10 Data Science (DS) Summer Programs for Middle School Students
Data science is quickly becoming one of the core pillars of modern technological infrastructure, and for middle school students with a passion for technology, statistics, or problem-solving, data science summer programs for middle school students offer an ideal way to gain practical exposure and hands-on learning. These programs provide insight into real-world applications, access to industry mentors, and help you explore your interests while building essential skills for future academic and career growth.
Unlike expensive, long-term commitments, data science summer programs for middle school students provide a cost-effective and time-efficient path to real-world experience and mentorship opportunities. Many of these programs are hosted by renowned institutions, including top universities and research centers, ensuring access to cutting-edge tools and personalized guidance from experts in the field. If you’re eager to explore the versatile applications of data science in fields like AI, health, robotics, and business, check out this list of the 10 best data science summer programs for middle school students we’ve compiled.
1. STEM-Focused Data Science Summer Camp
Location: Marlan and Rosemary Bourns College of Engineering, Riverside, CA
Cost: Free
Acceptance Rate: Admission is competitive
Dates: July 8 – 12 (tentative; as per 2024’s dates)
Application Deadline: March (tentative; as per 2024’s dates)
Eligibility: Middle and high school students interested in STEM
This week-long STEM-focused Data Science Summer Camp introduces middle and high school students to foundational concepts in Data Science (DS) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). The immersive program covers essential DS and AI topics, Python programming basics, and practical applications through hands-on lab exercises.
As a participant, you will engage in data extraction, visualization, and real-world problem-solving, benefitting from a meaningful introduction to the field. Hosted on the UC Riverside campus, the camp helps you explore how engineering and science impact the world and provides guidance on narrowing your interests before pursuing higher education.
2. Veritas AI’s AI Trailblazers
Location: Virtual
Cost: $1,990 (financial aid available)
Acceptance Rate: Competitive
Dates: 25 hours over 10 weeks (on weekends) during the spring cohort and 25 hours over 2 weeks (on weekdays) during the summer cohort. The spring cohort starts in March.
Application Deadline: On a rolling basis, February 23 for the spring cohort
Eligibility: Middle school students in grades 6-8
The AI Trailblazers program by Veritas AI is a virtual program that introduces middle school students to the fundamentals of artificial intelligence and machine learning. For over 25 hours, you will get to learn the basics of Python as well as topics like data analysis, regression, image classification, neural networks, and AI ethics. You will learn through lectures and group sessions with a 5:1 student-to-mentor ratio.
Previous student projects have included building a machine-learning model to classify music genres and creating a machine-learning algorithm to provide a custom list of educational resources based on selected specifications. See here for more information and apply here!
3. Penn GEMS: Engineering, Math, and Science Camp
Location: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Cost: $650 (limited amount of need-based financial aid available)
Acceptance Rate: Low selectivity
Dates: June 23 – 27
Application Deadline: March 3
Eligibility: Middle school students entering 7th, 8th, or 9th grade in the fall; live and attend school within a 60-mile radius of the Penns campus; have at least a B average
The Penn GEMS Summer Camp is a week-long day camp at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Engineering and Applied Science designed to introduce you to applied science, technology, and engineering. The program offers hands-on experiences in bioengineering, nanotechnology, materials science, graphics, and computing, giving you a well-rounded introduction to engineering and its role in everyday life. As a participant, you will engage in interactive projects that emphasize problem-solving, collaboration, and teamwork. You will also have the chance to connect with Penn students, faculty, and industry mentors.
4. Lumiere Junior Explorer Program
Location: Online
Cost: $2,400
Acceptance Rate: Highly selective; competitive admissions process
Dates:
Spring Cohort: March 3 – April 28
Summer Cohort I: June 2 – July 28
Summer Cohort II: July 14 – September 8
Application Deadlines:
Spring Cohort: February 9
Summer Cohort I: April 13
Summer Cohort II: June 23
Eligibility: Middle school students (grades 6-8) worldwide
The Lumiere Junior Explorer Program is an 8-week online research program designed to give middle school students in grades 6-8 the chance to explore their interests in STEM and the humanities. Founded by Harvard and Oxford researchers, this 1-on-1 mentorship program will pair you with Ph.D. mentors from top global universities.
The program is structured into three key phases:
Weeks 1-4: You will explore four diverse topics within your chosen track, building foundational knowledge in data analysis, machine learning, and AI applications.
Weeks 5-6: You will select a specific topic for deeper study, developing advanced knowledge and refining your research focus.
Weeks 7-8: With the guidance of your mentor, you will implement your projects, applying real-world data science skills to create original research that may be submitted for academic publication or presented in competitions.
Through project-based learning, coding exercises, and critical analysis, you will gain valuable experience in Python programming, data visualization, and statistical modeling in the data science track. Overall, the program fosters curiosity, problem-solving, and analytical thinking, helping you build a strong foundation for future academic and career pursuits in data science and AI.
5. MehtA+ Machine Learning Bootcamp
Location: Virtual (Online via Zoom)
Cost: $1,990
Acceptance Rate: Competitive, limited slots available
Dates: June 23 – August 1
Application Deadline: Rolling; June 11 or until slots fill up
Eligibility: 8th – 12th graders (ages 13-18) worldwide
The MehtA+ Machine Learning Bootcamp is a 6-week virtual summer program designed for 8th – 12th graders (ages 13-18) interested in AI, machine learning, and data visualization. Taught by MIT and Stanford engineers, the program covers mathematical foundations, machine learning models, and data preprocessing techniques. You will also gain hands-on experience using Python and machine learning libraries like TensorFlow, PyTorch, and Scikit-learn.
As a participant, you’ll work in teams of 3-4 to conduct interdisciplinary research projects in fields like medicine, economics, linguistics, and digital humanities, either independently or in collaboration with a university. You will present your findings at the MehtA+ Machine Learning Conference and have opportunities to publish research papers. By the end of the program, you will have acquired skills equivalent to an entry-level data scientist or machine learning engineer and will receive a certificate upon completion.
6. Autonomous Cognitive Assistance (CogWorks) – Beaver Works Summer Institute at MIT
Location: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA
Cost: Free (requires completion of an online prerequisite course)
Acceptance Rate: Highly selective
Dates: Four-week summer program (July – August)
Application Deadline: Rolling; March 3 – 31
Eligibility: Middle and high school students who complete the online prerequisite course
The CogWorks: Autonomous Cognitive Assistance program at MIT’s Beaver Works Summer Institute is a rigorous four-week summer course focused on artificial intelligence, data science, and machine learning. The program introduces you to foundational Python programming, Git, machine learning, and neural networks, where you’ll be able to gain experience with professional AI services like Amazon Alexa/Echo and open-source cognitive tools.
The program consists of two phases:
Online Pre-requisite Course: Covers Python, GitHub, machine learning fundamentals, and AI concepts needed for the summer program.
Summer Course: A team-based, project-driven curriculum where you will develop and enhance your own AI-powered cognitive assistant. Each week, you will complete projects in audio processing, computer vision, NLP, and AI modeling, culminating in an end-to-end AI assistant competition.
As a participant, you will gain real-world experience in AI and data science while working in a highly collaborative environment with mentorship from MIT researchers and industry experts.
7. Data Science Summer Camp by Ohio State University
Location: Pomerene Hall, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
Cost: Free
Acceptance Rate: Competitive admissions, with only 185 campers hosted from 2018 – 2023
Dates: July 7 – 11
Application Deadline: March 30
Eligibility: Rising 7th, 8th, and 9th graders
The Ohio State Data Science Summer Camp is a free, five-day data science summer program for middle school students entering grades 7, 8, and 9. The camp provides an engaging introduction to data science and analytics, teaching you how to extract insights from data across various fields like business, biology, healthcare, education, city planning, and social sciences.
As a participant, you will work in teams and engage with mentors, scientists, and data professionals, developing analytical and problem-solving skills. The program also includes discussions on gender, race, and cultural biases in data, encouraging you to think critically about data ethics.
8. Tech Explorer Camp at the University of North Texas (UNT)
Location: Frisco Landing, University of North Texas (UNT), Frisco, TX
Cost: $350
Cohort Size: Not specified
Dates: July 8 – 12 (tentative; as per 2024)
Application Deadline: Not specified; check the website for updated information
Eligibility: Middle and high school students
The Tech Explorer Camp at UNT is a five-day data science summer program for middle school students and high school students interested in technology, human-computer interaction, and information science. The camp covers informatics, misinformation, the future of technology, and various career paths in information science, such as user experience research, IT, and library science.
You will engage in interactive sessions with UNT research faculty and Ph.D. students, exploring how technology shapes different industries. The curriculum starts at a basic level and gradually introduces more complex concepts throughout the week.
9. Wolfram Middle School Summer Camp
Location: Virtual
Cost: $500; needs-based financial aid available on a sliding scale (up to 100%)
Cohort Size: Approximately 20 students admitted per year
Dates: July 27 – August 1
Application Deadline:
Early Decisions Deadline: February 28
Regular Decision Deadline: May 1
Eligibility: Middle school students who identify as girls, gender–nonconforming individuals, and students who were assigned female at birth, ages 11-14. Must have interest and a background in a STEM subject; however, computer science and coding skills are not required
The Wolfram Middle School Summer Camp is a week-long virtual program for middle school students interested in STEM, programming, and computational thinking. Sponsored by Wolfram Research, the camp introduces you to Wolfram Language—a powerful computational tool used in data science, machine learning, and scientific computing.
You will participate in hands-on training, coding challenges, and mini-projects, helping you develop problem-solving and data analysis skills. The program also features guest lectures from Wolfram experts and industry professionals discussing topics such as natural language processing, computational finance, and AI ethics. Beyond technical skills, the camp includes social activities, fostering a sense of community among participants. By the end of the program, you will have a strong foundation in computational thinking, programming, and problem-solving.
10. Belmont University STEM Explorers
Location: Belmont University, College of Sciences & Mathematics, Nashville, TN
Cost: $425/week
Cohort Size: 24 students per camp
Dates: June 2 – June 6
Application Deadline: April 15
Eligibility: Middle school students ages 10-13 with a minimum 3.0 GPA
The STEM Explorers for Middle School Students camp at Belmont University offers a hands-on, immersive STEM experience for students ages 10-13. Hosted by the College of Sciences & Mathematics (CSM), the camp will introduce you to a variety of scientific and mathematical disciplines, including data science, neuroscience, gaming, and physics.
Led by Belmont’s faculty, you will engage in interactive projects and experiments designed to expand your problem-solving, critical thinking, and analytical skills. This pre-college experience provides exposure to real-world STEM applications in state-of-the-art lab facilities.
Are you looking to start a project or research paper in the field of AI and ML? Consider applying to Veritas AI!
Veritas AI is an AI program designed for high schoolers. It’s founded and run by Harvard graduate students. The program aims to give students the opportunity to create unique projects in the field of AI. Participants will get to learn more about AI from researchers and experts and work 1-on-1 with mentors from Harvard, MIT, Stanford, and more. In just the past year, we’ve had over a thousand students learn with us! You, too, can apply!
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