Annual audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12 built around a patriotic theme (2026-2027: 'What A Veteran Taught Me About America'), progressing from local VFW posts through district and state competition.
📍 Illinois (entries submitted through local VFW posts)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Missouri
VFW Voice of Democracy Missouri
An audio-essay scholarship competition, established in 1947, letting Missouri students in grades 9-12 record a patriotic-themed essay; the 2026-27 theme is 'What a Veteran Taught Me About America.'
📍 Submitted through local sponsoring VFW Posts statewide📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW Department of New Hampshire
VFW Voice of Democracy Scholarship (New Hampshire)
An audio-essay competition for grades 9-12 on a patriotic theme, with NH winners advancing to compete for a share of the national program's $2.1 million in scholarships.
📍 Statewide, NH (recorded essay submission)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW Department of Nevada
VFW Voice of Democracy Scholarship Contest
An annual audio-essay patriotic scholarship contest for high school students in grades 9-12, who record and submit a 3-to-3.5-minute essay on an assigned theme through their local VFW post.
📍 Statewide (submitted through local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW Department of Utah
VFW Voice of Democracy Scholarship Program (Utah)
An audio-essay scholarship contest for grade 9-12 students on a patriotic theme, entered through a local VFW post. State winners receive at least a $1,000 scholarship and national winners up to $35,000.
📍 Utah (entries submitted via local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Wisconsin
VFW Voice of Democracy Scholarship Program (Wisconsin)
Grade 9-12 students record a 3-5 minute audio essay on a patriotic theme, entered through a local VFW post and judged at post, district and state levels, with state and national scholarships.
📍 Wisconsin (entered through local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia High School League (VHSL)
VHSL Creative Writing Contest
VHSL accepts student creative writing entries from member high schools for statewide evaluation and recognition, with published entry guidelines and an entry form.
📍 Virginia (entries submitted by member schools)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia High School League (VHSL)
VHSL Esports Championships
VHSL's school-based esports league with fall and spring seasons, playoffs and in-person state championships in titles such as League of Legends, Rocket League, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Mario Kart.
📍 Virginia (fall championships at Shenandoah University)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia Space Grant Consortium / NASA Langley
Virginia Aerospace Science and Technology Scholars (VASTS)
Free online STEM course on NASA-related topics for Virginia juniors and seniors; top performers attend a six-day residential summer academy at NASA Langley Research Center working with scientists and engineers.
📍 Hampton, VA (online course plus NASA Langley academy)📅 October🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Virginia Space Grant Consortium
Virginia Earth System Science Scholars (VESSS)
Online course on NASA satellite missions and remote sensing for Virginia juniors and seniors, with a seven-day residential summer academy at NASA Langley and up to five dual-enrollment college credits.
📍 Hampton, VA (online course plus NASA Langley academy)📅 October🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Virginia Council on Economic Education (VCEE) at VCU
Virginia Economics Challenge (Online)
A statewide high school competition in which teams of three to four students take online economics exams, with qualifying teams advancing to a championship competition; no prior economics course is required.
📍 Virginia (online; championship in Richmond area)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia Association of Journalism Teachers and Advisers (VAJTA)
Virginia Journalist of the Year (VAJTA Portfolio Contest)
A portfolio-based state contest for high school student journalists; the Virginia winner is submitted by VAJTA to the national Journalism Education Association Journalist of the Year competition, which carries scholarships.
📍 Virginia (online submission)📅 February🎓 Grades 11–12
Selective
Virginia Council on Economic Education
Virginia Personal Finance Challenge
An online personal finance competition for teams of three to four Virginia high school students, with no formal personal finance course required, coached by a school-sanctioned teacher.
📍 Virginia📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia Space Grant Consortium / NASA Wallops Flight Facility
Virginia Space Coast Scholars (VSCS)
Free program for Virginia sophomores teaching the STEM behind NASA missions at Wallops and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, with an online course and a seven-day residential summer academy for top performers.
📍 Wallops Island, VA (online course plus residential academy)📅 October🎓 Grade 10
Selective
Virginia Tech School of Architecture + Design
Virginia Tech Explore Architecture Summer Program
A one-week summer studio for students in grades 9-12 in Blacksburg (day or overnight) or a shorter virtual session, with students working in the school's shared studio space.
📍 Blacksburg, VA📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Virginia War Memorial / Virginia Department of Veterans Services
Virginia War Memorial Veterans Day Student Essay Contest
An annual essay contest for Virginia middle and high school students writing 500-750 words about a Virginian who served in the U.S. military and inspires them; one high school and one middle school winner are chosen.
📍 Virginia (online submission)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Virginia Writers Club
Virginia Writers Club Teen Nib Contest
A statewide writing contest for Virginia high school students in fiction, nonfiction and poetry, with winning entries eligible for publication in the Golden Nib and Teen Nib Journal.
📍 Virginia (email submission)📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Oregon State University
Virtual Blender Camp
Remote version of OSU's Blender/design program.
📍 OR🎓 Eligibility not confirmed
Highly Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Idaho
Voice of Democracy
An audio-essay scholarship contest for grades 9-12 on a patriotic theme ('What a Veteran Taught Me About America' for 2026-27), entered through local VFW posts across Idaho.
📍 Idaho (entries via local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Department of Louisiana
Voice of Democracy
An annual audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12 on a patriotic theme, judged first at the local VFW Post level and advancing through district and state rounds, feeding into a national contest that awards a $35,000 top scholarship.
📍 Statewide, LA📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of Oregon
Voice of Democracy (Oregon)
An annual audio-essay scholarship competition for grades 9-12 responding to a patriotic theme, with Oregon's top entrants receiving a minimum $1,000 scholarship and a shot at the $35,000 national first-place award.
📍 Statewide, OR📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW
Voice of Democracy Audio-Essay
Audio-essay scholarship competition with $35,000 top prize.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW Department of Hawaii
Voice of Democracy Audio-Essay Program (Hawaii)
Annual patriotic-themed audio-essay competition for grades 9-12, with entries judged at the Post, District, state, and national level for a share of over $2 million in scholarships.
📍 Statewide (entries submitted via local VFW Posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
VFW Department of Pennsylvania
Voice of Democracy Audio-Essay Scholarship Contest (Pennsylvania)
An annual audio-essay competition for high schoolers on a patriotic theme (2026-27: 'What A Veteran Taught Me About America'), requiring a typed essay and an audio recording, judged at the post, district, and state levels with scholarship prizes.
📍 Statewide, Pennsylvania (state judging in State College)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Department of New Mexico
Voice of Democracy Audio-Essay Scholarship Program - New Mexico
Annual nationwide audio-essay scholarship contest inviting high school students to record a patriotic-themed essay (2026-27 theme: "What a Veteran Taught Me About America"), submitted through a local New Mexico VFW Post. The national first-place winner receives a $35,000 scholarship, and every department (state) winner receives at least $1,000.
📍 New Mexico (submit recorded essay via a local VFW Post)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Department of Massachusetts
Voice of Democracy Scholarship Program
A nationwide audio-essay scholarship contest on an annual patriotic theme; Massachusetts students submit recorded essays through local VFW posts, with hundreds of Massachusetts students competing each year for scholarships that can reach $35,000 nationally.
📍 Massachusetts (submitted through local VFW posts)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Kennedy Center
VSA Emerging Young Artists Program
Awards for young artists with disabilities; cash and exhibition at the Kennedy Center.
📍 Online📅 Fall🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Vermont Child Health Improvement Program (VCHIP), UVM Larner College of Medicine
VT RAYS (Vermont Youth Health Advisory Group)
VT RAYS is Vermont's youth health advisory group, where young people represent the youth voice in statewide projects, present to clinicians, and build tools such as a youth-led clinic assessment walk-through.
📍 Vermont (statewide; based at UVM, Burlington)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Bentley University Pre-College Programs
Wall Street 101
A competitive pre-college program for rising juniors and seniors covering global finance and investing topics such as stocks, bonds, currencies, and trading strategies, using Bloomberg terminals and a trading-room facility.
📍 Waltham, MA (Bentley University)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
UW-Whitewater
Warhawk Dual Enrollment Academy (UW-Whitewater)
Online college-credit courses exclusively for high school students, including General Chemistry, Intro to Environmental Science and Intro to Statistical Reasoning and Analysis, with credits transferable across the Universities of Wisconsin.
📍 Online (Whitewater, WI)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Highly Selective
The Museum of Flight
Washington Aerospace Scholars
A STEM program for high school juniors exploring flight, aerospace design and space travel: an online course from November to March, then an optional six-day residency at the Museum of Flight designing a Mars mission.
📍 Seattle, WA (online, then in person at The Museum of Flight)📅 October🎓 Grade 11
Selective
Washington Council for Economic and Financial Education
Washington Economics Challenge
Online team economics exam in which teams of 3-4 high school students answer 30 questions in 35 minutes, with Adam Smith and David Ricardo divisions and advancement to the national semi-finals.
📍 Online (Washington teams)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Washington State Legislative Youth Advisory Council / Office of the Lieutenant Governor
Washington Legislative Youth Advisory Council (LYAC)
A student-led council of Washington youth that advocates on youth policy issues, lobbies and testifies before the legislature, and attends an annual youth Action Day in Olympia.
📍 Washington (in-person meetings and Action Day in Olympia, WA)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–10
Selective
Washington State Opportunity Scholarship
Washington State Opportunity Scholarship (WSOS) Baccalaureate Scholarship
Scholarship of up to $22,500 for Washington residents, including graduating high school seniors, who plan to earn a bachelor's degree in an eligible STEM or health care major; application includes a 150-500 word essay and no references.
📍 Washington State (online application)📅 February🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Western Washington University Center for Economic and Financial Education
Washington Stock Market Game
A web-based investing simulation in which student teams manage $100,000 of virtual cash in stocks and bonds, with fall, spring and yearlong games for Washington elementary, middle and high school teams.
📍 Washington (statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Washington University in St. Louis
WashU High School Summer Scholars Program
A five-week program for rising high school seniors to enroll in credit-bearing WashU undergraduate courses across the humanities, math, natural sciences, and social sciences, with residential, commuter, and online options.
📍 Washington University in St. Louis, MO (or online)📅 April🎓 Grade 11
Moderate
Washington University in St. Louis, Olin Business School
WashU Olin Business School Pre-Collegiate Program
A hybrid business program for rising juniors and seniors combining virtual sessions with a one-week residential experience on campus, introducing business, leadership, teamwork, and career-preparedness skills.
📍 Washington University in St. Louis, Olin Business School, St. Louis, MO📅 March🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission (HEPC)
West Virginia PROMISE Scholarship
A merit-based state scholarship of up to $5,500 per year that West Virginia high school seniors apply for with the PROMISE application and FAFSA, based on ACT or SAT scores and eligibility rules.
📍 Online application; for use at eligible West Virginia colleges📅 March🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Wharton (UPenn)
Wharton Global Youth Future of the Business World
Online Wharton-led business program. Some scholarships available.
📍 Remote (nationwide)⏱ 3 weeks (summer)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
Wharton Global Youth Program (Online Course Series)
Wharton offers specific online modules and case study challenges for high schoolers to learn finance and investment management.
📍 Online⏱ Varies📅 Self-paced🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wharton/Penn
Wharton Global Youth Summer Program
On-campus and online summer business programs (Future of the Business World, Leadership in the Business World, Essentials of Finance, Sports Business Academy).
📍 Philadelphia, PA⏱ 1-4 weeks📅 Spring🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
The Boston Globe
Will McDonough Sports Writing Contest
A free nonfiction sports-writing contest for grades 9-12 students in Maine and New England, judged on writing quality, reporting, and use of journalism practices, with entries capped at 700 words.
📍 Open to Maine residents (New England-wide contest)📅 May🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wilmington International Film Festival
Wilmington International Film Festival Student Film Competition
A seven-week filmmaking workshop and competition for Delaware high school students led by Wilmington University instructors and local filmmakers, culminating at the festival.
📍 Wilmington, DE📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Wilmington University
Wilmington University Pre-College / Early College Credit Program
Early College Credit and dual enrollment programs letting high-achieving Delaware juniors and seniors take Wilmington University courses on campus, online, or through their high school.
📍 Wilmington University, New Castle, DE📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 11–12
Highly Selective
WIRED
Wired Next Generation
Periodic youth innovator showcases run by WIRED magazine.
📍 Multiple cities⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP)
Wisconsin Agriculture Youth Council
A council of up to 15 Wisconsin high school seniors who meet virtually each month of the school year to hear from agriculture professionals and learn about ag careers, farm resources and agricultural policy.
📍 Wisconsin (virtual)📅 March🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Wisconsin Labor History Society
Wisconsin Labor History Society Kenneth A. Germanson High School Essay Contest
An annual essay contest for Wisconsin students in grades 9-12 who write about 750 words on how unions have been important to their family, community and nation, using interviews or independent research on labor history.
📍 Wisconsin (email submission)📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UW-Madison Department of Mathematics
Wisconsin Math Talent Search
Problem-solving competition in which high school and middle school students work five sets of challenging problems at their own pace and mail or upload solutions; top scorers are invited to Honors Day in Madison.
📍 Wisconsin (online submission)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wisconsin Interscholastic Speech and Dramatic Arts Association (WISDAA)
Wisconsin Schools Film Festival (WISDAA)
A statewide festival where WISDAA member schools enter student-made films that are adjudicated and screened, with no qualification process required and an in-person event planned for UW-Madison in 2027.
📍 Wisconsin (online screening)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
EconomicsWisconsin (Wisconsin Council on Economic Education)
Wisconsin State EconChallenge
An online economics competition open to every Wisconsin high school student: teams compete in a beginner (David Ricardo) or veteran (Adam Smith) division, with top teams advancing to the national semifinal and final.
📍 Wisconsin (online)📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wisconsin Interscholastic Speech and Dramatic Arts Association (WISDAA)
Wisconsin State Speech & Debate Festival (WISDAA)
The state-level speech and debate festival for WISDAA member high schools, held in conjunction with the state speech contest, with in-person events at UW-Madison and online virtual video events.
📍 Madison, WI📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Wisconsin Towns Association, Rural Mutual Insurance Company and Scott Construction
Wisconsin Towns Association Scholarship Essay Contest
An annual essay contest for graduating Wisconsin high school seniors planning to attend a Wisconsin college, who answer a question about local government and civic life for one of ten scholarships.
📍 Wisconsin (email submission)📅 May🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Wisconsin Office of Children's Mental Health (OCMH)
Wisconsin Youth Mental Wellness Champions
A statewide cohort of 15 rising juniors and seniors, one from each of Wisconsin's 12 CESAs plus three at-large, who meet monthly online to build knowledge, skills and a network around youth mental wellness and present posters to state leaders at a May ceremony.
📍 Wisconsin (virtual, ceremony in Madison)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 10–11
Selective
Wisconsin Journalism Education Association (WisJEA)
WisJEA Journalist of the Year and All-State Journalism Team
An annual application program recognizing Wisconsin high school student journalists: seniors can apply for Journalist of the Year, and students in grades 9-12 can apply for the All-State Journalism Team using a resume, a work sample and a short explanation of their media work.
📍 Wisconsin (online application)📅 January🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
UW-Madison Wisconsin Intensive Summer Language Institutes (WISLI)
WISLI High School Online Language Courses (UW-Madison)
Highly motivated high school juniors and seniors may be admitted to WISLI's college-level intensive summer language courses, offered online, in over 30 less commonly taught languages.
📍 Remote (UW-Madison)📅 March🎓 Grades 11–12
Moderate
World Affairs Council of Seattle (Global Classroom)
World Citizen Essay Contest (World Affairs Council of Seattle)
An annual spring essay contest for Washington students in grades 3-12, with a separate 9-12 award division; essays of 1,000 words or less respond to a prompt on global issues and democracy.
📍 Washington (statewide)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
World Food Prize Foundation
World Food Prize Global Youth Institute
Research and conference program on global food security for high schoolers.
📍 Des Moines, IA⏱ 3 days📅 Winter🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Population Connection
World of 8 Billion Student Video Contest
Students create short videos highlighting solutions to global issues like population growth and sustainability.
📍 Global⏱ One-time📅 May 1🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
School One / Write Rhode Island
Write Rhode Island Fiction Contest
An annual short fiction competition, founded in 2016, that invites Rhode Island students to write original prose (under 2,500 words) weaving in the state's people, places, history, or spirit, with free accompanying writing workshops.
📍 Rhode Island (statewide; awards ceremony at Newport Art Museum)📅 December🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
Writers Workshop for High School (UW Youth & Teen Programs)
An introductory creative writing workshop exploring poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, spoken word and multimodal work, with peer feedback, a final portfolio and a class reading.
📍 UW Seattle campus, Seattle, WA (one session online via Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
Writing Arguments That Matter (UW Youth & Teen Programs)
Teaches high school students to build persuasive arguments, from choosing a topic and forming a research question to finding sources and writing a compelling essay.
📍 UW Seattle campus, Seattle, WA (one session online via Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Washington Youth & Teen Programs
Writing for College Readiness (UW Youth & Teen Programs)
Builds high school students' college-level writing skills through frequent practice in research, argument, revision and portfolio creation.
📍 UW Seattle campus, Seattle, WA (one session online via Zoom)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
University of Pennsylvania
Writing for Researchers Online Seminar
Three-week online seminar on Zoom exploring how researchers in the social sciences, natural sciences and humanities plan, conduct and present their work, with practice in argument structure and use of evidence. Current 9th-11th graders; non-credit.
📍 Online⏱ 3 weeks (July 20 - August 7, 2026)🎓 Grades 9–11
Moderate
Washington State Opportunity Scholarship
WSOS Career & Technical Scholarship
Scholarship of up to $1,500 per quarter for Washington residents, including students who earn a high school credential by June, entering eligible certificate, apprenticeship or associate degree programs in health care, STEM or trades.
📍 Washington State (online application)📅 October🎓 Grade 12
Selective
West Virginia Department of Transportation
WVDOT Bridge Design & Build Contest
A free statewide engineering contest where students in grades 6-12 design the lowest-cost bridge in software, with the top designs invited to build and test a balsa wood bridge at the finals.
📍 Online qualifying round; finals at WVU Institute of Technology, Beckley, WV📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
West Virginia University
WVU High School ACCESS Early College Program
Lets high school and home-schooled sophomores, juniors and seniors take WVU on-campus, online and dual-enrollment college courses, usually in STEM disciplines, for reduced tuition.
📍 Morgantown, WV and online📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Moderate
Office of Rep. Harriet Hageman / Congressional App Challenge
Wyoming Congressional App Challenge
Wyoming middle and high school students, alone or in teams of up to four, build an original app on any platform or theme and submit it to the House of Representatives' official computer science competition. The Wyoming winner is chosen by a panel of judges and featured by Congress.
📍 Wyoming (online submission)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wyoming Congressional Award Council
Wyoming Congressional Award
Youth ages 13.5-23 set goals and log hours in voluntary public service, personal development, physical fitness and expedition to earn Congressional Award certificates and medals, with Wyoming-specific support.
📍 Wyoming📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Wyoming Historical Society
Wyoming Historical Society Young Essay Awards
Annual essay awards on Wyoming history with a separate high school division (grades 9-12, 1,200-2,500 words); winning essays are published in The Wyoming Historian. First place receives $150 and runner-up $100 per age group.
📍 Wyoming (submitted online)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wyoming Student Media Association
Wyoming Journalist of the Year (JOY) Scholarship
A state portfolio contest for high school journalism students who build a website covering 11 journalism categories; the winner receives a scholarship and advances to the national JEA Journalist of the Year competition.
📍 Wyoming (online submission)📅 February🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Wyoming Life Sciences Program
Wyoming Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS)
Regional JSHS symposium for Wyoming and Northern Colorado in which high school students submit an abstract and research paper and present original STEM research to judges. Top presenters win scholarships and expenses-paid trips to the National JSHS.
📍 Online (Wyoming and Northern Colorado region)📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wyoming Department of Health, Wyoming Cancer Program
Wyoming Radon Video Contest
Students in grades 9-12 produce a 30-second public service announcement video about radon risks and home testing. Winners receive gift cards and the first-place video goes to the National Radon Video Contest.
📍 Wyoming (online submission)📅 November🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Wyoming Game and Fish Department
Wyoming Student Conservation Stamp Art Competition
Wyoming K-12 students draw or paint the featured species (the western tiger salamander for the 2028 stamp) in a Wyoming habitat, judged on biological accuracy, composition and technical skill. Cash awards go to first through third place in each grade group, including grades 9-12.
📍 Wyoming (online or mailed submission)📅 April🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
YMCA Youth and Government - Wyoming
Wyoming YMCA Youth and Government
Civic engagement opportunities for Wyoming high school students including the Youth Advocate program (Washington, D.C. advocacy days), Changemakers community projects, the Conference on National Affairs and a national judicial competition.
📍 Wyoming; Washington, D.C.; North Carolina📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
Wyoming Arts Council
Wyoming Youth Arts Council
A statewide leadership program for high school students ages 15-19 interested in the arts. Members meet monthly, attend workshops on grant writing and advocacy and lead a youth-driven statewide arts project.
📍 Wyoming (virtual meetings)📅 August🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
University of Wyoming School of Energy Resources
Wyoming Youth Energy Leadership Program
A year-long series of workshops and mentorship sessions for Wyoming high school students focused on leadership in energy and natural resources.
📍 Laramie, WY⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
NextGen InterArts Foundation (listed via Idaho Commission on the Arts)
XC Creative Art Contest
An international, cross-disciplinary art competition for students in grades 6-12, promoted to Idaho students through the state arts commission, celebrating originality across a range of visual art mediums.
📍 Online submission (exhibition in Manhattan, NY for winners)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Yale YRIS
Yale Review of International Studies
Undergraduate IR journal that publishes select high school work.
📍 Online⏱ Year-round📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Yale University
Yale Young Global Scholars
Two-week interdisciplinary academic enrichment program.
📍 New Haven, CT⏱ 2 weeks📅 January🎓 Grades 10–11
Moderate
YMCA of the USA (Mississippi affiliate)
YMCA Youth and Government Mississippi
A civic leadership program for Mississippi high schoolers offering multiple tracks, including a Youth Advocate Program with a funded trip to Washington, D.C., Changemakers community-action projects, and a mock-legislature Conference on National Affairs.
📍 Mississippi (statewide), with a Washington, D.C. trip📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Trailhead Boise / Idaho Digital Learning Academy (IDLA)
You Lead Idaho
A free entrepreneurship competition for rural Idaho high school students in which teams of 2-4 from the same school pick a real community problem, develop a business solution, and submit a pitch video for a chance at scholarship funding and a fully-funded Boise pitch trip.
📍 Rural Idaho (statewide), with finale in Boise, ID📅 March🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Young Diplomats Society
Young Diplomats Forum
Global essay and forum program engaging teens with foreign policy questions.
📍 Various⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Young Founders Lab (YOFO)
Young Founders Lab
A Maryland nonprofit's fully virtual accelerator for middle and high schoolers covering venture building, financial literacy, AI coding and digital prototyping, and pitch coaching, culminating in a Demo Day.
📍 Odenton, MD (serves multiple MD counties)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
ICCA
Young ICCA Skills Training
International commercial arbitration training and mentorship for students entering law.
📍 Various⏱ Varies📅 Rolling🎓 Grade 12
Selective
Leadership Institute of Nevada
Young Leader Academy
A professional learning experience for high school students in grades 10-12 covering policy analysis, advocacy, and leadership development through internships, workshops, mentorship, advocacy campaigns, and a capstone project.
📍 Las Vegas, NV📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Young Scientists Journal
Young Scientists Journal
Peer-reviewed journal written, edited, and reviewed by 12–20 year-old scientists worldwide.
📍 Global📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Wharton Global Youth
Young Tycoons Business Challenge
Team competition run by Wharton for high schoolers worldwide — investment, comparative marketing, and business tracks.
📍 Global📅 Varies by track🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Young Writers Project
Young Writers Project
Free online community based in Burlington where teen writers and visual artists post work, answer weekly challenges and are published in The Voice and local media.
📍 Online (Burlington, VT)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
National Foundation for the Advancement of Artists
YoungArts National Arts Competition
One of the nation's most prestigious honors for high school students in the visual, literary, and performing arts.
📍 Miami, FL / Nationwide📅 December 1🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
National YoungArts
YoungArts National Arts Competition Application
Application for the 2027 YoungArts National Arts Competition. YoungArts identifies and nurtures the most accomplished young artists in the visual, literary, and performing arts and assists them at critical junctures in their educational and professional development.
📍 remote📅 Annual — 2027 dates not yet announced🎓 Grades 9–12
Moderate
National YoungArts
YoungArts Theater
National recognition program for theater artists 15-18.
📍 Online⏱ Annual📅 October🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Rehoboth Beach Film Society
YOUR WORLD Youth Environmental Film Festival
Youth film festival inviting Sussex County middle and high school students to submit short films made on a smartphone exploring environmental and global issues, with no filmmaking experience required.
📍 Cinema Art Theater, Lewes, DE📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Howard County Conservancy
Youth Climate Institute
A climate education and civic action program for 10th and 11th graders providing foundational climate science training and certifying students as climate ambassadors through a capstone community action project.
📍 Howard County, MD, with chapters expanding statewide and nationally📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 10–11
Moderate
Various
Youth Climate Leaders
Free youth climate summits and competitions. Project-based environmental advocacy.
📍 Online + regional⏱ Self-paced📅 Varies🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
MassEnergize
Youth Climate Solutions Challenge
A nine-month, community-based after-school challenge in which teams of Massachusetts high schoolers design and lead clean-energy and climate outreach campaigns, receiving a $500 seed grant and competing for regional prize money at a final Awards Night.
📍 Massachusetts (Eastern and Western MA regions)📅 October🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
League of Women Voters of Maine / Maine Students Vote
Youth Council Internship
Paid internship for Maine high schoolers who design self-directed civic engagement projects (events, PSAs, social media campaigns) around issues like voting rights, immigration, and equity. Interns work 5 hours a week for a semester and don't need prior experience.
📍 Statewide, ME (virtual + in-person events)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Education Justice Coalition of Vermont (with Outright Vermont)
Youth Organizer Training Program (Education Justice Coalition of Vermont)
A paid training program for Vermont students interested in social justice organizing, with five daylong retreats, an overnight coalition retreat and monthly Zoom meetings.
📍 Benson and Burlington, VT📅 June🎓 Grades 7–12
Selective
Idaho Conservation League
Youth Salmon Protectors
A decentralized, student-led environmental advocacy program for high school and college students across the Pacific Northwest dedicated to breaching the four lower Snake River dams to protect wild salmon and steelhead, with students able to start chapters at their own schools.
📍 Boise, ID (chapters statewide)📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Selective
Seattle Children's Research Institute
Youth Voice Research Liaison Program (Seattle Children's)
A hybrid, paid program in which high school students learn research methods, ethics and data analysis, then consult with Seattle Children's research teams on study design, outreach and recruitment for youth-relevant projects.
📍 Seattle, WA📅 Varies🎓 Grades 10–12
Selective
Zooniverse
Zooniverse Citizen Science
Free crowdsourced research platform. Contribute to active university research projects in any field from your laptop.
📍 Online⏱ Self-paced📅 Anytime🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective
Adler Planetarium / Zooniverse
Zooniverse Citizen Scientist Volunteer
Research and tag images for academic science projects. High schoolers can contribute to NASA or university data sets from home.
📍 Online⏱ Flexible📅 Rolling🎓 Grades 9–12
Highly Selective

Other collections

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