Extracurriculars & Programs in Pennsylvania for High School Students

Pennsylvania's opportunities center on Penn and Carnegie Mellon pre-college programs, CHOP-affiliated medical research, and Pittsburgh's growing tech scene.

46 verified programs match this page; 12 of the featured listings are completely free; 1 can be done online.

Featured programs

Browse 30+ curated programs for high school students:

• UPenn Summer Academies — UPenn: Transform your summer with a 3-week in-person program exploring business, STEM, or medicine. Gain hands-on experience to boost skills and strengthen c
• Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Sciences — PA PGSS: Transform your STEM skills with this free, 5-week summer program at Carnegie Mellon. Gain hands-on experience and boost your college applications thro
• Wharton Investment Competition — Wharton/UPenn: Compete in a global investing competition for high school students. Manage a $100k portfolio, gain real-world finance skills, and boost your college a
• PennApps Hackathon — University of Pennsylvania: Compete in the nation’s largest student-run hackathon for high schoolers. Build coding skills, innovate in tech, and boost your college applications.
• Wharton Global High School Investment Competition National Finalist — Wharton School: Top 10 teams present at Wharton. Build and defend investment portfolio strategy.
• Penn Biomedical Research Academy — University of Pennsylvania College of Arts & Sciences: Explore hands-on biomedical research in this summer program for grades 10-12. Gain lab skills, enhance college applications, and dive deep into molecu
• Monell Science Apprenticeship Program — Monell Chemical Senses Center: Explore a paid high school research apprenticeship in taste and smell science. Build hands-on STEM skills, boost your college applications, and work w
• Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI) Civics & Global Affairs Programs — Foreign Policy Research Institute: Philadelphia-based think tank offering students access to foreign policy analysis, teacher workshops, and global affairs educational resources. Free p
• University of Pennsylvania Management & Technology Summer Institute — University of Pennsylvania: Combined Wharton business and Penn Engineering program. Interdisciplinary summer experience at Penn.
• ILMUNC (Ivy League Model United Nations Conference) — University of Pennsylvania International Affairs Association: Excel in diplomacy and debate at ILMUNC, a prestigious Model UN competition for high school students. Build leadership skills and boost college applic
• Penn State Science-U STEM Camps — Penn State University: Immersive residential STEM camps at Penn State for middle and high school students covering robotics, cybersecurity, engineering, and life sciences on
• Penn Summer Academies — University of Pennsylvania: Immerse yourself in a hands-on summer program for high school students, exploring advanced STEM fields, gaining research experience, and boosting your
• Penn Experimental Physics Research Academy — University of Pennsylvania College of Arts & Sciences: Hands-on physics experiments and data analysis at Penn.
• Penn Summer Academies in Biomedical Research — University of Pennsylvania: Immerse in a 3-week in-person biomedical research summer program at Penn. Gain hands-on lab experience, enhance STEM skills, and boost your college ap
• Penn Data Science Academy — Wharton Global Youth Program: Master Python, statistics, and business analytics in this hands-on summer program for grades 10-12. Build data science skills and boost college applic
• Lehigh University Pre-College Programs — Lehigh University: Pre-college programs at Lehigh University covering engineering, business, arts, and sciences.
• Summer Academy for Math and Science (SAMS) — Carnegie Mellon University: Fully funded summer program for rising high school seniors to explore STEM fields through hands-on learning, skill-building, and college-prep opportun
• Wharton Leadership in the Business World (LBW) — Wharton Global Youth Program (University of Pennsylvania): Four-week business immersion with Wharton faculty, cases, and company visits.
• Wharton Moneyball Academy — Wharton Global Youth Program, University of Pennsylvania: Data analytics in sports with Wharton faculty; coding, stats, and modeling.
• Carnegie Mellon AI Scholars — Carnegie Mellon University: Selective, merit-based AI program. Fully grant-funded. ~30 students work on real AI problem-solving.
• Carnegie Mellon Architecture Pre-College — Carnegie Mellon University: Architecture program at CMU featuring studio-based learning. Design projects, digital fabrication, and portfolio development at top architecture schoo
• CMU Drama Pre-College — Carnegie Mellon University: Drama program at CMU's top-ranked School of Drama. Conservatory-style training in acting and production.
• Engineering Summer Academy at Penn (ESAP) — University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science: Explore cutting-edge STEM fields in this in-person summer program for high schoolers. Gain hands-on engineering experience, boost college applications
• Penn Chemistry Research Academy — University of Pennsylvania College of Arts & Sciences: Dive into modern chemistry with Penn faculty and research labs.
• Wharton Summer High School Program — University of Pennsylvania: Master business fundamentals in Wharton's summer program for grades 10-11. Build skills in marketing, finance, and management to boost college applica
• Carnegie Mellon Informatics & Mathematics Competition (CMIMC) — Carnegie Mellon University: Challenging hybrid contest spanning math and computer science.
• Penn Chemistry Olympiad Summer Camp (PENNCHEM outreach) — University of Pennsylvania Chemistry Outreach: Boost problem-solving skills and shine on college applications with this free online chemistry summer program for high schoolers. Perfect for Olympiad
• Carnegie Mellon Pre-College Drama — Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama: Immerse yourself in conservatory-style summer training in acting, musical theatre, and design at Carnegie Mellon. Boost performance skills and build y
• Penn Model Congress (PennMC) — University of Pennsylvania International Affairs Association: Explore Penn Model Congress, a free in-person leadership program for high schoolers to debate policy, build negotiation skills, and boost college appl
• Penn Experimental Psychology Research Academy — University of Pennsylvania: Immerse in cognitive psychology and experimental research at this competitive summer program. Build APA-style writing and stats skills to boost your c

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