miRcore Research Camps for High School Students

The Sequencing Your Genome camp is also open to college students.

Having successfully run online summer camps during the pandemic, miRcore will hold Summer 2026 camps to pursue the best of both virtual and in-person camps. Our online format will allow nationwide reach and participation. Our in-person camps will provide students opportunities to perform experiments and build friendships with other regional students.

Our camps are available for academically motivated high school students (including incoming freshmen). We emphasize discussion in small groups of five or six campers, each group supported by its own teaching assistant throughout the camp. A unique feature of our camps is that students will be eligible to continue their learning experience with the miRcore Volunteer Program, which meets throughout the school year online and in person (optional). MVP students continue learning about computational biology research, programming, teamwork, community outreach, and leadership (including founding/leading GIDAS club).

Marianne C.

I showed up with low expectations and left in love. After the camp, I decided to start a GIDAS club at my high school and begin volunteering with miRcore. Now, I am lucky enough to spend every Saturday afternoon with other motivated high school students. I am constantly learning about and doing science. My experiences with miRcore have completely revolutionized how I see science and how I see my ability to participate in science. I now take higher level science classes at school, plan to pursue scientific research in college, and constantly barrage my friends and family with whatever science facts I’m excited with at the moment. But most of all, I am experiencing and participating in the future of science and medicine and having a great time doing it.

Marianne profile

● 3-year MVP member, then president
● Supported miRcore programs as a Stanford undergraduate
● Supporting miRcore programs while currently a UC Berkeley PhD candidate

Karthik R.

Audrey G.

Advanced Computational Biology (ACB) Camp

Date: June 22 – June 26, 2026

Location: University of Michigan or Virtual

We recommend taking a CB camp beforehand if possible.

The Advanced Computational Biology Camp (previously known as the R Programming Camp) provides essential tools and datasets with which students can develop their own research projects. Students will learn TCGA big data analysis using microRNA sequencing data of cancer patients for RNA biomarker analysis, tumor prediction using machine learning tools, and graph generation.

Sequencing Your Genome Camps

Total 3 weeks

Module 1: CB in-person preferred (Any camp okay)

Module 2: BTS (Date: July 13 – July 17, 2026)

Module 3: Analyzing your genome data (Date: August 3 – August 7, 2026 at Scripps Research Translational Institute or Virtual)

After their genome has been sequenced, students will be given access to a Linux cluster to do computational self-data analysis for one year (for non-medical research purposes only). Each student will be the sole custodian of their genomic data. Age: 16+ on the first day of Module 3 session. Both parental and student consent is needed. College students are also welcome.