If you’re a high school student looking for research opportunities, it doesn’t get much better than the Anson L.Clark Scholars Program. This prestigious research program has a selection rate of less than 3% and only 12 high school juniors or seniors are selected every summer to join the program. 

In this post, we will dive deep into this program to help you understand the structure, the cost, location, research areas available, and reasons why you should apply for this intensive research program. 

What is the Anson L. Clark Scholars Program?

The Anson L. Clark Scholars Program was established in 1963 in honor of Anson L. Clark, a former Texas A&M student and World War II veteran who proceeded to create a successful business career!

This program is an intensive 7-week comprehensive research program that will allow you to gain hands-on practical research under the mentorship of Texas Tech University faculty. Apart from conducting one-on-one research with faculty, you will have additional weekly seminars, discussions and even field visits! 

Where and when is the program conducted? 

The program is offline and is conducted every summer at Texas Tech University. The current program dates are June 16, 2024 to August 1, 2024.

What is the cost of the program? 

There is no program or registration fee, and your on-campus meals, on-campus room and board, and weekend activities will be covered by the program! 

Do note that travel, personal and medical expenses will not be covered. 

An added benefit is that you will receive a $750 tax-free stipend upon completion of your successful research project report! 

What are the areas you can conduct research in? 

While the list of research disciplines for Summer 2024 haven’t been released, some of the general areas (based on the Summer 2023 disciplines) you can expect are biology, chemistry, computer science, economics/business, finance/marketing, electrical engineering & computer engineering, history, and physics. 

You can access the specific research topics by each student here! Below are some interesting ones from the Summer 2023 cohort: 

• Computer Science - “Optimal GPU Frequency Selection: Using Workload-Unique Power and Performance Predictions” by Anqi Hu.

• Electrical and Computer Engineering - “Secure Sensing with Passive Radar for Spectrally Congested Spaces” by Rachel Ma

• Biology - “Metabolic Analysis of Endosymbiont Communities in Membracid Hosts Using Pathway Tools” by Aaron Li

Who is eligible to apply?

This program is open to high school juniors and seniors who will graduate in either 2024 or 2025. You will have to be at least 17 years of age by the program start date. 

Do note that this program is only open for U.S. Citizens or permanent residents only. 

What is the application process like?

The application consists of 6 components: 

• An online application - This will be available from January 2, 2024 and will close on February 15, 2024. 

• Essays - You will have to write 3-4 short essays about yourself and your research interests. The word limits range between 1,500 to 2,000 characters including space. The prompts for Summer 2024 are: 

• Describe your primary research interest, being very specific. This will help with matching you to a research professor. (2,000 characters including spaces)

• Optional - Describe your secondary research interest, being very specific. (2,000 characters including spaces)

• Tell the Selection Committee about yourself and your reasons for applying to the Clark Scholarship Program. Please include your future goals and how becoming a Clark Scholar would contribute to achieving those goals. (2,000 characters including spaces)

• Tell us about your most fulfilling service experience. (1,500 characters including spaces)

• High school transcripts 

• Standardized test scores - If your SAT or ACT score is not available by the deadline, you must submit your PSAT score. 

• Recommendations - You will have to submit 3 recommendations, 2 from teachers and the third from someone of your choice. Do note that recommendations are an online questionnaire that will be sent to your referees after you input their information. Also note that your references are due at the application deadline so we recommend asking your referees to complete them at the earliest! 

• Top 5 activities - You will have to list what you consider for your important involvement activities or accomplishments. 

Why should you apply? 

1. You have the flexibility to pursue your own research interest. 

This program gives you the opportunity to access the facilities of a tier-one research institution. Apart from the state-of-the-art resources, you also have the flexibility to choose a topic of your own choice (although it has to be under one of the fields available). 

2. The program is free of cost. 

Apart from travel costs, the program covers much of the larger expenses such as food and board! This program is a great opportunity for anyone, regardless of your financial background. An additional bonus is that you will also get a $750 tax-free stipend. 

3. Participating in this program is a great value-add for your application. 

The Anson L.Clark Scholars program is one of the most prestigious research programs for a high school student. Participating and even getting selected will signal to admission officers that your academic caliber is higher than the average. 

4. The mentorship and guidance by the Texas Tech faculty will help with future research opportunities. 

The one-on-one research opportunity that Anson L Clark scholars will be very helpful when conducting any future research. You will not only get help with refining your research, but you can also benefit from your mentors’ connections as they might help you with future research opportunities with other professors. 

5. You can explore your interests in your research field. 

Conducting research for 7-weeks is no easy feat and you will be delving into the ins and out of your topic thoroughly. Doing this program can help solidify your research interest, whether it be you continue pursuing research in this topic or finding other topics that are much more tailored to your interests. 

6. You will meet new peers and mentors who will help with applications and your future career. 

This program only has high-achieving high schoolers, and researchers who are esteemed in their respective fields. This program is a great networking opportunity, and you will also get to meet like-minded peers who are just as passionate about research!

7. You will live on a college campus. 

This unique opportunity to live on a college campus for 7 weeks gives you the chance to experience the freedom of a college student lifestyle with peers that you’ve never met before. This program isn’t only appealing for its educational experience, it also will allow you to experience a great and unique summer. 

8. After the program, you will have access to an excellent alumni network. 

The supportive alumni network from the Anson L Clark Scholars program is a valuable resource for mentorship, advice and other beneficial networking opportunities which you can take advantage of to improve your application, explore your fields of interest and gain advice on your career path. 

9. You will produce a tangible research project.

By the end of the program, you would have had to successfully complete your research and produce a report on its findings. You can mention this research in the 'Activities’ section of your CommonApp, or considering the rigor of the program, submit it to any competition! 

10. The prestige of the program might help with future scholarship opportunities. 

As we’ve mentioned above, this program is extremely prestigious and getting accepted and completing this program successfully just showcases your academic capabilities as a student. You can use this experience to apply for merit-based scholarships, as the selectivity of this program will make your application stand out from others. 

One other option - the Lumiere Research Scholar Program

If you’re interested in pursuing independent research, you could also consider applying to one of the Lumiere Research Scholar Programs, selective online high school programs for students founded with researchers at Harvard and Oxford. Last year, we had over 4000 students apply for 500 spots in the program! You can find the application form here.

Also check out the Lumiere Research Inclusion Foundation, a non-profit research program for talented, low-income students. Last year, we had 150 students on full need-based financial aid!

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