How do I apply for a UC Berkeley research summer internship as a high school student?

UC Berkeley does not have one single, general “high school research internship” application portal. Most opportunities for high school students come through specific summer programs, individual labs, or Berkeley-affiliated outreach programs, and each has its own application process, deadlines, and eligibility rules. The right place to start is Berkeley’s pre-college and department websites, not the general undergraduate research pages.

For structured options, look first at Berkeley Summer Sessions and Berkeley Pre-College Scholars, since those are the most visible official pathways for high school students. Those programs are not always research internships in the lab-assistant sense, but they are the main Berkeley-run summer offerings for high schoolers and sometimes include research-style coursework or academic enrichment. If you specifically want lab research, you usually need to find a program that explicitly says it accepts high school students.

The application process usually includes an online form, transcript, short essays or personal statements, and sometimes a recommendation letter or resume. Some programs also ask about coursework in math, science, or coding, especially if the research area is STEM-related.

If you are trying to work directly with a Berkeley lab, that is usually less formal and more difficult for high school students. In that case, students typically identify professors or labs whose work matches their interests, read the lab website carefully, and send a short, specific email explaining their background, availability, and why that lab is a fit. Many Berkeley labs cannot take minors because of supervision, safety, and university policy, so even strong cold emails may not lead anywhere.

A practical way to search is to use terms like “UC Berkeley high school summer research,” “Berkeley pre-college summer,” and specific departments such as bioengineering, chemistry, EECS, or public health plus “high school summer.” Also check whether a program is residential, commuter, paid, or fee-based, because Berkeley-related summer options vary a lot on cost and format.

What matters most is finding an opportunity that clearly says high school students are eligible, then following that program’s exact instructions rather than trying to apply through a general Berkeley admissions channel. There usually is no application through the UC Berkeley freshman application or a universal research office for this.