Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes: Find Top Courses & Training Locations

At Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes, rising 9th–12th grade students experience focused higher-education study without the demands of earning grades or college credit. Students choose among courses dedicated to topics like AI, Design, Marketing, and Programming.

Stanford University was founded in California in 1885 and is now ranked as one of the top universities in the world. U.S. Presidents John F. Kennedy and Herbert Hoover were graduates of Stanford. Other notable alumni include actress Reese Witherspoon, writers John Steinbeck and bell hooks, and Eileen Collins, the first female commander of a NASA space shuttle.

Stanford is deeply connected to the tech industry. Stanford graduates are the founders or co-founders of Google, YouTube, Netflix, Yahoo!, Electronic Arts, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Snapchat.

The Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes is a summer program that provides academically ambitious high school students the opportunity to study at Stanford in a single intensive summer course. These courses are designed to challenge high school students with advanced content. Students enroll in one of its 30 courses for an intensive summer-long exploration of a single academic subject.

School Locations

Currently, Stanford offers all of its Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes live online. Courses meet for two hours a day for live interaction with instructors and peers. Students must also complete additional work outside of class. The Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes are offered internationally, so students have a chance to learn from other teens from across the globe.

Subjects Taught at Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

Pre-Collegiate Summer Institute courses are offered by various Stanford University academic departments, including Computer Science, Bioscience, Engineering, Mathematics, Creative Writing, Philosophy, Social Justice, and Social Sciences.

For high school students who think they might be interested in studying data science, data analytics, or programming, Stanford Pre-Collegiate offers a summer-long intensive Introduction to Data Science. If you’re interested in exploring more options for studying data science, Noble Desktop’s Classes Near Me tool shows live online data science high school classes.

Age Requirements

Courses are offered for students entering grades 8–11. Younger students can attend via the Stanford Middle School Scholars Program. Students in grades 10–11 can also apply for the Stanford Summer Humanities Institute or the Stanford University Mathematics Camp.

What Classes Are Available?

Stanford’s summer programs for high school students are taught by Stanford faculty from several of their academic departments.

A sample of past course titles includes Fundamentals of Augmented Reality, The Nature of Evil, Number Theory, World Building: Writing Fantasy, Science Fiction, and the Supernatural, Philosophy of AI, Cryptography and Cryptocurrency, and Investigations in Neuroscience.

Students can now enroll in the Stanford Engineering Department's Introduction to Data Science course. This course introduces students to algorithms, model generation, effective data gathering, and ethical data use. Students are provided with real-world datasets from the natural and social sciences. Graduates will be able to investigate datasets, develop coding abilities, and practice the scientific method.

Class Formats

All Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institute courses are offered live online. Students meet with their instructor and classmates for two hours a day. They will also complete assignments on their own time.

Admissions Process

There is currently one round of admissions to the Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes. Students are asked to submit a list of preferred courses on their application; students are allowed to apply to a maximum of three courses. Admission decisions are based on academic merit, and the application process is highly competitive.

As part of the application, students must submit a high school transcript, a work sample, and a recommendation letter. There is an optional video essay in which students are invited to share more about themselves with the admissions committee.

There is a non-refundable $65 application fee.

Pricing & Payment Options

Tuition for Stanford’s Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes is $2,700. Some courses may incur additional costs such as materials and textbooks.

Financial aid is open to all applicants and does not impact admissions decisions. Students who need financial assistance are asked to apply for financial aid at the same time as admission.

Benefits of Attending Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

Stanford University Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes offer students the academic rigor of a world-class Stanford education. Students delve deep into their chosen topic with a summer-long intensive study program. All courses are live online and offered internationally. Each summer, over 50 countries are represented, allowing students to learn from peers around the world.

What Do Students & Parents Say?

Reviews for Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes online are overwhelmingly positive. Most criticism is about the pricing and the incredibly low admissions rates. Stanford Pre-Collegiate currently accepts less than 10% of applicants: “I attended the Artificial Intelligence course at this year’s Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institute, and the admission process was very selective (especially for the AI course). The acceptance rate is less than 10% and the people who come to the program are incredibly smart and passionate. But don't let the numbers stop you from applying to SPCS, because these were one of the most beautiful summers of my life.”

However, some graduates argue that competitive admissions improves the quality of your classmates: “The pedigree of the student was incredibly strong…” And, “Most were international students and the vast majority have gone to very highly rated schools (Stanford, Cornell, Carnegie, Berkeley, Tufts, Princeton)… every student was of the highest caliber.” Another writes, “My favorite part of the program was meeting students from all around the world in my class. I have made friendships with my fellow comrades that will for sure be long-lasting.”

One student writes about how attending improved their confidence: “Being at Stanford has changed my life because it made me realize that no matter what my background is, I can make it, and that I can become what I want to be. I can make it to Stanford someday or some other school and do something amazing regardless of where I come from. And that's really changed me and inspired me.”

Another student enjoyed the challenge of more rigorous academics: “I think that the experience of being fully challenged, not underestimated, and actually pushed to do my best, surrounded by other passionate students like me, was incomparable. It reminded me of why I love learning so much!”

Key Takeaways

Stanford University offers its world-class education to ambitious high school students.
Students are admitted to one course per summer, which is a deep dive into the topic.
Admission is highly competitive.
Students are high caliber and provide a great network.

Top Courses at Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

Find the perfect course for you at Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes. We’ve selected 2 of Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes’s most popular courses. View the course catalog at summerinstitutes.spcs.stanford.edu

Introduction to Data Science
In this course, students in grades 9-11 discover the field of data science. As they learn the R programming language, students work with algorithms and real-world datasets and build machine learning models.
Locations:
- Live Online
- $2,700
- 2 Weeks
- Weekdays or Evenings
- See provider
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Product Design
This course introduces high school students to design from an engineering perspective. Students learn the principles of product design as they begin to build their own design portfolios.
Locations:
- Live Online
- $2,700
- 2 Weeks
- Evenings
- See provider
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Showing 2 of 2 courses

Subjects Taught at Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

Machine Learning

Machine learning is a subset of artificial intelligence and involves creating programs that learn from data and optimize. Machine learning is prevalent in our everyday lives, from the recommendation engines for music and TV to the search engines and the voice assistants. Machine learning models leverage vast amounts of past data to learn to solve problems on their own and predict future outcomes. With the power and prevalence of machine learning, it is a highly in-demand set of skills, and the field of machine learning continues to grow.

In-Person Machine Learning Classes Live Online Machine Learning Classes

Data Science

Data science is one of the fastest-growing career fields, with competitive salaries and nearly endless opportunities for specialization. Data science uses machine learning algorithms, statistics and other analytic tools to understand data.

In-Person Data Science Classes Live Online Data Science Classes Data Science Bootcamps

Graphic Design

Graphic design is visual communication through artwork or combining images and text. Graphic designers create logos, ads, social media graphics, magazines, books, websites, apps, and more.

In-Person Graphic Design Classes Live Online Graphic Design Classes Graphic Design Bootcamps

Featured Classes from Noble Desktop

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Featured Classes from Noble Desktop

Top Certificate Programs

Featured Classes from Noble Desktop

Top Certificate Programs

Top Courses

Featured Classes from Noble Desktop

Top Certificate Programs

Top Courses

Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

School Locations

Subjects Taught at Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

Age Requirements

What Classes Are Available?

Class Formats

Admissions Process

Pricing & Payment Options

Benefits of Attending Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

What Do Students & Parents Say?

Key Takeaways

Top Courses at Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

Introduction to Data Science

Product Design

Subjects Taught at Stanford Pre-Collegiate Summer Institutes

Machine Learning

Data Science

Graphic Design