The Stanford Medical Youth Science Program (SMYSP) is a five-week summer program in science and medicine for first-generation and low-income high school juniors in Northern California, with 24 students in its 2027 cohort. The Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program (SIMR) is a separate eight-week lab research program for juniors and seniors 16 and older, with about 50 students a year. Both are run by Stanford Medicine, both are in person on the Stanford campus and neither provides housing.
The two names often get mixed up because both are Stanford high school programs in medicine. They serve different students and offer different experiences: SMYSP centers on hospital exposure, anatomy, public health research and college preparation, while SIMR places students in a working research lab for a full summer. Here is how each one works, who can apply, what the days look like and how they compare with other medical summer programs for high schoolers.
What Is the Stanford Medical Youth Science Program?
SMYSP is a five-week immersive enrichment program in science and medicine run by Stanford Medicine’s Office of Community Health and Engagement. Its program page describes it as an academic enrichment program for first-generation and low-income high school juniors. Students spend the summer in internships throughout Stanford Hospital, in anatomy and public health lectures, and on a small-group research project.
The program has a long history. According to a 2018 Stanford Medicine report, it was conceived in 1987 by two Stanford pre-med students, Michael McCullough and Mark Lawrence, recruited seven students from East Palo Alto in its first year and had more than 700 alumni by its 30th session. The same report noted that close to 100 percent of participants graduated from high school and more than half entered health professions or graduate programs.
Who Can Apply to SMYSP?
SMYSP is open to current high school juniors from first-generation and low-income families in Northern California. Seniors and sophomores are not eligible, so students have one chance to apply, during junior year. The current program pages do not list a GPA minimum or specific counties, so check the official page for the latest eligibility details when the application opens.
When Is SMYSP and How Does the Day Work?
The 2027 program runs from June 21 to July 23, 2027, on Stanford’s main campus, with a mandatory in-person orientation on Friday, June 18, 2027. It is full time, Monday through Friday, for about 30 to 40 hours a week. Housing and transportation are not provided, so students live with a parent, relative or legal guardian and commute. Many older descriptions online call SMYSP residential; the current official page says otherwise.
What Do SMYSP Students Do?
Each week combines hospital time, classes and college preparation. According to the official page, students:
- Intern throughout Stanford Hospital, with hands-on lab and department work, shadowing and patient interaction
- Attend two lectures a week on public health and research methods and two on human anatomy, taught with Stanford medical student instructors
- Complete a small-group public health research project on health disparities, ending in a college-level paper, a presentation and an academic poster
- Join a weekly academic planning workshop on college action plans, admissions and essays
- Hear guest lectures and take tours and demonstrations in areas such as dermatology, anesthesiology, Life Flight, gastroenterology and ophthalmology
- Receive mentorship from faculty, health professionals, counselors and college students
How Do You Apply to SMYSP?
The 2027 application opens in late 2026; the two official pages list different opening dates (November 15 and mid-December 2026), so check the SMYSP page directly. Review is holistic, decisions arrive in early May and they cannot be appealed. With 24 places in the 2027 cohort, admission is highly selective; the program does not publish an acceptance rate.
What Is Stanford SIMR?
SIMR is an eight-week summer program in which high school students do hands-on basic research on a medically oriented project with Stanford faculty, postdoctoral researchers and graduate students. It is run by the Stanford School of Medicine. According to its history page, it was founded in 1998 with a gift from a local family, ran its first summer in 2000 with 10 students and took its current name in 2008.
Who Can Apply to SIMR?
For the 2027 program, the SIMR site lists these requirements, with no exceptions:
- A current high school junior or senior in fall 2026 (class of 2027 or 2028)
- At least 16 years old by the June 2027 start date
- Living in and attending high school in the United States
- A U.S. citizen or permanent resident
Selection strongly favors students from the Bay Area. There is no minimum GPA, and test scores are optional. Because housing is not provided and students must live with a family member or legal guardian, students from outside the area need a relative nearby, named on the application.
What Are SIMR’s Research Areas?
Applicants rank their top five institutes from eight research areas: immunology, neuroscience, cancer biology, bioengineering, stem cell and regenerative medicine, cardiovascular, bioinformatics, and genetics and genomics. A separate Bioengineering Team Internship, on the same application, places teams of four or five students on a biodesign project using microcontrollers, 3D printing and lab techniques such as PCR.
What Does a SIMR Summer Look Like?
The 2027 program is tentatively scheduled for June 7 to July 29, 2027. Students work about 40 hours a week, Monday through Friday during the day, and must attend all eight weeks. According to the SIMR FAQ, the summer follows this arc:
- Day one: orientation, safety training and a lunch where students meet their lab mentors.
- First two weeks: morning lectures a few times a week alongside lab work.
- Middle weeks: full-time work in an assigned lab, guided day to day by a graduate student or postdoctoral researcher, plus seminars on careers in science and medicine.
- Last two weeks: preparing a research poster.
- Final day: an evening poster session for families, teachers and the Stanford community.
How Do You Apply to SIMR?
The 2027 application posts on December 18, 2026, and closes in late February 2027. In the 2026 cycle, decisions went out in April. The application asks for two essays of up to 3,500 characters each, a transcript, exactly one recommendation from a current or past high school teacher (science or math is encouraged), optional test scores and a ranking of your top five institutes. Applicants should not contact faculty, and there is no advantage to submitting early.
SMYSP vs. SIMR: How Do They Compare?
SMYSP is broader and more clinical, built for juniors from first-generation and low-income families; SIMR is narrower and research-focused, open to juniors and seniors who meet the age and citizenship rules. Both are highly selective and local in practice.
| SMYSP | SIMR | |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | Hospital internships, anatomy, public health research, college preparation | Full-time basic research in a Stanford lab |
| Who can apply | First-generation and low-income juniors in Northern California | Juniors and seniors, 16+, U.S. citizens or permanent residents; Bay Area strongly favored |
| Length | 5 weeks | 8 weeks |
| 2027 dates | June 21 to July 23 | June 7 to July 29 (tentative) |
| Hours | About 30 to 40 a week | About 40 a week |
| Housing | Not provided | Not provided |
| Class size | 24 students | About 50 students |
| Final product | Research paper, presentation and poster | Research poster session |
How Can You Strengthen an Application to SMYSP or SIMR?
Both programs read applications closely, so specific, honest writing matters more than a long activity list. A few practical steps:
- Start essays in December. Write about one moment or question that drew you to medicine or research, and what you want to learn.
- Ask your recommender early, at least four weeks before the deadline, and give them a short summary of your activities.
- For SIMR, read the institute descriptions carefully and rank areas you can explain an interest in.
- For SMYSP, show how the program connects to your plans for college and your community.
Our guide on how to get into a competitive summer medical program covers essays and recommendations in more detail, and the summer medical internship application timeline shows when other selective programs open.
What If You Are Not Eligible or Not Admitted?
Most students who want a Stanford-style summer will not fit SMYSP’s or SIMR’s eligibility rules, and both programs admit only a few dozen students. That leaves plenty of strong options. Research-minded students can look at other institute internships, many of which also favor local students. Students who want to see medicine from inside a hospital can look at supervised hospital programs at home or abroad, and younger students can start with a one-week academy or a school-year activity such as HOSA; our guide to pre-med programs during the school year lists them.
An Abroad Option: Our High School Internship in Kenya and Peru
If you want full days inside hospitals and you live outside the Bay Area, our medical internships for high school students abroad are an alternative. Students ages 15 and older spend two to twelve weeks, most often four, in public and private hospitals in Mombasa and Nairobi, Kenya, and Cusco, Peru. Under supervision and within their training level, interns rotate through general medicine, pediatrics, emergency care, surgery and women’s health, assist with noninvasive tasks and join community health outreach; they do not diagnose, prescribe or perform invasive procedures.
Each program includes daily medical language lessons, a global health seminar series, a mentor, gated housing with 24/7 staff, a certificate of completion and a physician-authored recommendation letter. Applications are accepted year-round for summer and winter sessions; see the program dates. For a picture of the daily schedule, read what to expect from a summer medical internship.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is SMYSP the same as SIMR?
No. SMYSP is a five-week program for first-generation and low-income juniors in Northern California that combines hospital internships, anatomy, public health research and college preparation. SIMR is an eight-week lab research program for juniors and seniors 16 and older. Both are Stanford Medicine programs.
What is the SIMR acceptance rate?
Stanford does not publish one. The official FAQ says the program expects about 50 students, depending on participating labs. Percentages quoted on other websites are estimates, not official figures.
Does Stanford provide housing for SMYSP or SIMR?
No. Both programs require students to live with a parent, relative or legal guardian during the summer. SIMR does not allow hotels or short-term rentals, and out-of-area applicants must name their host on the application.
Can international students apply to SIMR?
No. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents who live in and attend high school in the United States.
Can sophomores apply to SMYSP or SIMR?
No. SMYSP accepts current juniors only, and SIMR accepts students who are juniors or seniors in the fall before the program. Sophomores can prepare by building science coursework and a school-year activity.
