Software engineering is a field that deals with the design, development, testing, maintenance, and analysis of software apps. If you are a high school student interested in pursuing software engineering as a career, a summer program can help you build a solid foundation in the subject before college! Such programs can introduce you to the basics of coding, artificial intelligence, machine learning, cyber security, and more; while also helping you figure out if this field is right for you.

Many universities and organizations host summer programs and camps. By attending one of these, you will be able to learn from professionals, work on real-world projects, improve your skills, build your network, and boost your college applications. To help you get started, here are 10 best software engineering programs for high school students that you can consider!

1. Veritas AI

Location: Virtual
Eligibility: Applicants can be anywhere in the world.
- For the AI Scholars program, no previous experience is required - applicants need to show a keen interest in AI.
- For the AI Fellowship program, applicants will either need to complete the AI Scholars program or have had past experience with AI concepts or Python.
Application deadline: The program runs in cohorts throughout the year. Applications for the n summer cohort close on April 21, 2024. You can apply here!
Program Dates: Multiple sessions from July to September. The AI Scholars runs for 10 weeks, and the AI Fellowship program runs for 12-15 weeks.

Cost: AI Scholars - $1,790 | AI Fellowship - $4,900 | For both programs - $5,900.
Financial Aid: Available. You can mention your need for financial aid in the application form.

Veritas AI is a program for high school students that focuses on teaching the fundamentals of artificial intelligence, machine learning and data science. Founded and run by Harvard graduates, Veritas AI offers 2 options to choose from – the AI Scholars Program and the AI Fellowship with Publication & Showcase program. 

The AI Scholars program has a a structured curriculum in Python, AI, regression, neural networks, natural language processing, deep learning, sentiment analysis, and more. Students will further work on real-world group projects in data science. You will further receive expert instruction, direct mentorship, college preparation, and networking support. You can also move on to or directly opt for the AI Fellowship, which will give you the chance to work on a more comprehensive individual project, such as an app, a software, a research paper (with publication support offered), or a presentation. A combination of both programs is also possible.

2. Horizon Academic Research Program

Location: Virtual 

Application Date: May 21, 2024 for the summer cohort, and September 25, 2024 for the fall cohort 

Program Dates: 

• Summer seminar - June 24, 2024 - September 2, 2024

• Fall seminar - October 23, 2024 - February 19, 2025

• Lab dates are flexible, but you must apply 4 weeks in advance.

Eligibility: High school students with good academic standing (>3.67/4.0 GPA) can apply. Most accepted students are 10th/11th graders! Only a couple of tracks require formal prerequisites, more details of which can be found here.

Horizon offers trimester-long research programs for high school students across subject areas such as data science, machine learning, political theory, biology, chemistry, neuroscience, psychology, and more! It is one of the very few research programs for high school students that offers a choice between quantitative and qualitative research! 

Once you select a particular subject track and type of research you’ll be paired with a professor or Ph.D. scholar (from a top university) who will mentor you throughout your research journey. You’ll work to create a 20-page, university-level research paper that you can send to prestigious journals for publication as a high school student. 

This program is a solid opportunity for you to pursue a research program in highly specialized fields, under the guidance of a top scholar. The program also provides a letter of recommendation for each student, as well as detailed project feedback that you can use to work on future projects and on college applications. Apply here!

3. MITES Summer

Location: MIT, Cambridge, MA

Eligibility: High school students with a strong academic record and a U.S. citizenship or permanent residency

Application Deadline: Applications usually close in February.

Program Dates: Late June - early August (6 weeks)

Cost: Free (including room and meals)

MITES Summer is a campus-based residential program that offers immersive courses, recitations, tours, field trips, and social events. The coursework includes classes, seminars, and workshops in math, life sciences, physics, humanities, and a project-based elective course. Elective courses include options like engineering design and machine learning, either of which can be useful for students interested in software engineering.

Students will work on final projects while receiving support and mentorship from accomplished faculty. Each student also receives a written evaluation from their mentor at the end of the internship. Note that MITES Summer is a highly competitive program with an acceptance rate of only around 3% (around 80-100 students).

4. Columbia University’s Summer High School Academic Program for Engineers (SHAPE)

Location: Columbia University, New York, NY

Eligibility: High school students with a strong interest in STEM and the ability to commute every day

Application Deadline: Applications usually close in March.

Program Dates: July 8, 2024 - July 26, 2024 | July 29, 2024 - Aug 16, 2024 (3 weeks each; students can choose between the two)

Cost: $5,500 (note that this program does not provide housing, meals, and transportation)

Financial Aid: Need-based scholarships are offered.

SHAPE is a selective pre-college program focused on STEM subjects. Students can choose a subject to focus on, with each subject featuring diverse courses taught by Columbia faculty members and engineers. These courses further highlight project-based work, allowing students to gain substantial experience, test their knowledge, and learn new skills. Electives, lab work, college preparation, workshops, and tours are also offered, with each activity providing a chance for students to collaborate with peers and build a strong network of professionals.

For students interested in software engineering, options like competitive programming, data science, probability, and robotics and autonomous driving are available. A final project will be due at the end of the program.

5. Berkeley Summer Computer Science Academy

Location: UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA

Eligibility: Domestic and international students aged 16-17 with an interest in computer science

Application Deadline: Applications typically close in March.

Program Dates: June 16, 2024 - June 28, 2024 (2 weeks)

Cost: $5,060 (includes tuition, housing, meals, activities, and health insurance) + $25 application fee

Financial Aid: Scholarships to cover tuition, room, and board are available.

The Berkeley Summer Computer Science Academy is a great option for high school students interested in computer science and software engineering, whether you have prior coding experience or not. Students will immerse themselves in coding, learning new concepts, collaborative programming, projects, problem-solving, and daily coding challenges. The computer science department at Berkeley is highly reputed worldwide, making this a prestigious and selective program with a small cohort size.

Some topics you will learn about include abstraction, functions, number representations, recursion, tree recursion, algorithms, social implications of computing, lists and higher order functions, and Boolean logic and conditions. The program will end with the Code Celebration where students will present their individual or group coding projects.

6. Carnegie Mellon Computer Science Scholars

Location: Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA

Eligibility: High school juniors with a demonstrated financial need who are at least 16 years old and are U.S. citizens or permanent residents

Application Deadline: Applications are typically due in March.

Program Dates: June 22, 2024 - July 20, 2024 (4 weeks)

Cost: Free (includes tuition, room, and board)

Carnegie Mellon’s Computer Science Scholars (CSS) program is a selective pre-college summer program that allows high school juniors to learn directly from faculty, researchers, and engineers. Students will participate in college-level courses, guest lectures, seminars, academic tours, field trips, and college preparation workshops while also networking with peers and exploring the city on weekends.

The curriculum highlights computer science programming and math, with students also getting a chance to participate in group projects led by faculty, staff, and graduate students. On the final day of the program, students will deliver group presentations on their projects at a closing symposium.

7. Stanford University’s Pre-Collegiate Studies

Location: Virtual

Eligibility: Students in grades 8-11

Application Deadline: Applications usually close in March.

Program Dates: June 17, 2024 - June 28, 2024 | July 8, 2024 - July 19, 2024

Cost: $3,050 + potential course-specific costs not exceeding $100

Financial Aid: Available based on demonstrated financial need

Stanford University offers pre-college summer courses wherein students can participate in intensive classes covering subjects of their choice. The courses will include project work, hands-on experience, collaboration and discussion, lectures, and social activities, allowing students to undergo an in-depth study while also expanding their network of like-minded people. Note that class sizes are small, and acceptance is highly competitive and selective.

For students interested in software engineering, multiple course options are available, such as ‘Game Design’ and ‘Game Design for Good’ (both involve AI, design, coding, and user research), ‘Introduction to Machine Learning’, ‘Introduction to AI’, ‘Discrete Mathematics’, ‘Introduction to C++’, ‘Introduction to Data Science’, and ‘Human-Computer Interaction’. Students will further work on group projects and deliver presentations.

8. Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program (SEAP) by the Department of Navy

Location: Varies based on lab locations.

Eligibility: High school students who are at least 16 years old, have completed Grade 9, and are U.S. citizens can apply.

Application Deadline: Applications open in August and close on November 1 every year. 

Program dates: June-August (8 weeks)

Cost/Stipend: There is no cost, students receive a stipend – $4,000 (new participants) | $4,500 (returning participants)

This is a prestigious, research-focused apprenticeship that places high school students in Department of Navy laboratories across the country. With approximately 300 placements across over 38 laboratories nationwide, SEAP is highly competitive. During this program, you will work with leading researchers and engineers at Navy facilities on real Naval research, while being mentored by expert Navy scientists and engineers. While working on projects hands-on, you will gain valuable knowledge and skills in various STEM disciplines, including engineering. 

Your lab choice is based on your subject of interest. Engineering is a popular area of research, so you will have the flexibility to choose labs all over the country, with options in software engineering, computer engineering, mechanical engineering and more.

9. University of Pennsylvania’s Engineering Summer Academy at Penn (ESAP)

Location: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

Eligibility: High school students (rising sophomores to rising seniors) who are at least 15 years old

Application Deadline: Applications usually close in April.

Program Dates: July 7, 2024 - July 27, 2024

Cost: $8,500 (covers tuition, housing, meals, course materials, and program-related trips) + $85 application fee

Financial Aid: Not available

University of Pennsylvania’s Engineering Summer Academy at Penn (ESAP) focuses on engineering (including software engineering), allowing high school students to take college-level courses where they learn theory and develop hands-on projects using the university’s state-of-the-art technology and facilities. Class sizes are small with an instructor-to-student ratio of 1:19, making 1-on-1 interactions possible while also allowing for more collaboration. Apart from classes, social events, activities, and tours may also take place.

Courses offered include artificial intelligence, complex networks, computer science, biotechnology, computer graphics, nanotechnology, and robotics, thus ensuring plenty of options for software engineering enthusiasts. You can take a look at the course descriptions, syllabi, and faculty members here. Note that group and individual projects are included in each course.

10. UCLA’s Computer Science Summer Institute (Introductory track)

Location: UCLA, Los Angeles, CA

Eligibility: 9th-12th graders

Application Deadline: June 1, 2024

Program Dates: June 24, 2024 - July 12, 2024

Cost: $3,087

Financial Aid: Available for California high school students

UCLA’s Computer Science Summer Institute is an introductory experience involving a coding boot camp, lab tours, and UCLA coursework. In this program, students will learn how to employ computers for problem-solving, creativity, and the design and implementation of software programs and applications. Some of the main topics students will work on include integers, strings and lists, conditionals and loops, control structures, and functional decomposition, with no prior experience needed before the start of the program.

Note that this program includes final exams, presentations and participation, and reviews. If you are looking for more in-depth and complex programs for software engineering, you can also consider applying to the Computer Science Summer Institute Intermediate Track in which you will receive skills and training in computer programming, statistics, probability, and basic matrix analysis.

11. Cyber Security for Computer Science (CS4CS) at NYU Tandon School of Engineering

Location: NYU, New York, NY

Eligibility: NYC residents that are currently in 9th, 10th, or 11th grade

Application Deadline: Applications usually close in mid-April.

Program Dates: July 15, 2024 - August 9, 2024 (3 weeks)

Cost: Free

New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering offers a prestigious program in software engineering that is detailed and focused on cybersecurity. The program introduces selected students to the fundamentals of cybersecurity and computer programming, with no prior experience required in the field. Students will learn topics like steganography, digital forensics, privacy, data usage, white-hat hacking, and more.

As part of the course curriculum, students will learn to use various software and tools and techniques to detect cyber threats. You will also learn coding and the use of ciphers to protect computer networks. In addition, students will understand the basics of behavioral science to better understand and avoid such threats. A public speaking and communication program called Irondale is also mandatory for students.

Image Source - Columbia University Logo