The Neurology High School Scholars Program is resuming in 2025!

About the program

The Neurology High School Scholars Program is back in 2025! This program offers the opportunity for high school students to complete a five-week paid internship ($1,000 stipend) working closely with a neurologist or neuroscientist on a basic science or clinical research project, shadowing physicians, and attending a weekly educational session. Work hours will be determined between the student and mentor based on project needs. Students will prepare a poster presentation outlining their project results and present the poster at a conference at the end of the 5-week session. 

The program will run from Monday, July 14, 2025 to Friday, Aug 15, 2025 with a poster presentation showcasing the work set for Thurs, Aug 21, 2025. You must be available for these dates to participate in the program. 

Application details

The application period will open on February 7, 2025 and will close on March 7, 2025. THERE WILL BE NO EXTENSIONS. The application involves writing 2 short essays (500 words) and obtaining two letters of recommendation from teachers/mentors. Top candidates for the program will be invited for an in-person interview before final selection.

Anyone applying must be a current high school sophomore, junior, or senior and must be 16 years of age by the start of the program. Applicants are not required to live in Philadelphia, however, they must have the means to travel to and from CHOP up to 5 days per week. Unfortunately, CHOP cannot provide costs to cover travel to the program. Selected students will be required to pass non-traditional personnel clearances (including, but not limited to: immunizations, FBI fingerprinting, child abuse clearances, and other background checks). There may be research and other training requirements, depending on the student project. Eligible students will be required to attend the program at CHOP's Main Campus during scheduled work hours. 

Applications can be submitted here starting on Friday, February 7, 2025.

If you have any questions about the program, please feel free to contact the Administrative Director for Neuroscience Research, Samantha Ferrante, at ferrante@chop.edu.

Past high school scholars projects

1. Owen Oliver, Alexandra J Borst, MD, Allison Britt MS LCGC, Elizabeth Goldmuntz MD, Shih-Shan Lang Chen MD, Stephanie Fuller MD, Arastoo Vossough MD PhD, Lauren Beslow MD MSCE: “Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia-like Phenotypes of Children with GDF2 Mutation.”
2. Sarmarth Mannikeri, Shiva Ganesan, Ingo Helbig: “Decoding the Exome: Unveiling Genetic Insights through Computational Analysis.”
3. Venkat Devabhakthuni, Brenda Banwell, Phil Kaplan, Eleonora Grasso: “Quantitative Assessment of Choroid Plexus Volume in Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Patients.”
4. Aarohi Deshpande: “Telemedicine is a Preferred Patient Care Modality for Spanish-Only Speaking Families Seen in the Pediatric Neurology Outpatient Clinic.”
5. Zoe Heifetz, John Brandsema, MD: “Efgartigimod Alfa-Fcab (Vyvgart™) and General Myasthenia Gravis.”
6. Prima Rao, David R. Lynch MD, PhD: “Friedreich’s Ataxia Progression Between Siblings.”
7. Emiola Enakhimion, Ashley Bach MD, Sonika Agarwal MD: “Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum: Outcomes, Associated Malformations & Trends in Diagnosis Over Time.”