Summer Programs in California 2026 | Pre-College & STEM Camps

Summer is the highest-leverage time on a student's calendar. A focused summer program lets you go deep on a subject, live on a college campus, and produce something tangible while school is out. California offers an unmatched concentration of programs, from Stanford, Caltech, and the UC system to Silicon Valley tech and San Diego biotech.

Options include selective pre-college programs at universities, STEM intensives like SSP and COSMOS, arts and writing institutes, and free, fully funded programs for students with financial need.

How you spend your summers tells colleges what you choose to do with unstructured time — a powerful indicator of genuine interest.

How to get started with summer programs

1. Start in the fall — the best summer programs have December–February deadlines for the following summer.
2. Prioritize selective, free or aid-supported programs (SSP, MITES, COSMOS, TASS) over pay-to-play enrichment.
3. Pick programs that go deep on one interest and produce something tangible — a project, portfolio, or paper.
4. Line up recommendations early and give teachers three weeks' notice with a short brag sheet.
5. Have a strong plan B: a local research reach-out, a self-directed project, or a virtual program you can run yourself.

Featured programs

Browse 14+ curated programs for high school students:

• UC Berkeley ATDP — UC Berkeley: Academic Talent Development Program for gifted students.
• Salk Institute High School Research Scholars — Salk Institute for Biological Studies: Research program at iconic Jonas Salk's institute.
• High School Great Books Program — Thomas Aquinas College: One- and two-week residential Great Books seminars at Thomas Aquinas College's California and New England campuses, reading Plato, Euclid, Sophocles,
• Teen Conservation Leaders — Monterey Bay Aquarium: Monterey Bay Aquarium's summer service-learning program for high schoolers, with tracks in guest interpretation, animal care and engineering, or scien
• GRAMMY Camp — GRAMMY Museum: The GRAMMY Museum's seven-day music industry program for US high schoolers in LA, New York, Nashville, and Miami, with career tracks from songwriting
• CLYLP Statewide Leadership Conference — Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project: Free week-long residential leadership conference at Sacramento State for 120 California sophomores and juniors: housing, meals, materials, and transpo
• Youth Mental Health Academy — Child Mind Institute: Paid 14-month mental health career academy for Los Angeles County juniors and seniors: a five-week summer academy (stipend up to $1,750), school-year
• California State Summer School for the Arts (CSSSA) — California State Summer School for the Arts: California's state-funded four-week summer arts school: ~500 students in grades 8-12 train in theater, dance, film, animation, music, writing, and vis
• Startup UCLA: Social Entrepreneurship Summer Institute — Startup UCLA, University of California Los Angeles: Two-week UCLA institute where students in grades 10-12 design a nonprofit or social enterprise and pitch it to entrepreneurs - virtual sessions $2,000
• SPARC (Summer Program on Applied Rationality and Cognition) — SPARC: Free ~10-day summer program (July 22-August 1, 2026 at Cal State East Bay) where quantitatively talented high schoolers take small, discussion-based c
• UCSF High School Biomedical Research Internship — University of California, San Francisco: Biomedical research at top medical research university.
• Stanford University High School Summer College — Stanford University: Take Stanford courses alongside Stanford undergraduates. Full Stanford academic experience.
• Stanford Graduate School of Business High School Summer Program — Stanford GSB: Business fundamentals program at Stanford GSB. Experience MBA-style learning and Silicon Valley entrepreneurship.
• UC Berkeley Pre-Collegiate Programs — University of California, Berkeley: Transform your summer with UC Berkeley’s pre-college program. Build academic skills, gain hands-on experience, and boost your college applications on

Frequently asked questions