About

StatStart is a free, one-month commuter summer program hosted by the Department of Biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, designed to give high school students an introduction to data science and computing. For 2026, the program runs July 6–30, meeting Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m.–3 p.m., with a required presentation day (Friday, July 31) for students to present their group research projects.

Students take non-college-credit classes in R programming and introductory statistics, aimed at building statistical programming, computational thinking, and problem-solving skills. Coursework is developed and taught by Biostatistics graduate students, with oversight from a Faculty Director who is not named on the program's public page. Students work toward a culminating group research project, which they present to peers, staff, and the department at the end of the program. Direct mentoring from the graduate student instructors, along with support and guidance on college applications and career counseling, are built into the program's structure.

StatStart is free, and the university provides a CharlieCard so students can commute to campus via public transit; lunch is provided daily. Eligibility is aimed at rising juniors and seniors, though freshmen and sophomores may apply with preference given to upperclassmen; the program is explicitly designed for first-generation or low-income students, though open to all interested applicants with a STEM-focused college trajectory. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents, have basic algebra preparation, and submit a completed application, two letters of recommendation, and a high school transcript. For 2026, the application deadline was May 15.

StatStart suits a student — particularly a first-generation or lower-income student — who wants a genuine, tuition-free introduction to statistical programming and data science at a major research university, with direct mentorship from graduate students actively working in the field. It's a lighter time commitment than a full residential research program, and its free cost plus commuting stipend (the CharlieCard) removes financial barriers that put many STEM pre-college programs out of reach; a student looking for individual faculty-led research placement rather than group instruction with graduate mentors would be better served by a more selective, residential lab-placement program instead.