9 Data Science Programs for High School Students in Massachusetts
If you are a high school student in Massachusetts who is interested in data science, chances are that you are looking for summer programs in your area as a valuable addition to your application.
In this post, we have curated a list of 7 data science programs in Massachusetts that will enable you to gain hands-on experience, and will make for an excellent learning opportunity. The programs range from free to paid and have different levels of selectivity.
1. Harvard’s Data Mining, Discovery, and Exploration
This course focuses on unsupervised and semi-supervised learning on scaling and computational efficiency of data mining algorithms. You can expect to use statistical and graph algorithms, alongside a variety of libraries in Python including Scikit-Learn, NetworkX, Neo4J, and Surprise.
By the end of the course, you can expect to have a thorough understanding of common data mining algorithms and their applications for real-world data, understand the limitations and alternatives of data mining algorithms, and apply methods to scale data mining algorithms for large datasets!
Location: Harvard Campus, Cambridge, MA
Cost: $3,900 - $14,250 (need-based financial aid available)
Application Deadline:
Early Application/ Priority Financial Aid - January 10, 2024
Regular Application/ Financial Aid - February 14, 2024
International Student Deadline - February 14, 2024
Late Application Deadline - April 10, 2024
Program Dates: June 22 - August 10, 2024
Eligibility:
Will graduate from high school and enter college in 2024, 2025, or 2026.
Are at least 16 years old by June 22, 2024, and will not turn 19 years old before July 31, 2024.
2. MIT’s Research Science Institute
The Research Science Institute (RSI) is a research-based summer program sponsored by the Center for Excellence in Education (CEE) and hosted by MIT every summer. RSI invites 80 highly talented high school juniors from all over the world to attend this program. Throughout the 6-week, fully-funded program, you can conduct independent research in computer science (or other STEM subjects) and take college-level coursework. However, RSI is an extremely selective program, with an acceptance rate of under 5%.
Within the first week, you will have the opportunity to experience extensive STEM Classes by accomplished faculty. However, the main section of RSI is the 5-week research internship, where you can choose to pursue projects in computer science under the mentorship of experienced scientists and researchers. The program culminates with delivering your research in conference-stye oral and written reports.
If you are interested in learning about the types of research conducted by RSI students, you can look at the projects from 2022 here! An example for robotics enthusiasts is Michelle Hua’s 3D Acoustic Simulation and Optimization for Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Delivered with Stereotactic Robotics.
Here is everything you need to know about MIT’s Research Science Institute!
Location: MIT Campus, Cambridge MA
Application Deadline (based on previous year’s dates):
January 15th, 2024 (U.S. Citizens)
March 15th, 2024 (International Students)
Program Dates: June 25th to August 5th, 2024 (based on previous year’s dates)
Eligibility:
Students who are rising seniors (you will have to apply in the middle of your junior year). High school seniors are not eligible to apply.
It is recommended that PSAT Math Scores be at least 740 (or higher) and Evidence-Based Reading/ Writing Scores be 700 (or higher). ACT math scores should be at least 33, and verbal scores should be at least 34. However, you can offset lower scores through recommendations, high school grades, and science activities.
Note. There are different application processes for U.S. Citizens/Permanent Residents and International Applicants. You can look here for specific details!
Veritas AI is founded and run by Harvard graduate students and our programs are geared towards high school students who want to build their foundations in computer science and AI. In the program, students learn various concepts in data science and artificial intelligence like neural networks, image classification, natural language processing, sentiment analysis, coding using python, and more.
Veritas AI offers up to 100% financial aid for the 10-week AI Scholars program. Through the program students build real-world, hands-on projects in groups of 3-5 students to showcase their interests and skills. You can also apply for the AI Fellowship with Publication & Showcase program where you work 1-1 with mentors from top universities to build unique machine learning projects for a period of 12-15 weeks. These programs are a great option for you if you like engaging in hands-on learning and are a beginner!
Location: Remote - you can participate in this program from anywhere in the world!
Cost: $1790 for AI Scholars & $4900 for AI Fellowship. Financial aid available.
Application Deadline: Upcoming summer deadlines - April 21, 2024 (regular admission I); May 19, 2024 (regular admission II).
You can apply here!
Program Dates: Upcoming summer cohort runs from May to September. You can find all the dates here!
Eligibility: High school students. No previous knowledge is required for AI Scholars!
Note. The financial aid is available for students from households earning less than $60,000 annually (for a typical household of 4) with minimum assets.
4. Lumiere Research Scholar Program
Founded by Harvard and Oxford PhDs, Lumiere is a selective research program for high school students, where students work one-to-one with a PhD mentor to develop an independent research paper. The program offers an array of disciplines that you can choose from - computer science, data science, engineering fields, and more.
Due to its one-to-one nature, you can expect to learn the most recent developments in any field and also expand your practical skill set. If you’re interested in doing interdisciplinary research, this would be a good option. To learn more about the program, you can check out our review of Lumiere Education!
Location: Virtual
Cost:
Lumiere Individual Research Program - $2,800
Lumiere Premium Research and Publication Program - $4,800
Lumiere Research Fellowship - $8,400
Application deadline: Upcoming summer cohort - May 12, 2024. You can apply here!
Program dates: Upcoming summer cohort start date - June 3
Eligibility: High school students
5. Horizon Academic Research Program (Data Science and Machine Learning course)
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!
6. Harvard’s Data Science: An Artificial Ecosystem
This course is unique as it introduces basic concepts in data science solely through articles published in Harvard Data Science Review. In particular, you will cover the evolutionary nature of data science, and the similarities between data science and artificial intelligence.
This course not only covers data science concepts, but also dives into the philosophical conceptualization of data or the use of data in addressing scientific replicability. In addition, you will also explore the cultural aspects of data science such as data privacy and individualized treatments.
If you’re interested in the conceptual background of data science and its implications for society, we recommend this course for you!
Location: Harvard Campus, Cambridge, MA
Cost: $3,900 - $14,250 (need-based financial aid available)
Application Deadline:
Early Application/ Priority Financial Aid - January 10, 2024
Regular Application/ Financial Aid - February 14, 2024
International Student Deadline - February 14, 2024
Late Application Deadline - April 10, 2024
Program Dates: June 22 - August 10, 2024
Participation Options: Online Synchronous
Eligibility:
Will graduate from high school and enter college in 2024, 2025, or 2026.
Are at least 16 years old by June 22, 2024, and will not turn 19 years old before July 31, 2024.
7. Harvard’s Introduction to Epidemiology and Biostatistics
If you are interested in both biology and data science, this course covers epidemiological studies and the study design, analyses and conclusions behind them. Your course work will involve a mix of textbooks, recent primary literature and a hands-on component such as R-statistical programming using data sets by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Throughout the course, you will explore key data science concepts such as regression analyses, measures of associations between exposure and risks, and confounders and effect modifiers.
Location: Harvard Campus, Cambridge, MA
Cost: $3,900 - $14,250 (need-based financial aid available)
Application Deadline:
Early Application/ Priority Financial Aid - January 10, 2024
Regular Application/ Financial Aid - February 14, 2024
International Student Deadline - February 14, 2024
Late Application Deadline - April 10, 2024
Program Dates: June 22 - August 10, 2024
Eligibility:
Will graduate from high school and enter college in 2024, 2025, or 2026.
Are at least 16 years old by June 22, 2024, and will not turn 19 years old before July 31, 2024.
8. Smith College’s Summer Pre-College Programs
Smith Pre-college offers 1-4 week in-person summer courses at their campus. While they offer many courses like college readiness and creative writing, if you’re interested in STEM, we recommend the Summer Science & Engineering Program or the Sustainable Futures Program.
In the Summer Science and Engineering Program, you can engage in hands-on research with the Smith’s faculty (in either life or physical sciences). You can cover courses like chemistry of herbal medicine, designing intelligent robots, global young women’s health, novel bacteriophage discovery and more. You can read more about the individual modules here!
In the Sustainable Future Program, it will be a mix of STEM and public policy and you investigate the current environmental challenges through hands-on fieldwork and create ideas for a sustainable future that you can implement in your community.
Location: Smith College Campus
Cost: TBA for 2024
Application deadline: Rolling Admission
Program dates: TBA but expect it to be between June to August.
Eligibility:
Open to any high school student who identifies as female or gender-nonconforming.
Another program by MIT, MITES Semester, is a 6-month hybrid STEM program where you can deep dive into science and engineering disciplines. In this program, you will choose one project-based course, followed by a supplemental core course, which can either be in computer science, calculus, physics, science writing, or communication!
Through this program, you can delve into interdisciplinary subjects that involve computer science. For instance, past projects have included data analysis, computational biology, embedded systems, machine learning, robotics, thermodynamics, climate change, and more!
Here is a guide on how to apply to MITES!
Note. At the end of the MITES program, you will receive a written evaluation from your instructor outlining your strengths and growth areas and highlighting your contributions to the class. This is a valuable supplement for any college application!
Location: Remote
Application Deadline: February 1st (based on previous year’s dates)
Program Dates: June - December (based on previous year’s dates)
Eligibility:
All high school juniors who are U.S. Citizens or permanent residents.
Strong academic record (While they have not specified a cutoff, you can expect similar expectations of RSI - PSAT Math Scores to be at least 740 (or higher) and Evidence-Based Reading/ Writing Scores to be 700 (or higher). ACT math scores should be at least 33, and verbal scores should be at least 34.)
Passion for science, technology, engineering, and math - which is demonstrated through extracurricular activities, essays, and letters of recommendation.
Note. MIT strongly encourages students from these backgrounds to apply:
underrepresented backgrounds
undeserving students (defined as those from low socioeconomic means)
families with an absence of science and engineering degrees
students who are potentially the first family member to attend college
and students from high schools with low admittance rates to top-tier colleges (especially from rural or predominantly minority high schools).
If you’re looking to build unique projects in the field of AI/ML, consider applying to Veritas AI!
Veritas AI was founded by Harvard graduate students, and through the programs, you get a chance to learn the fundamentals of AI and computer science while collaborating on real-world projects. You can also work 1-1 with mentors from universities like Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and more to create unique, personalized projects. In the past year, we had over 1000 students learn data science and AI with us. You can apply here!
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