About

The Stanford Summer Training and Research in the Sciences (STaRS) program is a highly selective, tuition-free eight-week summer research internship hosted by the Stanford University Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Designed to promote hands-on biomedical research, the program places students into faculty laboratories to work on projects related to regenerative medicine, tissue engineering, wound healing, and related biomedical sciences. STaRS participants gain an authentic look at medical research environments while contributing directly to ongoing scientific investigations.

STaRS is open to high school students anywhere in the US as long as they are 16+ and can commute to campus for the entire duration of the program. The program is extremely selective—typically 20~ participants are chosen from a large, competitive applicant pool. Unlike most comparable tuition-free research programs, however, STaRS specifically notes that no prior research experience is necessary or expected in its applicants.

During the eight-week program, participants join research teams within Stanford Medicine’s plastic surgery division and affiliated labs. Daily work involves conducting experiments, analyzing data, and attending laboratory meetings. Students receive one-on-one mentorship from Stanford faculty, graduate students, and undergrads, and trainees and are introduced to the broader clinical and translational context of plastic and reconstructive research. In addition to lab work, STaRS interns participate in weekly didactic sessions and skill-building seminars covering topics such as scientific communication, bioethics, and clinical observation.

While STaRS is a commuter program without housing or stipends, its laboratory access and mentorship quality place it unquestionably in the top tier for high-school students eager to gain biomedical experience outside the classroom. Participants gain exposure to advanced scientific methods, clinical translation, and the interdisciplinary nature of modern biomedical reconstructive research.

Although STaRS lacks the public name recognition of some of its peers– partly due to its small size, highly specialized focus, and lack of on-campus housing– it is one of the most respected biomedical research programs available to US high school students. For premed-focused students, there are few opportunities so ideal.