research paper topics for high school juniors

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100 Research Topics for High School Students

By Eric Eng

High school is such an exciting time for stretching your intellectual muscles. One awesome way to do that is through research projects. But picking the right topic can make all the difference. It should be something you’re passionate about and also practical to tackle. So, we’ve put together a list of engaging research topics for high school students across ten different subjects: physics, math, chemistry, biology, engineering, literature, psychology, political science, economics, and history. Each topic is crafted to spark your curiosity and help you grow those research skills.

Physics Research Topics

Research topics for high school students in physics are an exciting way to enhance your understanding of the universe.

1. Gravitational Waves and Space-Time

How do gravitational waves distort space-time, and what can these distortions tell us about the origins of the universe?

2. Quantum Entanglement Applications

What are the potential technological applications of quantum entanglement, and how can it be harnessed for secure communication?

3. Dark Matter and Galaxy Formation

How does dark matter affect the formation and behavior of galaxies, and what evidence supports its existence?

4. Physics of Renewable Energy

What are the fundamental physical principles behind renewable energy sources, and how do they compare in terms of efficiency?

5. Superconductors in Technology

How are superconductors utilized in modern technology, and what advantages do they offer over traditional materials?

6. Particle Physics at the Large Hadron Collider

What significant discoveries have been made at the Large Hadron Collider, and how do they advance our understanding of particle physics?

7. Microgravity Effects on Organisms

How does microgravity affect the physiological and biological functions of organisms during space travel?

8. Thermodynamics and Engine Efficiency

How do the principles of thermodynamics improve the efficiency and performance of internal combustion engines?

9. Electromagnetism in Wireless Communication

How do principles of electromagnetism enable the functioning of wireless communication systems?

10. Cosmic Radiation and Human Space Travel

What are the effects of cosmic radiation on astronauts, and what measures can be taken to protect them during long-term space missions?

These research topics for high school students are designed to deepen your knowledge and prepare you for advanced studies and innovations in the field of physics.

Math Research Topics

Math research topics for high school students are a fantastic way to explore real-world problems through the lens of mathematical principles .

11. Graph Theory and Social Networks

How can graph theory be applied to identify influential nodes and optimize information flow in social networks?

12. Cryptography and Data Security

What cryptographic techniques are most effective in securing online communications and protecting sensitive data?

13. Mathematical Models in Disease Spread

How do SIR models predict the spread of infectious diseases, and what factors affect their accuracy?

14. Game Theory and Economic Decisions

How does game theory explain the strategic behavior of firms in competitive markets?

15. Calculus in Engineering Design

How is calculus used to optimize the structural integrity and efficiency of engineering designs?

16. Linear Algebra in Computer Graphics

How do matrices and vectors facilitate the creation and manipulation of digital images in computer graphics?

17. Statistical Methods in Public Health

What statistical methods are most effective in analyzing public health data to track disease outbreaks?

18. Differential Equations and Population Dynamics

How do differential equations model the population dynamics of endangered species in varying environments?

19. Probability Theory in Risk Management

How is probability theory applied to assess and mitigate financial risks in investment portfolios?

20. Mathematical Modeling in Climate Change Predictions

How do mathematical models simulate climate change scenarios, and what variables are most critical to their predictions?

These research topics for high school students are designed to spark your curiosity and help you build critical thinking skills and practical knowledge.

Chemistry Research Topics

Chemistry research topics for high school students open up a world of molecular wonders and practical applications.

21. Photosynthesis Chemical Processes

How do the chemical reactions involved in photosynthesis convert light energy into chemical energy in plants?

22. Catalysts and Reaction Rates

How do different catalysts influence the rate of chemical reactions, and what factors affect their efficiency?

23. Environmental Pollutants and Atmospheric Chemistry

How do specific environmental pollutants alter chemical reactions in the atmosphere, and what are the consequences for air quality?

24. Green Chemistry Principles

How can green chemistry practices be applied to reduce chemical waste and promote sustainable industrial processes?

25. Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery

How does nanotechnology improve the targeted delivery and effectiveness of drugs within the human body?

26. Plastic Composition and Environmental Impact

How does the chemical composition of various plastics affect their environmental impact and degradation process?

27. Enzymes in Biochemical Reactions

How do enzymes catalyze biochemical reactions, and what factors influence their activity and specificity?

28. Electrochemistry in Battery Technology

How are electrochemical principles applied to improve the performance and sustainability of modern batteries?

29. Chemical Fertilizers and Soil Health

How do chemical fertilizers impact soil health and agricultural productivity, and what alternatives exist to minimize negative effects?

30. Spectroscopy in Compound Identification

How is spectroscopy used to identify and analyze the composition of chemical compounds in various fields?

These research topics for high school students are designed to enhance your understanding of chemical principles and their real-world applications.

Biology Research Topics

Research topics for high school students in biology open up a fascinating window into the complexities of the living world.

31. Genetic Basis of Inherited Diseases

How do specific genetic mutations cause inherited diseases, and what are the mechanisms behind their transmission?

32. Climate Change and Biodiversity

How does climate change affect biodiversity in different ecosystems, and what species are most at risk?

33. Microbiomes and Human Health

How do microbiomes influence human health, and what roles do they play in disease prevention and treatment?

34. Habitat Destruction and Wildlife

How does habitat destruction impact wildlife populations and their behaviors, and what are the long-term ecological consequences?

35. Genetic Engineering in Agriculture

How can genetic engineering techniques improve crop yields and resistance to pests and diseases?

36. Pollution and Aquatic Ecosystems

How do various pollutants affect aquatic ecosystems, and what are the implications for water quality and marine life?

37. Stem Cells in Regenerative Medicine

How are stem cells used in regenerative medicine to repair and replace damaged tissues and organs?

38. Evolutionary Biology and Species Adaptation

How do evolutionary principles explain the adaptation of species to changing environmental conditions?

39. Diet and Human Health

How do different dietary choices impact human health, and what are the underlying mechanisms?

40. Bioinformatics in Genetic Research

How is bioinformatics used to analyze genetic data, and what insights can it provide into genetic disorders and evolution?

These research topics for high school students are designed to deepen your understanding of life sciences and prepare you for advanced studies and research in the field.

Engineering Research Topics

Engineering research topics give high school students practical insights into designing and creating innovative solutions.

41. 3D Printing in Manufacturing

How does 3D printing technology revolutionize manufacturing processes, and what are its key advantages over traditional methods?

42. Robotics in Modern Industry

How do robotics improve efficiency and productivity in modern industries, and what are some specific applications?

43. Sustainable Building Design

What principles of sustainable building design can be applied to reduce environmental impact and enhance energy efficiency?

44. Artificial Intelligence in Engineering

How is artificial intelligence integrated into engineering solutions to optimize processes and solve complex problems?

45. Renewable Energy Technologies

How do renewable energy technologies, such as solar and wind power, contribute to reducing carbon footprints?

46. Aerodynamics in Vehicle Design

How do aerodynamic principles enhance the performance and fuel efficiency of vehicles?

47. Material Science in Engineering Innovations

How do advancements in material science lead to innovative engineering solutions and improved product performance?

48. Civil Engineering in Urban Development

How does civil engineering contribute to urban development and infrastructure planning in growing cities?

49. Electrical Engineering in Modern Electronics

How are electrical engineering principles applied in the design and development of modern electronic devices?

50. Biomedical Engineering and Medical Devices

How does biomedical engineering contribute to the development of innovative medical devices and healthcare solutions?

These research topics for high school students are designed to broaden your understanding of engineering principles and their real-world applications, preparing you for future innovations and problem-solving in the field.

Literature Research Topics

Literature research topics give high school students the chance to delve into the rich and varied world of written works and their broader implications.

51. Identity in Contemporary Young Adult Fiction

How do contemporary young adult fiction novels explore themes of identity and self-discovery among teenagers?

52. Historical Events and Literary Movements

How have significant historical events influenced and shaped various literary movements, such as Romanticism or Modernism?

53. Symbolism in Classic Literature

How do authors use symbolism in classic literature to convey deeper meanings and themes?

54. Narrative Structure in Modern Storytelling

How do modern authors utilize narrative structures to enhance the storytelling experience and engage readers?

55. Literary Devices in Poetry

How do poets employ literary devices like metaphor, simile, and alliteration to enrich the meaning and emotional impact of their work?

56. Dystopian Themes in Science Fiction

How do science fiction authors use dystopian themes to comment on contemporary social and political issues?

57. Cultural Diversity and Literary Expression

How does cultural diversity influence literary expression and contribute to the richness of global literature?

58. Feminist Theory in Literary Analysis

How is feminist theory applied to analyze and interpret the representation of women and gender roles in literature?

59. Postcolonial Literature Principles

How does postcolonial literature address themes of colonization, identity, and resistance, and what are its key characteristics?

60. Intertextuality in Modern Novels

How do modern novelists use intertextuality to create layers of meaning and connect their works with other literary texts?

These research topics for high school students are designed to deepen your understanding of literary techniques and themes. They prepare you for advanced literary analysis and appreciation.

Psychology Research Topics

Psychology research topics offer high school students a fascinating journey into the complexities of human behavior and mental processes.

61. Social Media and Adolescent Mental Health

How does social media usage affect the mental health and well-being of adolescents, particularly in terms of anxiety and depression?

62. Stress and Cognitive Function

How does chronic stress impact cognitive functions such as memory, attention, and decision-making?

63. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Anxiety Disorders

How effective is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in treating various anxiety disorders, and what mechanisms underlie its success?

64. Early Childhood Experiences and Personality Development

How do early childhood experiences shape personality traits and influence long-term behavioral patterns?

65. Sleep and Memory Retention

How does the quality and quantity of sleep affect the retention and recall of memories?

66. Neuroplasticity in Brain Recovery

How does neuroplasticity facilitate brain recovery and adaptation following injury or neurological illness?

67. Mindfulness Practices and Emotional Regulation

How do mindfulness practices help individuals regulate their emotions and reduce symptoms of stress and anxiety?

68. Genetic Factors in Mental Health Disorders

How do genetic predispositions contribute to the development of mental health disorders, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder?

69. Group Dynamics and Decision-Making

How do group dynamics influence individual decision-making processes and outcomes in collaborative settings?

70. Psychological Assessments in Educational Settings

How are psychological assessments used to support student learning and development in educational environments?

These research topics for high school students are designed to enhance your understanding of mental processes and behavior. They prepare you for advanced studies and practical applications in the field.

Political Science Research Topics

Political science research topics offer high school students an exciting opportunity to dive into the complexities of political systems and their impact on society.

71. Social Media and Political Campaigns

How does social media influence the strategies and outcomes of political campaigns, particularly in terms of voter engagement and misinformation?

72. International Organizations and Global Governance

How do international organizations, such as the United Nations, contribute to global governance and conflict resolution?

73. Political Corruption and Economic Development

How does political corruption affect economic development and stability in different countries?

74. Democracy in Political Systems

How do the principles of democracy vary across different political systems, and what impact do these differences have on governance?

75. Public Opinion and Policy-Making

How does public opinion shape government policy-making processes and legislative decisions?

76. Political Ideology and Government Policies

How do different political ideologies influence the formulation and implementation of government policies?

77. Electoral Systems and Political Representation

How do various electoral systems impact political representation and voter behavior?

78. Political Communication in Media

How do media and communication strategies shape public perception of political issues and candidates?

79. Globalization and National Sovereignty

How does globalization affect national sovereignty and the ability of states to maintain independent policies?

80. Political Theory and Social Movements

How can political theory be used to understand the origins, development, and impact of social movements?

These research topics for high school students are designed to enhance your understanding of political processes and theories. They prepare you for advanced studies and informed civic participation.

Economics Research Topics

Economics research topics give high school students valuable insights into how economic systems and policies shape our world.

81. Minimum Wage Laws and Employment Rates

How do changes in minimum wage laws impact employment rates across different sectors and demographics?

82. Fiscal Policy in Economic Recessions

How do government fiscal policies, such as stimulus packages, help manage and mitigate the effects of economic recessions?

83. Globalization and Local Economies

How does globalization influence local economies, particularly in terms of job creation and market competition?

84. Behavioral Economics and Consumer Decisions

How do psychological factors and cognitive biases affect consumer decision-making and market trends?

85. Trade Policies and International Relations

How do specific trade policies impact international relations and global trade dynamics?

86. Technology in Economic Growth

How do technological advancements drive economic growth and productivity in various industries?

87. Taxation and Income Distribution

How do different taxation policies affect income distribution and economic inequality within a society?

88. Economic Modeling and Market Predictions

How are economic models used to predict market trends, and what are the limitations of these models?

89. Inflation and Purchasing Power

How does inflation impact purchasing power and the cost of living for consumers?

90. Econometrics in Economic Data Analysis

How is econometrics used to analyze and interpret complex economic data, and what insights can it provide?

These research topics for high school students are designed to deepen your understanding of economic principles and their real-world applications, preparing you for further studies and informed decision-making in the field.

History Research Topics

History research topics for high school students offer a deep dive into the past. They help you understand how it shapes our present and future.

91. Industrial Revolution: Causes and Consequences

What were the key factors that led to the Industrial Revolution, and how did it impact society and the economy?

92. Colonialism and Indigenous Populations

How did colonial rule affect the cultural, social, and economic lives of indigenous populations?

93. Women in Historical Social Movements

What roles did women play in various social movements throughout history, and what were their contributions?

94. Historical Revisionism in Modern Historiography

What are the principles and controversies surrounding historical revisionism in contemporary historiography?

95. Technological Advancements and Historical Events

How have technological innovations influenced significant historical events and driven societal changes?

96. Major Wars: Causes and Effects

What were the primary causes, key events, and consequences of major wars in history?

97. Religion in Shaping Historical Narratives

How has religion influenced the crafting and interpretation of historical narratives across different cultures?

98. Historiography and Documenting Events

What methods and principles are used in historiography to accurately record and analyze historical events?

99. Economic Changes and Historical Societies

How have economic shifts impacted social structures and historical developments in various societies?

100. Primary Sources in Historical Research

Why are primary sources important in historical research, and how are they used to ensure accuracy and depth in historical analysis?

These research topics for high school students are designed to deepen your understanding of past events and their significance, preparing you for advanced studies and critical historical inquiry.

How do I pick the right high school research topic?

Choosing the right research topic involves considering your interests, the availability of resources, and the relevance of the topic to current issues. Start by identifying subjects you are passionate about. Then, look for specific questions within those subjects that spark your curiosity. It’s also important to consider the feasibility of the research, including access to necessary materials and data.

What high school research topics are in demand today?

High-demand research topics for high school students today often align with current global challenges and advancements. In science and technology, areas such as renewable energy, artificial intelligence , and genetic engineering are popular. In social sciences, topics like the impact of social media, political polarization, and mental health are highly relevant. Keeping up with current events and scientific journals can help you identify trending topics.

What resources should I use for my high school research?

Effective research requires a mix of resources. Start with your school library and online databases like JSTOR or Google Scholar for academic papers. Utilize books, reputable websites, and expert interviews to gather diverse perspectives. Don’t overlook primary sources, such as historical documents or scientific data, which provide firsthand information. Additionally, consider using software tools for data analysis and project management.

How can I publish or present my high school research?

Publishing and presenting your research can enhance its impact and your academic profile. Consider submitting your work to high school research journals , science fairs , and local or national competitions. You can also present at school or community events, or create a blog or website to share your findings. Networking with teachers and professors can provide guidance and additional opportunities for publication and presentation.

How does high school research enhance my college applications?

High school research demonstrates your ability to undertake independent projects, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. Colleges value these attributes as they indicate readiness for college-level work. Including research experience in your application can set you apart from other applicants. It shows your commitment to learning and your ability to contribute to academic and extracurricular activities at the college level.

Want to assess your chances of admission? Take our FREE chances calculator today!

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Research Paper

129 Most Insightful Research Topics For High School

Discover engaging research topics for high school. Spark curiosity with diverse subjects. Find the perfect topic for your academic exploration!

Feb 13, 2024

High school can be an exciting time for students, as they embark on a journey of self-discovery and academic exploration. One aspect of this journey is the infamous research paper. While it may seem daunting at first, choosing the right research topic can make all the difference.  In this blog, we will delve into the realm of Research Topics For High School, providing you with a curated list of engaging and thought-provoking subjects that will surely captivate your interest. From the wonders of astrophysics to the mysteries of ancient civilizations, we will explore a wide range of topics that will not only impress your teachers but also fuel your curiosity. So, let's dive into the world of research and uncover the secrets of Research Paper Structure together!

Table of Contents

What makes a great research topic, otio: the ultimate ai research and writing partner for efficient workflows, benefits of engaging in research projects during high school, challenges you may encounter during the research process & how to overcome them, how to effectively manage your time while conducting research, supercharge your researching ability with otio — try otio for free today.

A great research essay topic possesses certain characteristics that make it engaging, relevant, and impactful. Here are the key characteristics that make a research essay topic great:

1. Relevance

A great research essay topic is one that is relevant to the subject or field of study. It should address a current issue or explore a significant concept or idea within the chosen discipline.

2. Originality

A great research essay topic should be original and unique. It should offer a fresh perspective or approach to the subject matter, avoiding overused or clichéd themes .

3. Depth and Complexity

A great research essay topic delves into the complexity of a subject, allowing for an in-depth analysis and exploration. It should provide ample opportunities for critical thinking and analysis.

4. Feasibility

A great research essay topic is one that is feasible to research and write about within the given time and resource constraints. It should have accessible sources and available data for investigation.

5. Controversy or Debate

A great research essay topic sparks controversy or debate within the field of study. It addresses a topic that has multiple viewpoints or conflicting perspectives, allowing for a comprehensive analysis of different arguments.

6. Interest and Engagement

A great research essay topic captivates the interest of the reader and the researcher. It should evoke curiosity and enthusiasm, motivating the researcher to explore the topic in depth and engage the reader throughout the essay. By incorporating these characteristics into the selection of a research essay topic, students can ensure that their writing is impactful, meaningful, and contributes to the body of knowledge in their chosen field of study.

Otio: Revolutionizing Research Workflows with AI-Native Workspace and Content Management

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124. The Role of Youth Leadership in Social Change

125. The Effects of Technology on Youth Loneliness and Isolation

126. The History and Influence of Ancient Mesopotamian Civilization

127. The Implications of Artificial Intelligence on Privacy Rights

128. The Causes and Consequences of Teenage Gambling Addiction

129. The Role of Mind-Body Practices in Promoting Well-being.

AI research and writing partner: Knowledge workers, researchers and students today suffer from content overload and are left to deal with it using fragmented, complex and manual tooling. Too many of them settle for stitching together complicated bookmarking, read-it-later and note-taking apps to get through their workflows.  Now that anyone can create content with the click of a button - this problem is only going to get worse. Otio solves this problem by providing one AI-native workspace for researchers. It helps them: 

with detailed AI-generated notes and source-grounded Q&A chat. 

Draft outputs using the sources you’ve collected. Otio helps you to go from reading list to first draft faster. Along with this, Otio also helps you write research papers/essays faster. Here are our top features that are loved by researchers: AI-generated notes on all bookmarks (Youtube videos, PDFs, articles, etc.), Otio enables you to chat with individual links or entire knowledge bases, just like you chat with ChatGPT, as well as AI assisted writing.  Let Otio be your AI research and writing partner — try Otio for free today!

Engaging in research projects during high school can have numerous benefits for future academic and professional development. Research allows students to develop critical thinking skills , enhance their understanding of various subjects, and gain valuable experience in conducting in-depth investigations. We will discuss the specific benefits of engaging in research projects during high school and how they contribute to students' future success.

1. Development of Critical Thinking Skills

Research projects require students to analyze information, evaluate evidence, and draw conclusions based on their findings. This process enhances critical thinking skills, enabling students to become more discerning and analytical in their approach to problem-solving. By learning to ask meaningful questions and think critically, students develop a valuable skill set that can be applied to any academic or professional field.

2. Enhanced Understanding of Subject Matter

Engaging in research projects allows high school students to delve deeper into a particular subject and gain a comprehensive understanding of it. By conducting extensive research, students can explore different perspectives, theories, and methodologies related to their chosen topic. This deep understanding provides a solid foundation for future academic pursuits and helps students develop a broader knowledge base.

3. Acquisition of Research Skills

Research projects provide an opportunity for high school students to acquire essential research skills. These skills include conducting literature reviews, formulating research questions, designing methodologies, collecting and analyzing data, and presenting findings. By engaging in research projects, students become familiar with research processes, methodologies, and ethical considerations, which are valuable skills for future academic and professional endeavors.

4. Exposure to the Scientific Method

Research projects often follow the scientific method, which involves formulating hypotheses, designing experiments, collecting data, and drawing conclusions. By engaging in research projects during high school, students become familiar with this structured approach to problem-solving. This exposure to the scientific method cultivates a systematic and evidence-based approach to decision-making, which is applicable to various academic and professional settings.

5. Development of Presentation and Communication Skills

Engaging in research projects often entails presenting findings to peers, teachers, or at academic conferences. This experience provides high school students with an opportunity to develop their presentation and communication skills. By effectively conveying their research findings, students learn to articulate complex ideas, organize information, and engage with their audience. These skills are valuable for future academic presentations, job interviews, and professional collaborations.

6. Exploration of Personal Interests and Passions

Research projects allow high school students to explore their personal interests and passions in depth. By choosing a research topic that aligns with their interests, students can further develop their knowledge and expertise in a specific area. This exploration not only enriches their academic experience but also helps them discover potential career paths and pursue further studies in a field they are passionate about.

7. Preparation for Higher Education

Engaging in research projects during high school provides valuable preparation for higher education. Research experience enhances college applications and demonstrates a student's commitment to academic excellence. The skills acquired through research projects, such as critical thinking, research methodologies, and effective communication, are highly sought after in college and can contribute to success in higher education. Engaging in research projects during high school offers numerous benefits for future academic and professional development. From the development of critical thinking skills to the acquisition of research methodologies and presentation skills, research projects provide a valuable learning experience. By engaging in research, high school students gain a deeper understanding of subjects, explore personal interests, and prepare themselves for future academic pursuits.

1. Finding a Suitable Research Topic

Choosing a research topic can be a daunting task for high school students. They may struggle to find a topic that aligns with their interests, is relevant to their academic goals, and has enough available resources for in-depth research.  To overcome this obstacle, students can start by brainstorming their interests, exploring current events, and consulting with their teachers or mentors for guidance. They can also use online resources like topic generators or databases to discover potential research ideas.

2. Limited Access to Resources

High school students often face limitations in accessing reliable and comprehensive resources for their research. School libraries may have limited collections, and online access to scholarly articles and databases may require subscriptions or fees.  To overcome this challenge, students can utilize their school libraries, request interlibrary loans for specific resources, or explore open-access databases and websites. They can also reach out to local universities or community organizations that may offer resources for student research.

3. Developing Effective Research Skills

Many high school students lack the necessary research skills to conduct thorough and efficient investigations. They may struggle with evaluating sources for credibility , organizing information, and synthesizing findings.  To address this obstacle, students can participate in research workshops, seek guidance from their teachers or librarians, and practice using research tools and databases. They can also learn about citation formats and ethical considerations to ensure their research is academically honest.

4. Time Management and Procrastination

Time management is a common challenge for high school students, and it can significantly impact the research process. Students may procrastinate, leaving them with limited time to gather information, analyze data, and write their findings.  To overcome this obstacle, students should create a research plan with specific deadlines for each phase of the project. Breaking the research process into manageable tasks and utilizing time management techniques, such as the Pomodoro Technique, can help students stay organized and focused.

5. Dealing with Information Overload

In the digital age, high school students can easily become overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information available for research. They may struggle to filter relevant content, leading to information overload and confusion. To tackle this challenge, students can develop effective search strategies using keywords and advanced search operators. They should also learn to critically evaluate sources, prioritize information based on relevance and reliability, and take concise notes to avoid information overload.

6. Writing and Citations

Writing a research paper or essay can be intimidating, especially for high school students who may have limited experience in academic writing. They may struggle with structuring their work, incorporating citations, and maintaining a coherent argument.  To overcome this obstacle, students can utilize writing resources and guides provided by their schools or online platforms. They should also practice paraphrasing and citing sources correctly, ensuring that they adhere to the required citation style (e.g., MLA or APA). High school students may encounter various challenges and obstacles during their research process, ranging from topic selection to time management and information overload. By utilizing available resources, seeking guidance, and developing essential research skills, students can overcome these challenges and enhance the quality of their research projects.

Otio: Revolutionizing Research and Writing with AI-Powered Workspaces

AI research and writing partner: Knowledge workers, researchers, and students today suffer from content overload and are left to deal with it using fragmented, complex, and manual tooling. Too many of them settle for stitching together complicated bookmarking, read-it-later, and note-taking apps to get through their workflows.  Now that anyone can create content with the click of a button - this problem is only going to get worse. Otio solves this problem by providing one AI-native workspace for researchers. It helps them: 

Draft outputs using the sources you’ve collected. Otio helps you to go from reading list to first draft faster. Along with this, Otio also helps you write research papers/essays faster.  Here are our top features that are loved by researchers: AI-generated notes on all bookmarks (YouTube videos, PDFs, articles, etc.), Otio enables you to chat with individual links or entire knowledge bases, just like you chat with ChatGPT, as well as AI-assisted writing.  Let Otio be your AI research and writing partner — try Otio for free today!

Effective time management is crucial for high school students conducting research. With the demands of classes, extracurricular activities, and social lives, it can be challenging to find the time and focus needed for thorough research. By implementing strategies and tools, students can optimize their time and ensure successful research outcomes.

1. Set Clear Goals and Prioritize Tasks

By setting clear research goals and breaking them down into smaller tasks, high school students can stay organized and focused. Start by outlining the research objectives, identifying the main research questions, and creating a timeline. Prioritize tasks based on deadlines and the importance of each component.

2. Create a Schedule

A well-structured schedule is essential for effective time management. Allocate specific time slots for research, ensuring that it is a regular and consistent part of your routine. Consider your personal energy levels and concentration peaks when scheduling your research sessions. Maintaining a balance between research and other responsibilities will help prevent burnout and promote overall well-being.

3. Utilize Technology and Research Tools

Technology can be a powerful ally when it comes to managing time effectively. There are numerous digital tools available that can streamline the research process. For example, using an AI research and writing partner like Otio can help students collect and organize information from various sources, generate AI-generated notes, and facilitate efficient writing. Otio's features, such as chat-based Q&A and AI-assisted writing, can significantly enhance the research workflow.

4. Stay Organized

Maintaining an organized workspace is essential for efficient research. Keep track of your sources, notes, and references using tools like citation management software. Create a system for organizing digital files and documents, ensuring easy access and retrieval. This will save valuable time when it comes to compiling research findings and writing papers.

5. Avoid Procrastination

Procrastination is the arch-nemesis of effective time management. High school students must develop strategies to overcome this tendency and stay on track with their research. Break down tasks into smaller, manageable steps, use tools like time-tracking apps to monitor progress, and hold yourself accountable by setting deadlines and rewarding progress.

6. Seek Help and Collaboration

Don't be afraid to seek help and collaborate with others during the research process. Discuss your ideas with classmates, teachers, or mentors who can provide guidance and support. Collaboration can help generate fresh insights, provide different perspectives, and lighten the workload. Effective time management is crucial for high school students conducting research. By setting clear goals, creating schedules, utilizing technology and research tools, staying organized, avoiding procrastination, and seeking help when needed, students can optimize their time and achieve successful research outcomes.

Otio: Simplifying Research Workflows with an AI-Powered Workspace

Draft outputs using the sources you’ve collected. Otio helps you go from a reading list to the first draft faster. Along with this, Otio also helps you write research papers/essays faster.  Here are our top features that are loved by researchers: AI-generated notes on all bookmarks (Youtube videos, PDFs, articles, etc.), Otio enables you to chat with individual links or entire knowledge bases, just like you chat with ChatGPT, as well as AI-assisted writing. Let Otio be your AI research and writing partner — try Otio for free today!

• Research Paper Outline Template • Research Paper Introduction Example • Research Paper Conclusion Example • How Long Should A Research Paper Be • How To Quickly Write A Research Paper • Tips For Writing Research Papers • 7 Steps In Writing A Research Paper

In the world of research, staying organized and maintaining clarity amidst the sea of information is paramount. Otio offers a solution to this problem by providing a unified workspace for researchers. It empowers you to collect diverse data sources, extract key takeaways effortlessly, engage in source-grounded Q&A chat, and create draft outputs with ease. With Otio, researchers can navigate the content overload and embrace a more efficient and effective approach to knowledge management and research paper writing. 

Let Otio be your AI research and writing partner —try Otio for free today!

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• A Research Guide
• Research Paper Topics

120 Research Paper Topics for High School

How to Choose a Topic for High School Research Paper:

High school psychology research paper topics:.

• The impact of social media on adolescent mental health
• The effects of bullying on the psychological well-being of high school students
• The relationship between academic stress and anxiety in high school students
• The influence of parental involvement on the academic achievement of high school students
• The role of self-esteem in teenage substance abuse
• The effects of sleep deprivation on cognitive performance in adolescents
• The impact of peer pressure on decision-making in high school students
• The relationship between body image dissatisfaction and eating disorders among teenagers
• The effects of video games on aggression levels in adolescents
• The role of mindfulness in reducing stress and improving mental health in high school students
• The influence of family dynamics on the development of personality traits in teenagers
• The effects of music on mood regulation in adolescents
• The relationship between teenage pregnancy and psychological outcomes
• The impact of gender stereotypes on academic and career choices in high school students
• The role of cultural factors in shaping adolescent identity formation

High School Sociology Research Paper Topics:

• The impact of social media on teenage self-esteem
• The role of gender stereotypes in high school sports
• The effects of bullying on academic performance among high school students
• The influence of family dynamics on teenage substance abuse
• The relationship between socioeconomic status and educational achievement
• The impact of peer pressure on teenage decision-making
• The role of cultural diversity in promoting tolerance and acceptance in high schools
• The effects of single-parent households on adolescent development
• The influence of school uniforms on student behavior and academic performance
• The relationship between parental involvement and student success in high school
• The impact of standardized testing on educational inequality
• The role of race and ethnicity in educational opportunities and outcomes
• The effects of social class on access to higher education
• The influence of media on body image and eating disorders among high school students
• The relationship between school climate and student mental health

High School Education Research Paper Topics:

• The impact of standardized testing on student performance
• The effectiveness of inclusive education for students with disabilities
• The role of technology in enhancing learning outcomes in high school classrooms
• The influence of parental involvement on academic achievement in high school
• The effects of school bullying on students’ mental health and academic performance
• The benefits and challenges of implementing project-based learning in high schools
• The impact of socioeconomic status on educational opportunities and outcomes in high school
• The role of school counselors in supporting students’ college and career readiness
• The effectiveness of different teaching methods in high school science education
• The relationship between physical activity and academic performance in high school students
• The impact of social media on students’ academic engagement and achievement
• The effectiveness of sex education programs in reducing teenage pregnancy rates in high schools
• The influence of teacher-student relationships on students’ motivation and academic success
• The role of arts education in fostering creativity and critical thinking skills in high school students
• The effects of early school start times on students’ sleep patterns and academic performance

High School History Research Paper Topics:

• The impact of the Industrial Revolution on society and the economy
• The causes and consequences of World War I
• The role of women in the American Civil Rights Movement
• The rise and fall of the Roman Empire
• The effects of the Great Depression on American society
• The origins and consequences of the Cold War
• The impact of the French Revolution on European politics and society
• The role of propaganda in shaping public opinion during World War II
• The causes and consequences of the American Revolution
• The influence of ancient Greek philosophy on modern Western thought
• The impact of the Civil Rights Movement on racial equality in the United States
• The causes and consequences of the Holocaust
• The role of religion in the colonization of the Americas
• The effects of the Vietnam War on American society and politics
• The rise and fall of apartheid in South Africa

High School Chemistry Research Paper Topics:

• The effects of different catalysts on the rate of a chemical reaction
• Investigating the properties and applications of graphene in nanotechnology
• Analyzing the impact of pH on enzyme activity
• Exploring the synthesis and characterization of biodegradable polymers
• Investigating the role of antioxidants in preventing oxidative stress
• Analyzing the effects of different concentrations of acids on metal corrosion
• Investigating the principles and applications of chromatography in chemical analysis
• Exploring the synthesis and properties of superconducting materials
• Analyzing the effects of different factors on the rate of photosynthesis
• Investigating the principles and applications of electrochemistry in energy storage
• Exploring the synthesis and properties of carbon nanotubes
• Analyzing the effects of different factors on the rate of a chemical equilibrium
• Investigating the principles and applications of spectroscopy in chemical analysis
• Exploring the synthesis and properties of biocompatible materials for medical applications
• Analyzing the effects of different factors on the rate of a redox reaction

High School Medical Research Paper Topics:

• The impact of social media on mental health among high school students
• The effectiveness of school-based interventions in preventing teenage pregnancy
• The relationship between sleep patterns and academic performance in high school students
• The prevalence and consequences of substance abuse among teenagers
• The role of physical activity in reducing stress and anxiety among high school students
• The impact of bullying on mental health and well-being in adolescents
• The effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing symptoms of depression among high school students
• The relationship between nutrition and academic achievement in high school students
• The prevalence and consequences of eating disorders among teenagers
• The impact of technology use on sleep quality and quantity in high school students
• The effectiveness of school-based sexual education programs in preventing sexually transmitted infections
• The relationship between screen time and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in adolescents
• The prevalence and consequences of self-harm behaviors among high school students
• The impact of peer pressure on substance abuse and risky behaviors in teenagers
• The effectiveness of school-based mental health programs in promoting emotional well-being among high school students

High School Environmental Research Paper Topics:

• The impact of plastic pollution on marine ecosystems
• The effectiveness of renewable energy sources in reducing carbon emissions
• The role of deforestation in climate change
• The effects of air pollution on human health
• The importance of biodiversity conservation in maintaining ecosystem stability
• The relationship between water scarcity and agricultural practices
• The impact of climate change on wildlife habitats
• The role of sustainable agriculture in food security
• The effects of urbanization on local ecosystems
• The significance of recycling and waste management in reducing environmental pollution
• The relationship between pesticide use and declining bee populations
• The impact of industrial pollution on freshwater ecosystems
• The effectiveness of environmental policies in reducing greenhouse gas emissions
• The role of environmental education in promoting sustainable practices
• The effects of ocean acidification on coral reefs and marine life

High School Economic Research Paper Topics:

• The impact of minimum wage on employment rates
• The relationship between economic growth and income inequality
• The effects of globalization on local economies
• The role of government intervention in market failures
• The economic consequences of climate change
• The influence of consumer behavior on market demand
• The economic implications of immigration policies
• The relationship between education and economic development
• The effects of automation on employment opportunities
• The role of entrepreneurship in economic growth
• The impact of trade policies on domestic industries
• The economic consequences of healthcare reform
• The relationship between inflation and unemployment
• The effects of fiscal and monetary policies on economic stability
• The role of technology in shaping future economic trends

• Writing a Research Paper
• Research Paper Title
• Research Paper Sources
• Research Paper Problem Statement
• Research Paper Thesis Statement
• Hypothesis for a Research Paper
• Research Question
• Research Paper Outline
• Research Paper Summary
• Research Paper Prospectus
• Research Paper Proposal
• Research Paper Format
• Research Paper Styles
• AMA Style Research Paper
• MLA Style Research Paper
• Chicago Style Research Paper
• APA Style Research Paper
• Research Paper Structure
• Research Paper Cover Page
• Research Paper Abstract
• Research Paper Introduction
• Research Paper Body Paragraph
• Research Paper Literature Review
• Research Paper Background
• Research Paper Methods Section
• Research Paper Results Section
• Research Paper Discussion Section
• Research Paper Conclusion
• Research Paper Appendix
• Research Paper Bibliography
• APA Reference Page
• Annotated Bibliography
• Bibliography vs Works Cited vs References Page
• Research Paper Types
• What is Qualitative Research

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100+ High School Research Paper Topics [Updated]

Hey there, high school students! Have you ever felt a bit overwhelmed when your teacher mentioned a research paper? No worries – it’s totally normal. In fact, tackling a research paper is like embarking on an exciting journey where you get to explore topics you’re interested in, do your own research, and become a critical thinking pro! This blog post is like your trusty map for this adventure. It’s here to help you create top-notch high school research paper topics without the stress.

What is The Significance of Research?

Table of Contents

Before delving into the intricacies of crafting a research paper, it’s crucial to understand the significance of this academic exercise. Research papers serve as a platform for students to explore a chosen topic in depth, analyze existing literature, and contribute to the broader conversation within a particular field. 

The process of conducting research enhances critical thinking, analytical, and communication skills—essential attributes for success in higher education and beyond.

How to Write a Research Paper?

Writing a research paper can seem like a daunting task, but with a structured approach, it becomes much more manageable. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you through the process:

• Choose a Topic
• Pick a topic that interests you and is relevant to your assignment.
• Make sure it’s not too broad or too narrow; find a balance.
• Conduct Preliminary Research
• Gather some initial information to ensure there’s enough material available.
• Note down key points and potential sources.
• Develop a Thesis Statement
• Formulate a clear and concise thesis statement that outlines the main purpose or argument of your paper.
• Create an Outline
• Form an outline that is structured based on your research and ideas.
• Assign headings to the sections of your work, such as introduction, methods, findings, discussion, and conclusion.
• Write the Introduction
• Provide background information on your topic.
• State the purpose of your research and present your thesis statement.
• Review the Literature
• Summarize existing research related to your topic.
• Identify gaps or controversies in the literature.
• Detail the Methodology
• Explain your research design (e.g., experiment, survey, case study).
• Describe the data collection process and justify your chosen method.
• Present the Results
• Showcase your findings using tables, graphs, or charts.
• Analyze the results and connect them to your thesis statement.
• Discuss Your Findings
• Compare your results to existing research.
• Explore the broader implications and practical applications.
• Encourage critical thinking and discussion.
• Write the Conclusion
• Summarize the key findings.
• Restate your thesis and highlight its importance.
• Suggest directions for future research.
• Cite Your Sources
• Compile a list of all sources cited in your paper.
• Use a specific citation style (e.g., APA, MLA) as per your assignment guidelines.
• Revise and Edit
• Review your paper for clarity, coherence, and grammar.
• Make sure your arguments flow logically, and check for any spelling or punctuation errors.
• Seek Feedback
• Ask a friend, family member, or teacher to review your paper.
• Consider their feedback and make necessary revisions.
• Finalize Your Paper
• Double-check formatting and ensure your paper adheres to any specific requirements.
• Submit your well-crafted research paper on time!

100+ High School Research Paper Topics

• Climate Change: Impact and Mitigation Strategies
• The Effects of Social Media on Teenagers’ Mental Health
• Cybersecurity: Protecting Against Online Threats
• The History and Impact of Vaccines
• Gender Inequality in the Workplace
• Artificial Intelligence: Boon or Bane?
• Environmental Pollution: Causes and Solutions
• The Influence of Pop Culture on Society
• The Importance of Financial Literacy for High School Students
• The Rise of E-commerce and Its Effects on Traditional Retail
• Bullying in Schools: Causes and Prevention
• The Role of Women in History
• Genetic Engineering: Ethical Considerations
• The Impact of Video Games on Adolescent Behavior
• Youth Activism: Examining Movements and Causes
• The Relationship Between Diet and Academic Performance
• The History and Impact of Space Exploration
• Mental Health Stigma: Breaking the Silence
• The Future of Renewable Energy
• The Evolution of Language: From Ancient to Modern
• The Influence of Art and Music on Society
• Cultural Appropriation: Understanding the Debate
• The Rise of Online Education: Pros and Cons
• Human Trafficking: A Global Issue
• The Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Academic Performance
• The Impact of Social Class on Educational Opportunities
• The History of Civil Rights Movements
• Technology Addiction: Causes and Solutions
• The Role of Government in Public Health
• Animal Testing: Ethical Dilemmas
• The Influence of Literature on Social Change
• Gun Control: Balancing Rights and Safety
• The Importance of Diversity in Education
• The Rise of Single-Parent Families: Causes and Effects
• The Role of Mass Media in Shaping Public Opinion
• The Future of Space Travel and Colonization
• The Impact of Globalization on Local Cultures
• Teenage Pregnancy: Causes and Prevention
• The History and Impact of Rock and Roll Music
• The Ethics of Cloning and Genetic Modification
• The Effectiveness of Anti-Smoking Campaigns
• The Impact of Social and Economic Inequality
• Human Rights Violations: A Global Perspective
• The Role of Religion in Shaping Societal Norms
• The History and Impact of Hip-Hop Culture
• Online Privacy: Balancing Security and Freedom
• The Effects of Fast Food on Health
• The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Employment
• Climate Change Denial: Causes and Consequences
• The Influence of Ancient Philosophers on Modern Thought
• Internet Censorship: Balancing Free Speech and Security
• The Effects of Parental Involvement on Academic Achievement
• The Impact of Social Media Influencers on Consumer Behavior
• Renewable Energy: Exploring Alternatives
• The History and Impact of Feminism
• Technology and Education: Enhancing or Hindering Learning?
• The Role of Social Institutions in Shaping Behavior
• The Impact of Colonialism on Indigenous Peoples
• The Evolution of Human Rights
• The Influence of Advertising on Consumer Choices
• The Importance of STEM Education
• The Effects of Peer Pressure on Teenagers
• The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Healthcare
• The Role of Religion in Shaping Political Beliefs
• Cyberbullying: Causes and Solutions
• The Influence of Literature on Cultural Identity
• The Impact of Social Media on Political Activism
• The Importance of Critical Thinking in Education
• The Effects of Air Pollution on Health
• The History and Impact of LGBTQ+ Rights Movements
• The Impact of Social Media on Body Image
• The Influence of Technology on Human Relationships
• The Role of Education in Combating Racism
• The History and Impact of the Internet
• The Effects of Childhood Obesity on Long-Term Health
• The Role of NGOs in Addressing Global Issues
• The Impact of Immigration on Society

Tips For Successful High School Research Paper

• Choose a topic you’re passionate about and align with the assignment.
• Start your research early to allow sufficient time for thorough investigation.
• Craft a clear thesis statement that encapsulates your main argument.
• Create a well-organized outline to structure your paper effectively.
• Use reliable and diverse sources for a comprehensive literature review.
• Clearly explain your research methodology, showcasing its relevance.
• Present your findings using visual aids like graphs or charts.
• Engage in critical discussion in the results and discussion sections.
• Conclude by summarizing key findings and suggesting future research.
• Follow the prescribed citation style diligently for accurate referencing.
• Revise and edit your paper for clarity, coherence, and grammar.
• Seek feedback from peers or teachers to enhance your paper further.
• Pay attention to formatting details to meet assignment requirements.
• Proofread carefully before submission to catch any last-minute errors.

Crafting a high school research paper is an intellectual journey that allows students to explore their passions, hone critical skills, and contribute to the academic discourse.

By following the outlined structure, students can navigate the process with confidence, producing a well-organized and impactful research paper that not only fulfills academic requirements but also serves as a testament to their intellectual curiosity and prowess. I hope this topic on high school research paper topics will help you out with a number of suggestions.

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151 Good Research Topics For High School Students

In this blog, we have discussed the research topics for high school students. Research papers allow high school students to explore academic subjects in-depth and learn how to find and analyze information. 

Selecting a good research topic can be challenging for students, as it needs to be engaging, relevant, and manageable within a school term. Current issues, science and technology, and social topics impacting teens make ideal subjects. 

Research also provides excellent opportunities for students to improve skills needed for college, such as critical thinking, sourcing quality information, and writing academic papers. Whether selecting famous historical figures, environmental issues, or teen psychology topics, students should choose research questions that excite them. 

The process teaches valuable research skills and lets students explore issues they care about. In this blog, we will discuss engaging research topics for high school students and tips to help them select the best subject for their research papers.

Importance of Research Topics For High School Students

Table of Contents

Here are some key reasons why research topics are essential for high school students:

Develop Research And Critical Thinking Skills

Doing research allows students to learn how to find reliable information, analyze and evaluate sources, and synthesize information effectively. These skills are invaluable for college and career readiness.

Explore Passions and Interests

Research papers allow students to fully immerse themselves in a topic they care about or are curious to learn more about. This can increase engagement and inspiration to learn.

Learn Time Management and Responsibility

Completing a long-term research project requires planning, organization, and discipline. Students learn to manage their time and take responsibility for their learning.

Build Knowledge 

Deep diving into a topic through quality research allows students to build knowledge and become mini-experts. Retaining this knowledge can benefit them in the future.

Practice Academic Writing 

Research papers require students to present information in a scholarly, well-structured format. This is an excellent writing experience that prepares students for college-level writing.

Develop Presentation Skills 

Many research projects culminate in a presentation of findings. This allows students to practice public speaking and build confidence.

Gain Credibility and Recognition

High-quality research projects allow students to be recognized in their school community and beyond. This can build self-esteem.

In summary, research projects provide immense value for high school students on both academic and personal levels, making them an essential part of a well-rounded education.

Elements of a Strong Research Paper

Here are some key elements that contribute to a strong research paper:

• Relevant, focused research question – The research question should be specific, original, and clearly stated early in the paper. It sets the direction for the whole project.
• Strong thesis statement – The thesis presents the main argument or position of the paper. It should be concise, arguable, and supported by evidence.
• Organized structure – The paper should follow a logical flow, starting with an introduction, body paragraphs discussing evidence, and a conclusion. Effective transitions connect ideas.
• Reliable sources – Research studies, expert analysis, and reliable facts support claims. Varied perspectives are included.
• Critical analysis – The paper should analyze and interpret research findings rather than just describe them. Connections to key concepts are made.
• Clear writing style – Precise language, smooth transitions, topic sentences, and appropriate word choice improve readability. Active voice and varied sentence structure engage readers.
• Proper formatting – Following the required style guide for citing sources and formatting elements like page numbers, headings, and title page.
• Meticulous editing – Checking for grammar, spelling, punctuation, ambiguity, and formatting errors polishes the paper.
• Compliance with guidelines – Adhering to all requirements set by the instructor such as word count, formatting, and submission procedures.

Students can craft excellent research papers with thoughtful research, clear writing, and meticulous editing. The process requires time and diligent work but yields valuable skills.

151 Research Topics For High School Students

Here’s a list of 151+ research topics for high school students to explore across various subjects. Feel free to modify them to suit your interests or combine different ideas:

Science and Technology

• The impact of technology on education.
• Advancements in renewable energy technologies.
• Effects of climate change on biodiversity.
• Nanotechnology applications in medicine.
• The role of genetics in predicting diseases.
• The future of artificial intelligence.
• Cybersecurity: Challenges and solutions.
• The impact of the social media on the mental health.
• Robotics and automation in various industries.
• Space exploration and the search for extraterrestrial life.
• CRISPR gene editing and its ethical implications.
• The human microbiome and its influence on health.
• Evolution of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.
• Effects of different diets on human health.
• The major role of stem cells in regenerative medicine.
• Impact of pollution on aquatic ecosystems.
• The connection between sleep patterns and academic performance.
• Effects of various types of exercise on cardiovascular health.
• Genetics of taste preferences.
• Environmental conservation and endangered species protection.
• Applications of nanomaterials in everyday life.
• Green chemistry and sustainable practices.
• The chemistry behind food preservation.
• Analyzing the chemical composition of household products.
• Investigating the pH levels of local water sources.
• Chemical reactions in the human body.
• The science behind the taste of different foods.
• Synthesis and properties of biodegradable plastics.
• Chemical analysis of air pollutants in urban areas.
• Chemistry of cooking: Effects of different cooking methods on food.
• The physics of sports: Analyzing the mechanics of different sports.
• Quantum mechanics and its applications.
• The concept of time: Physics and philosophy.
• The physics of music: How musical instruments produce sound.
• Applications of electromagnetic waves in daily life.
• The science behind roller coasters.
• Investigating the physics of climate change.
• The relationship between mass and gravity.
• Einstein’s theory of relativity: Understanding its principles.
• The physics of renewable energy sources.

Environmental Science

• Impacts of deforestation on local ecosystems.
• Water pollution in urban areas.
• The role of wetlands in ecological conservation.
• Sustainable agriculture practices.
• Plastic pollution in oceans: Causes and solutions.
• The results of air pollution on the respiratory health.
• Urban heat islands: Causes and mitigation.
• Impact of invasive species on local biodiversity.
• Analyzing the environmental footprint of different diets.
• The significance of the biodiversity in supporting ecosystem balance.

Social Sciences

• The influence of social media on political opinions.
• Effects of bullying on mental health.
• Gender stereotypes in the media.
• The impact of video games on behavior.
• Teen mental health: Identifying risk factors.
• Cultural diversity in schools and its effects on education.
• The role of family dynamics in shaping personality.
• Impact of social isolation on well-being.
• Analyzing the effectiveness of anti-drug campaigns.
• The connection between socioeconomic status & academic achievement.
• The effects of music on mood and cognition.
• Sleep patterns and their impact on mental health.
• The psychology of decision-making.
• Factors influencing academic motivation.
• Impact of social media on body image.
• The role of nature vs. nurture in personality development.
• Effects of mindfulness meditation on stress reduction.
• The psychology of laughter: Why do we laugh?
• The impact of positive affirmations on self-esteem.
• Analyzing the placebo effect in medical treatments.
• The impact of World War II on international geopolitics.
• Civil rights movements and their legacy.
• The role of women in historical revolutions.
• The effects of colonialism on indigenous cultures.
• Historical analysis of pandemics and their aftermath.
• The Industrial Revolution and its social consequences.
• The history of human rights movements.
• The legacy of ancient civilizations on modern society.
• Causes and consequences of the Cold War.
• Historical development of democracy around the world.

Literature and Language Arts

• Analysis of symbolism in a specific literary work.
• The evolution of language and its impact on communication.
• The portrayal of mental illness in literature.
• The influence of science fiction on technological innovation.
• The major role of folklore in shaping cultural identity.
• Shakespearean plays: Themes and contemporary relevance.
• Gender representation in literature.
• The impact of censorship on literary works.
• Analyzing the use of metaphors in poetry.
• The influence of literature on social change.

Mathematics

• The history and applications of fractals.
• Cryptography: The mathematics of secure communication.
• Mathematical modeling of population growth.
• The role of mathematics in computer programming.
• Analyzing the geometry of famous landmarks.
• The mathematics behind music: Patterns and rhythms.
• Game theory and its applications in decision-making.
• Fibonacci sequence and its occurrences in nature.
• Analyzing the statistics of a specific real-world phenomenon.
• The concept of infinity in mathematics.
• The impact of globalization on local economies.
• Income inequality and its consequences.
• The economics of climate change mitigation.
• The role of small businesses in economic development.
• The effects of automation on employment.
• Consumer behavior and the psychology of spending.
• Economic analysis of a specific industry.
• The relationship between education and economic success.
• The impact of government policies on economic growth.
• Analyzing economic systems: Capitalism, socialism, and communism.

Political Science

• The role of political parties in shaping procedures.
• The impact of lobbying on political decision-making.
• The history and consequences of political revolutions.
• Electoral systems: A comparative analysis.
• The influence of media on political opinions.
• Human rights and their enforcement on the global stage.
• The role of diplomacy in international relations.
• Political corruption and its impact on society.
• The concept of political ideology: Origins and evolution.
• The role of grassroots movements in political change.

Health and Nutrition

• The impact of fast food on health.
• The benefits of a plant-based diet.
• Exercise and its effects on mental health.
• The role of core microbiota in digestion and immunity.
• The psychology of eating disorders.
• The relationship between stress and physical health.
• Analysis of different diet trends.
• The impact of sleep on overall well-being.
• Effects of advertising on food choices and nutrition.
• Public health initiatives: Successes and challenges.
• The effectiveness of online learning platforms.
• The impact of standardized testing on education.
• The role of teachers in student motivation.
• Inclusive education and its benefits.
• School uniforms: Pros and cons.
• The effect of parent’s involvement on academic success.
• The importance of arts education in schools.
• Analyzing the benefits of extracurricular activities.
• The role of technology in modern classrooms.
• Homeschooling: Factors influencing its success.

Art and Music

• The evolution of hip-hop music and its cultural impact.
• The role of art treatment in mental health treatment.
• Cultural influences on visual arts.
• Exploring the use of color in famous paintings.
• The impact of technology on music production.
• The intersection of art and technology in contemporary society.
• Cultural appropriation in the arts.
• The influence of political events on artistic expression.
• The history and significance of a specific art movement.
• Analyzing the symbolism in a particular piece of artwork.
• The relationship between music and memory.

How to Pick the Right Research Topic

Here are some tips for picking the right research topic as a high school student:

• Choose a topic that genuinely interests you. Researching and writing about something intriguing will make the process more enjoyable and rewarding.
• Make sure the topic is narrow and focused enough to be manageable. Don’t pick subjects that are too broad or vague.
• Consider your research resources – access to primary sources, scholarly articles, experts to interview, etc. Pick a feasible topic.
• Select a topic that is original and where you can offer a new perspective or angle. Avoid overdone topics.
• Ensure the topic is relevant to your class objectives or allows you to demonstrate core skills. Consult your teacher.
• Pick a topic that challenges you intellectually but is still within your capability. Balance ambition with practicality.
• Look for available research topics that provide enough evidence and detail to support your thesis.
• Consider topics that connect to your personal experiences, background, or community. These can offer passion.
• If allowed, pick something enjoyable like music, sports, technology, or pop culture. Interest keeps you motivated.
• Bounce ideas on your teacher or librarian for feedback. They can help assess research viability.

With the right topic, you’re off to an excellent start on your research paper! Allow time to refine your direction as the work progresses.

Final Remarks

In conclusion, selecting the right research topic is crucial for high school students. It engages them in academic exploration and cultivates essential skills for their future. Research enhances critical thinking, source evaluation, and practical information synthesis – all valuable for college readiness. 

Exploring personal interests boosts engagement and inspiration while instilling time management and responsibility. A solid research paper requires a focused question, a robust thesis, an organized structure, and critical analysis. Students also learn the art of clear writing, proper formatting, and meticulous editing. 

The journey offers a chance to become mini-experts, practice academic writing, develop presentation skills, and gain recognition. The significance of research topics extends beyond the classroom, contributing to a well-rounded education and preparing students for future challenges.

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250 Plus Interesting High School Research Topics to Rock your Paper

Everyone including our expert  paper writers  understand what you’re going through!

Writing a research paper  is hard but selecting an appropriate topic that interests all of your readers is even harder. Here’s the solution that will save you from hours of combing through data.

In this post, we have assembled lists of over 250 plus high school research paper topics that will get your creative juices flowing with additional work. 

So, stick around till the end to find your favorite topic that  WILL  help you secure that top grade.

Table of Contents

Impressive High School Research Paper Topics from 8 Different Fields

Let us spill the real tea! Composing a research paper without the right topic is a recipe for disaster. But how do we know if the topic we have chosen is right?

Simple, before picking a topic, look for the following characteristics;

• your topic must compliment your and your reader’s interest.
• The chosen topic must be easily understood by the readers 
• It must have enough existing data on it, so there are no issues while  citing a paper
• The topic must check all your academic requirements. 
• An ideal research paper should have a practically applicable topic
• Lastly, the right topic aligns with your specified deadline. 

With these measures, you can easily pick the right topic for yourself. Speaking of which, we’ve got tons of cool stuff for you to check out, so let’s jump right in!

Research Paper Topics related to Mental Health (Health research paper topics)

If you want to work on a high school research paper about mental health, these topics could be a great place to start.

• Is mental health a hindrance for some people to interact with technology?
• Measures that assure the safety of mental health problems.
• Virtual therapies vs Physical therapies.
• The effect of obesity on mental health.
• The symptoms of mental illness in family members.
• Main causes of anorexia.
• Ways to deal with post-traumatic stress.
• The truth behind the statement’ mental illness is more prevalent in men than women.’
• Can we regard ADHD as a mental illness?
• Is OCD a mental illness?
• Drug abuse and its side effects on mental health.
• Different tested ways of proving ADHD.
• The most effective ways of overcoming low self-esteem.
• How does marijuana affect the mental health of an addict?
• Reasons why depression pills must be regulated.
• Understanding post-traumatic stress disorder.
• How does poverty affect mental health?
• Ways to improve brain health.
• Side effects of antidepressants.
• Indicators of mental illness.
• Mental illness of soldiers returning from War.
• How is mental illness portrayed in the media?
• Understanding the difference between sadness and depression.
• Mental illness in the age of toxic internet culture.
• How are violence and mental illness connected?
• Why do people with mental illness find it hard to socialize?
• The challenges of a psychiatric nursing career.
• Effectiveness of antidepressants to cope with depression.
• How can classical music help in treating mental illness?

High School Research Paper Topics Related to Science (argumentative research paper topics)

If you’re a high school student looking for a science research topic, you’re in luck! There’s always something new to explore in the beautiful world of science. Check out any of the following ideas for a good research paper topic.

• Reasons why COVID-19 is deadlier than Influenza.
• How are meteorites affecting the universe?
• The misconceptions regarding Pluto.
• Understanding the supernova.
• Is it true that Mars has water?
• What do we need to know about the Big Bang Theory?
• Different viruses in the modern world.
• Understanding the DNA and its functionalities.
• The impact of acid rains on earth.
• Oil spills and their effect on the ecology.
• What should we know about global warming?
• Understanding the extinction of coral reefs.
• Digging deep to understand green cities.
• What Does the Future of 3D Printing Look like?
• Are fertilizers harmful to human health?
• Understanding the contamination of soils.
• How do the shortages of water look in the modern world?
• The effective ways of keeping ice from defrosting.
• Music and its effects on your assimilation ability.
• Do soil worms impact the plant’s growth?
• How can food affect the heart?
• Important innovations in medicinal chemistry.
• How to restrict the use of antibiotics in agriculture?
• Why is it challenging to eliminate malaria?
• Ideal weight for living a long life.
• How severe is a migraine for human health?
• Understanding the different types of headaches.
• Analyzing the learning ability of mice.
• What type of food does a dog prefer the most?
• Understanding dark matter and black holes.
• What will a commercial space flight look like?
• Reasons why water boils faster when we pour salt into it?
• Is it possible for humans to live in space?
• The use of nanotechnology in medicine.
• The role of nanofibers in repairing brain injuries.
• Has there ever been life on Mars?

High School Research Topics Related to Education

If you’re into education, consider developing an interesting research topic for high school students. Speaking of which, some persuasive research paper topics could work as a starting point.

• Understanding why students should receive advanced mental help in colleges?
• Higher education in Europe vs Higher education in the US.
• What essential role does collaboration play in higher education?
• Ethnic minorities in American Universities.
• Things to know about the Liberal Arts Education 2021.
• What role does a video game play in developing a child’s memory?
• Improving cognitive qualities via playing.
• Individual studying vs group studying.
• The significance of school mindfulness lessons. 
• E-books vs printed books.
• Computer literacy and its challenges.
• Why do students perceive writing research papers as a daunting task?
• School bullying and its dark side.
• Reasons why special education teachers must be entitled to receive higher pay?
• Private school vs Homeschooling.
• Understanding the concept of third-world countries
• Does homework lift students’ learning?
• Is  paper writing help  actually helpful for the students? 
• How are teachers voluntary parent figures for students?
• Ways to avoid the use of an illicit substance in school.
• The significance of older students interacting with younger children.
• Ways to prevent school violence.
• Analyzing the causes of boredom in the classroom.
• The challenges of social distancing during a pandemic.
• How is technology impacting early childhood literacy?
• How effective are educational games in enhancing learning?
• The effect of psychological development on students’ learning.
• Using psychological techniques for improving language skills.
• The importance of socialization among children.
• Reasons students feel anxious and stressed.
• The process of conflict resolution on college campuses.
• The impact of globalization on higher education.
• Academic difficulties that online students face.
• The pros and cons of an online learning environment.

High School Research Paper Topics Related to World History

History can be fascinating, and there are many excellent topics to pick from. If you’re into history and want to learn more, check out these excellent world history research topics for high school!

• The miserable life of peasants in Medieval Times.
• Understanding social stratification.
• A comparative analysis of World War I and World War II
• Recent historical developments in China.
• Shedding lights on Jamaican history.
• What do we need to know about South African apartheid?
• Significant events of the Ottoman Empire.
• The Pearl Harbor Fiasco.
• Analyzing the history of the Mughal Empire.
• Reviewing the American Civil War.
• What do we need to know about French Revolution
• The intellectual level of people living in the Middle Ages.
• The concept of religion in Ancient Greece.
• Factors that led to the American Revolution.
• Political causes of the French Revolution.
• The causes and consequences of the Mexican War.
• Analyzing the Watergate scandal.
• The Indo-China War 1967.
• The most prolonged War ever fought by America
• Reasons behind the fall of the US military operation in Vietnam.
• The Lawrence of Arabia.
• Picturing Nazi Germany.
• Main Reasons that led to World War II.

High School Research Paper Topics Related to Entrepreneurship

Many high schoolers need help thinking of ideas for an entrepreneurship research paper. To help them, we put together this list of potential topics. 

• The effects of entrepreneurism on economic growth.
• How effective is cloud technology for entrepreneurship?
• Personality traits of a successful entrepreneur.
• What are the significant drivers of entrepreneurial growth?
• Strategies of investors for procuring top entrepreneurs.
• The advantages of becoming an entrepreneur.
• Understanding the functioning of crowdsourcing.
• How are taxes impacting the decisions of entrepreneurs?
• Alternative marketing tactics for small-scale food entrepreneurs.
• Understanding entrepreneurship as a long-term solution to unemployment.
• How must the government support students pursuing entrepreneurship?
• The effect of fiscal policies on entrepreneurship.
• Skills and qualities of a brilliant entrepreneur.
• Problems that entrepreneurs are facing globally.
• Entrepreneurism vs Regular job.
• Important personality traits to become a good entrepreneur.
• Why should you become an entrepreneur?
• Different ways of mitigating common risks in entrepreneurship.
• Reasons adults are pursuing entrepreneurialism with passion.
• How are technological advancements impacting entrepreneurship?
• Common challenges a new entrepreneur faces.

High School Research Paper Topics Related to Music (interesting research topics)

Lots of teens get motivated by music, so why not pick out some music-related topics for that high school research paper? Here you go with the list.

• The effect of music on the human brain.
• The evolution of rap music.
• Reasons why jazz feels so great.
• Arabic music and its history.
• The effect of Chinese music on nearby countries??
• The effect of music on your productivity.
• The role of music in eradicating stress.
• What do we need to know about ancient ballads?
• Does music help in relieving stress?
• Music in ancient Egypt.
• How women are impacting classical music.
• The use of music for educational purposes.
• How music helps you to concentrate better?
• How can music help you learn foreign languages?
• Analyzing the music for studying.

High School Research Paper Topics related to Finance (Business research paper topics)

Figuring out the best finance topics can be challenging, so we did some digging and assembled a great selection of economic research paper topics for you. Here you go with another list of research paper ideas.

• How are corporate bonds a source of financing?
• Understanding venture capital financing.
• Analyzing systematic corporate risk.
• How to plan the capital structure of a corporation?
• Methods for developing the corporate investment policy.
• Analyzing the effectiveness of mergers and acquisitions.
• Motives behind corporate mergers.
• How is bankruptcy a way of restructuring a corporation?
• Understanding the concept of Financial Management.
• How is financial literacy affecting the global economy?
• How can e-money influence the world finance market?
• The global financial crisis
• The development of the securities market in the 21st century.
• How can we prevent the emergence of financial shocks?
• The derivatives of financial engineering.
• Characteristics of financial control.
• How is finance playing a role in social reproduction?
• Understanding the concept of bank loans.
• Ways to evaluate the effectiveness of financial management.
• Exchange rate fluctuations and their impact on foreign economic activity.
• The essence of leasing – what do we need to know?
• Ways to develop a sound financial plan for the organization.
• Different methods of calculating interest.
• Significance of monetary policy.
• How are funds playing a role in solving social problems?
• Understanding risk management in the financial sector.

High School Research Paper Topics Related to Information Technology 

Information Technology (IT) is a part of everyday life, so staying up-to-date on the latest and greatest is important. Check out these great ideas from our writers!

• The ability of artificial intelligence to deal with tedious tasks.
• The recent development of computational and synthetic biology.
• Understanding computer architecture in colleges.
• Evolution of computer graphics and animations.
• Emerging fields of study in computer data science.
• Managing data in the age of 5G technology.
• The role of molecular information systems in biotechnology.
• Information technology and its contribution to natural language processing.
• Latest developments in programming languages.
• Ways to deal with rising privacy concerns as technology advances.
• Theory of computation to information technology.
• How are wireless and sensor systems making the world a safe place?
• The importance of amorphous computing in the 21st century.
• The impact of biomedical mining on the health sector.
• Role of swarm intelligence in brainstorming.
• How are companies making use of Big Data?
• The advantages and disadvantages of IOT (Internet of Things).
• The challenges of software-defined networking.
• How is augmented reality playing a crucial role in the healthcare system?
• How are new apps making a man’s life easier?
• How can informational technology detect and wipe the fake news?
• Long-term benefits of a technologically oriented world.
• How is technology making student-centered learning possible?
• How is technology preventing the spread of the pandemic?
• Discussing if social media is making the world a dividend universe/
• The impact of technological globalization.

We are certain that these list of topics must have helped you pick a good research paper topic. Also, we’ve been offering essay and research paper writing services for quite a while now to students worldwide. Therefore, if you’re struggling to write your research paper, feel free to avail our  college paper writing service  at a cut price for academic growth.

Why is high school research so important?

What are the most interesting high school research paper topics.

These are the three most exciting research paper topics for high schoolers:

• What has been the impact of a particular musician on pop music?
• What changes have we seen in pop music over the past ten years?
• How have women been portrayed in music in the media lately?

What are the five excellent research questions?

For good research, ask yourself:

• What do I need to know?
• Where can I get the information?
• Which sources are reliable?
• How can I incorporate fresh material into my writing?
• How do I make sure I'm using info ethically?

What is the thesis of a research paper?

How to write a good research paper.

For writing a good research paper:

• Take your outline and prospectus as a starting point, but don't be afraid to go off track if it improves your essay.
• Focus on the points you want to make, and don't let your sources dictate the direction of your paper.
• Pull in your sources to make your argument stronger.

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Research Paper Topics for High School Students

Table of contents

• 1.1 Consider the Scope and Time Commitment
• 1.2 Align the Topic with Your Interests
• 1.3 Use Resources and Guides
• 2.1 Education Research Topics
• 2.2 Research Topics about World History
• 2.3 Healthcare Research Topics
• 2.4 Finance Research Topics
• 2.5 Mental Health Topics
• 2.6 Science Research Topics
• 2.7 Music research topics
• 2.8 Environmental
• 2.9 Entrepreneurship
• 3 Conclusion

Research papers are common assignments in high school systems worldwide. They serve as a method for students to convey what they have learned from in-depth analysis on a specific subject. But why are they so prevalent in high schools?

The reason is that writing a well-structured and organized research paper teaches students essential academic skills such as making critical connections, expressing understanding, summarizing complex data, and effectively communicating their findings.

The process begins with selecting from various potential research paper topics. Students must identify a topic that not only interests them but also has sufficient scope to explore in depth. Selecting a good research paper topic is key to connecting with your audience — usually, your teachers and classmates. However, choosing the best topic can be tough. This is often because there are so many options available or it’s unclear what makes a topic both doable and interesting.

To help students with this important first step in the research paper process, we’ve created this guide. It provides strategies for picking the right topics and features a diverse list of more than 50 research ideas. These suggestions aim to improve academic performance by covering a variety of subjects, giving students a strong start for their research projects.

How to Choose High School Research Paper Topics

Choosing the right research paper topic is key, especially with so many suitable options for high school. The process might seem overwhelming, but learning how to narrow down your options can make it easier to handle.

Consider the Scope and Time Commitment

The first thing to consider is the amount of time you have to complete your paper. Topics that are too broad can be exhausting and may make it difficult to finish the paper on time. It’s best to choose topics that are not too broad yet detailed enough to explore within your deadline. Well-defined topics help you stay focused and organized, making your research and writing processes more efficient.

Align the Topic with Your Interests

Motivation plays a key role in the success of your research. Select a research paper topic that aligns with your personal interests and that you find interesting. This will keep you engaged and energized throughout the writing process.

If you’re struggling or the deadline is near and your paper isn’t ready, remember there are resources to help, like buying a research paper to meet your academic needs. But ideally, with the right topic and careful planning, you should be able to finish your assignment on your own.

Use Resources and Guides

To aid in your topic selection, refer to guides and lists that offer a variety of research ideas. These resources aim to inspire and give you a good start for your research paper. They cover a wide range of topics and are designed to meet various academic needs. By picking a topic from these lists, you can boost your performance and kickstart your research project smoothly, leading to a good research paper.

Need assistance with high school research? Get your paper written by a professional writer Get Help Reviews.io 4.9/5

Most Interesting & Easy Research Topics for High School students

We’ve sorted the all research paper ideas into categories to make your academic exploration easier. Your personal interest is crucial when choosing a topic, so we suggest exploring the category that interests you the most. If you’re short on time, remember that here at PapersOWL, we are ready to provide a custom research paper tailored to your needs.

Education Research Topics

If you are interested in education, you should consider choosing an education research topic for high school students. Below you can find ten topics you can use as inspiration.

• Should High Schools Impose Mandatory Vaccination on Students?
• The Benefits of Charter Schools for the Public Education System
• Homeschooling vs. Traditional Schooling: Which One Better Sets Students for Success?
• Should Public Education Continue to Promote Diversity? Why?
• The Most Beneficial Funding Programs for Students
• The Effects of the Rising Price of College Tuitions on High School Students
• Discuss the Most Noteworthy Advantages and Disadvantages of Standardized Testing
• What Are the Alternatives to Standardized Testing?
• Does a Gap Year Between High School and College Set Students for Success?
• Identify and Discuss the Major Benefits of Group Projects for High Schoolers
• The Role of Technology in Modern Education
• The Impact of COVID-19 on Educational Systems Worldwide
• Addressing the Achievement Gap in Education
• The Impact of AI on Personalized Learning
• Online Learning: Pros and Cons in Modern Education
• The Role of E-Learning Platforms in Modern Education
• Strategies to Integrate AI into Classroom
• The Ethical Implications of Using AI in Student Surveillance

Research Topics about World History

• The Origin Of The Israel-Palestine Conflict And Possible Resolutions
• The History Of The USA Occupation Of Iraq
• Choose A Famous Assassinated World Leader And Discuss What Led To The Assassination
• Discuss A Historical Invention And How It Changed The Lives Of People Worldwide
• Has The World’s Leading Countries’ Response To Climate Change Improved Or Declined Over The Last Decade?
• How The President Of Belarus Manages To Stay In Power For Over 25 Years
• Which Event In World History Had The Most Impact On Your Country?
• The Influence of Ancient Civilizations on Modern Society
• The Role of the Silk Road in Connecting Cultures
• The Impact of the Industrial Revolution on World History
• Colonialism and Its Long-Term Effects on Colonized Nations
• The Cold War: Causes, Major Events, and Lasting Impacts
• The Role of Women in Shaping World History
• The Role of Women in World War I and II
• Decolonization Movements Post-World War II
• The Effect of Technological Advancements on Warfare Throughout History
• Three Kingdoms Period in Chinese History
• Albigensian Crusade and Its Impact on Medieval Europe
• Italian Front in World War I
• History and Influence of the Mongolian Empire
• Greco-Bactrian and Indo-Greek Kingdoms
• Great Game: Anglo-Russian Rivalry in Central Asia
• Cultural and Historical Significance of the Abbasid Caliphate

Healthcare Research Topics

• The Benefits and Risks of Telemedicine
• The Impact of COVID-19 on Global Healthcare Systems
• Mental Health Awareness in High Schools
• The Role of Vaccination in Public Health
• Obesity and Its Impact on Health in Adolescents
• The Future of Personalized Medicine
• The Ethics of Genetic Engineering in Healthcare
• How AI is Revolutionizing Healthcare Diagnostics
• Access to Healthcare in Rural vs. Urban Areas
• The Importance of Preventive Healthcare
• Healthcare Disparities Among Different Socioeconomic Groups
• The Effects of Climate Change on Public Health
• The Role of Technology in Managing Chronic Diseases
• Nutrition and Its Impact on Adolescent Health
• The Influence of Pharmaceutical Companies on Healthcare Policies
• The Pros and Cons of Universal Healthcare Systems
• Addressing the Opioid Crisis: Causes and Solutions
• The Role of Mental Health Services in Schools
• The Impact of Social Media on Teen Health Behaviors
• The Advancements in Cancer Treatments

Finance Research Topics

• How Cryptocurrency is Changing the Financial Landscape
• Impact of Globalization on Financial Markets
• Ethical Investing: Benefits and Challenges
• Microfinance and Its Role in Economies Development
• Influence of Interest Rates on Economic Growth
• The Financial Implications of Student Loan Debt
• Sustainable Finance and Its Growing Importance
• The Role of Central Banks in Stabilizing Economies
• How AI is Transforming Financial Services
• Online Banking: Security and Convenience
• The Effects of Economic Recessions on Small Businesses
• The Evolution of Stock Markets Over the Last Century
• The Financial Impact of Natural Disasters
• Personal Finance Education: Should It Be Mandatory in Schools?
• The Future of Digital Payments
• Challenges of Implementing Universal Basic Income
• Impact of Tax Policies on Economic Inequality
• Role of Hedge Funds in Financial Markets
• The Rise of Robo-Advisors in Personal Finance Management

Mental Health Topics

Here are some relevant and significant mental health research topics for high school research papers. These topics are here to inspire and guide you in your research:

• Discuss The Main Ways Stress Affects The Body
• Can Daily Exercises Benefit Mental Health? How?
• Should More Counselors Work In High Schools? Why?
• Discuss The Major Factors That Contribute To Poor Mental And Physical Well-Being
• In What Ways Has The Worldwide Pandemic Affected People’s Mental Health?
• Explore The Relationship Between Social Media And Mental Health Disorders
• How The Public School System Cares For The Mental Health Of Students
• What Is The Most Effective Psychotherapy For High Schoolers?
• Impact of Bullying on Mental Health
• Role of Nutrition in Mental Health
• Cultural Differences in Mental Health Perceptions and Treatment
• Mindfulness Practices Effectiveness in Schools
• Family Dynamics Influence on Adolescent Mental Health

Science Research Topics

Science is one of those fields where there is always something new you can research. If you need a science research topic for high school students, feel free to use any of the following.

• How Can Civilization Save Coral Reefs?
• What Are Black Holes, And What Is Their Role?
• Explain Sugar Chemistry That Enables Us To Make Candies
• What Are The Biggest Successes Of The Epa In The Last Decade?
• Is There A Way To Reverse Climate Change? How?
• What Solutions Does Science Offer To Resolve The Drinking Water Crisis In The Future?
• Ways to Save Coral Reefs
• Black Holes and Their Role
• Sugar Chemistry in Candy Making
• Biggest Successes of the EPA in the Last Decade
• Reversing Climate Change
• Scientific Solutions for the Drinking Water Crisis
• The Role of CRISPR in Genetic Engineering
• Impacts of Space Exploration on Earth Science
• Developments in Renewable Energy Technologies
• The Effects of Microplastics on Marine Life
• Nanotechnology in Medicine
• Quantum Computing and Its Potential Uses
• Studying the Human Genome Project
• Advancements in Vaccine Development

Music research topics

Many teenagers find inspiration in music, so why not choose some music high school research paper topics.

• In What Way Music Education Benefits High School Students?
• How Famous Musicians Impact Pop Music
• Classification Of Music Instruments: Discuss The Sachs-Hornbostel System
• Did Sound Effect Technology Change The Music Industry? How?
• How Did Online Streaming Platforms Help Music Evolve?
• How Does Music Software Emulate Sounds Of Different Instruments?

Environmental

Our environment has been a hot topic for quite some time now. There is a lot of research to back up your claims and make logical assumptions. Here are some environmental high school research topics you can choose from.

• What Is The Impact Of Offshore Drilling On The Environment?
• Do We Need Climate Change Legislation? Why?
• Are Ecotourism And Tropical Fishing Viable Ways To Save And Recuperate Endangered Areas And Animals?
• The Impact Of Disposable Products On The Environment
• Discuss The Benefits Of Green Buildings To Our Environment
• Find And Discuss A Large-Scale Recent Project That Helped Restore Balance In An Area

Entrepreneurship

Many students struggle with having to find good entrepreneurship research paper ideas for high school. This is why we’ve developed a list of topics to inspire your research.

• What Is Entrepreneurship?
• Are People Born With An Entrepreneurial Spirit, Or Can You Learn It?
• Discuss The Major Entrepreneurship Theories
• Does Entrepreneurship Affect The Growth Of The Economy?
• Which Character Traits Are Commonly Found In Successful Entrepreneurs?
• The Pros And Cons Of Having A Traditional Job And Being An Entrepreneur
• Discuss Entrepreneurship As One Of The Solutions To Unemployment
• What Is Crowdfunding, And How It’s Related To Entrepreneurship
• The Most Common Challenges Entrepreneurs Face
• How Social Media Made A Lot Of Successful Entrepreneurs

Hopefully, you’ll find these high school research paper topics inspirational. The categories are there to help you choose easily. Here at PapersOwl, we know how hard it is to complete all assignments in time and ace all your grades. If you are struggling with writing, feel free to contact us about our writing services, and we’ll help you come on top of your research paper assignment no matter how complex it is.

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65 Argumentative Research Topics For High School Students [PDF Included]

In today’s world, where information is readily available at our fingertips, it’s becoming increasingly important to teach students how to think critically, evaluate sources, and develop persuasive arguments. And one of the best ways to do this is through argumentative research topics.

In high school, students are often encouraged to learn and analyze factual information. However, much like other English and biology research topics , argumentative research topics offer a different kind of challenge. Instead of simply presenting facts, these topics require students to delve into complex issues, think critically, and present their opinions in a clear and convincing manner.

In this article, we will provide a list of compelling argumentative research topics for high school students. From education and politics to social issues and environmental concerns, these topics will challenge students to think deeply, evaluate sources critically, and develop and challenge their skills!

Argumentative research topics: Persuading the student to think and reason harder

Argumentative research topics are a fascinating and exciting way for students to engage in critical thinking and persuasive writing. This type of research topic encourages students to take a stance on a controversial issue and defend it using well-reasoned arguments and evidence. By doing so, students are not only honing their analytical skills and persuasive writing skills, but they are also developing a deeper understanding of their own beliefs and assumptions.

Unlike other research topics that may simply require students to regurgitate facts or summarize existing research, argumentative topics require students to develop and defend their own ideas.

Through argumentative research, students are encouraged to question their own biases and consider alternative perspectives. This type of critical thinking is a vital skill that is essential for success in any academic or professional context. Being able to analyze and evaluate information from different perspectives is an invaluable tool that will serve students well in their future careers.

Furthermore, argumentative research topics, are like writing prompts , which are meant to encourage students to engage in civil discourse and debate. These topics often involve controversial issues that can elicit strong emotions and passionate opinions from individuals with differing viewpoints.

By engaging in respectful, fact-based discussions and debates, students can learn how to engage with people who have different beliefs and opinions

Argumentative Research Topics

• The boundaries of free speech: where should the line be drawn?
• Internet privacy: Should websites and apps be restricted in collecting and utilizing user data?
• Has the internet been a force for progress or a hindrance?
• The role of public surveillance in modern society: is it necessary or invasive?
• Climate change and global warming: Are human activities solely responsible?
• Mandating physical education in schools to combat childhood obesity: Is it effective?
• The ethics of mandatory vaccination for high school students for public health reasons
• The ethics of wearing fur and leather: Is it always unethical?
• Keeping exotic pets: is it acceptable or inhumane?
• The impact of social media on mental health: Is it more positive or negative?
• Wildlife preserves: Are they suitable habitats for all species that reside there?
• Animal fashion: Should it be prohibited?
• Mental health services in schools: Should they be free or reduced-cost for students?
• Quality of high school education: Should teachers undergo regular assessments to ensure it?
• Healthy eating habits in schools: Should schools offer healthier food options in their cafeteria or allow students to bring food from home?
• Social media addiction: Is it a significant health concern for kids?
• Technology use and mental health problems: Is there a connection among high school students?
• Junk food in schools: Should schools ban it from vending machines and school stores to promote healthy eating habits?
• Dress codes in schools: Are they necessary or outdated
• Regulating social media: Should the government regulate it to prevent cyberbullying?
• Politicians and standardized testing: Should politicians be subject to standardized testing?
• Art vs Science: Are they equally challenging fields?
• School uniform and discrimination: Does it really reduce discrimination in schools?
• Teachers and poor academic performance: Are teachers the cause of poor academic performance?
• Physical discipline: Should teachers and parents be allowed to physically discipline their children?
• Telling white lies: Is it acceptable to tell a white lie to spare someone’s feelings?
• Sports in college: Should colleges promote sports as a career path?
• Gender and education: How does gender affect education?
• Refusing medical treatment: Is it acceptable to refuse medical treatment based on personal beliefs?
• Children’s rights and medical treatment: Do doctors violate children’s rights if they do not provide treatment when the parents refuse to treat the child?
• Parental influence on gender stereotypes: Do parents encourage gender stereotypes?
• Dating in schools: Should dating be permitted in schools with supervision?
• Human nature: Are people inherently good or evil by nature?
• Immigration and national economy: Can immigration benefit the national economy?
• Keeping animals in zoos: Is it appropriate?
• Cell phone use in schools: Should cell phone use be permitted in schools?
• Veganism: Should humans only consume vegan food?
• Animal testing: Should it be outlawed?
• Waste segregation: Should the government mandate waste segregation at home?
• Technology integration in schools: Is it beneficial for traditional learning?
• Homeschooling vs traditional schooling: Is homeschooling as effective as traditional schooling?
• Prohibition of smoking and drinking: Should it be permanently prohibited?
• Banning violent and aggressive video games: Should they be banned?
• Harmful effects of beauty standards on society: Are beauty standards harmful to society?
• The impact of advertising on consumer behavior
• The ethical considerations of artificial intelligence and its potential impact on society
• The impact of globalization on cultural diversity
• The effectiveness of alternative medicine in treating various illnesses
• The benefits and drawbacks of online learning compared to traditional classroom education
• The role of mass media in shaping public opinion and political discourse
• The impact of artificial intelligence on job automation and employment rates
• The impact of fast fashion on the environment and human rights
• The ethical considerations of using animals for entertainment purposes
• Parents are solely responsible for their child’s behavior.
• Is space exploration worth it or not?
•   stricter regulations on the use of plastic and single-use products to reduce waste
• Is capitalism the best economic system
• Should there be limits on the amount of wealth individuals can accumulate?
• Is it ethical to use animals for food production?
• Is the concept of national borders outdated in the modern era?
• Should the use of nuclear power be expanded or phased out?
• Self-driving cars: Convenience or threat?
• The implications of allowing influencers to advertise dietary supplements and weight loss products.
•  Faults in the education system: need change or modification?
• Are the intentions of “big pharma” genuinely aligned with the well-being of the public?

Argumentative research topics are an important tool for promoting critical thinking, and persuasive communication skills and preparing high school students for active engagement in society. These topics challenge students to think deeply and develop persuasive arguments by engaging with complex issues and evaluating sources. Through this process, students can become informed, engaged, and empathetic citizens who are equipped to participate actively in a democratic society.

Furthermore, argumentative research topics teach students how to engage in respectful, fact-based discussions and debates, and how to communicate effectively with people who have different beliefs and opinions. By fostering civil discourse, argumentative research topics can help bridge social, cultural, and political divides, and promote a more united and equitable society.

Overall, argumentative research topics are a crucial component of high school education, as they provide students with the skills and confidence they need to succeed in college, career, and life.

Having a 10+ years of experience in teaching little budding learners, I am now working as a soft skills and IELTS trainers. Having spent my share of time with high schoolers, I understand their fears about the future. At the same time, my experience has helped me foster plenty of strategies that can make their 4 years of high school blissful. Furthermore, I have worked intensely on helping these young adults bloom into successful adults by training them for their dream colleges. Through my blogs, I intend to help parents, educators and students in making these years joyful and prosperous.

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The Big List of Essay Topics for High School (120+ Ideas!)

Ideas to inspire every young writer!

High school students generally do a lot of writing, learning to use language clearly, concisely, and persuasively. When it’s time to choose an essay topic, though, it’s easy to come up blank. If that’s the case, check out this huge round-up of essay topics for high school. You’ll find choices for every subject and writing style.

• Argumentative Essay Topics
• Cause-and-Effect Essay Topics
• Compare-Contrast Essay Topics
• Descriptive Essay Topics
• Expository and Informative Essay Topics
• Humorous Essay Topics

Literary Essay Topics

• Narrative and Personal Essay Topics
• Personal Essay Topics
• Persuasive Essay Topics

Research Essay Topics

Argumentative essay topics for high school.

When writing an argumentative essay, remember to do the research and lay out the facts clearly. Your goal is not necessarily to persuade someone to agree with you, but to encourage your reader to accept your point of view as valid. Here are some possible argumentative topics to try. ( Here are 100 more compelling argumentative essay topics. )

• The most important challenge our country is currently facing is … (e.g., immigration, gun control, economy)
• The government should provide free internet access for every citizen.
• All drugs should be legalized, regulated, and taxed.
• Vaping is less harmful than smoking tobacco.
• The best country in the world is …
• Parents should be punished for their minor children’s crimes.
• Should all students have the ability to attend college for free?
• Should physical education be part of the standard high school curriculum?

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• Schools should require recommended vaccines for all students, with very limited exceptions.
• Is it acceptable to use animals for experiments and research?
• Does social media do more harm than good?
• Capital punishment does/does not deter crime.
• What one class should all high schools students be required to take and pass in order to graduate?
• Do we really learn anything from history, or does it just repeat itself over and over?
• Are men and women treated equally?

Cause-and-Effect Essay Topics for High School

A cause-and-effect essay is a type of argumentative essay. Your goal is to show how one specific thing directly influences another specific thing. You’ll likely need to do some research to make your point. Here are some ideas for cause-and-effect essays. ( Get a big list of 100 cause-and-effect essay topics here. )

• Humans are causing accelerated climate change.
• Fast-food restaurants have made human health worse over the decades.
• What caused World War II? (Choose any conflict for this one.)
• Describe the effects social media has on young adults.

• How does playing sports affect people?
• What are the effects of loving to read?
• Being an only/oldest/youngest/middle child makes you …
• What effect does violence in movies or video games have on kids?
• Traveling to new places opens people’s minds to new ideas.
• Racism is caused by …

Compare-Contrast Essay Topics for High School

As the name indicates, in compare-and-contrast essays, writers show the similarities and differences between two things. They combine descriptive writing with analysis, making connections and showing dissimilarities. The following ideas work well for compare-contrast essays. ( Find 80+ compare-contrast essay topics for all ages here. )

• Public and private schools
• Capitalism vs. communism
• Monarchy or democracy
• Dogs vs. cats as pets

• Paper books or e-books
• Two political candidates in a current race
• Going to college vs. starting work full-time
• Working your way through college as you go or taking out student loans
• iPhone or Android
• Instagram vs. Twitter (or choose any other two social media platforms)

Descriptive Essay Topics for High School

Bring on the adjectives! Descriptive writing is all about creating a rich picture for the reader. Take readers on a journey to far-off places, help them understand an experience, or introduce them to a new person. Remember: Show, don’t tell. These topics make excellent descriptive essays.

• Who is the funniest person you know?
• What is your happiest memory?
• Tell about the most inspirational person in your life.
• Write about your favorite place.
• When you were little, what was your favorite thing to do?
• Choose a piece of art or music and explain how it makes you feel.
• What is your earliest memory?

• What’s the best/worst vacation you’ve ever taken?
• Describe your favorite pet.
• What is the most important item in the world to you?
• Give a tour of your bedroom (or another favorite room in your home).
• Describe yourself to someone who has never met you.
• Lay out your perfect day from start to finish.
• Explain what it’s like to move to a new town or start a new school.
• Tell what it would be like to live on the moon.

Expository and Informative Essay Topics for High School

Expository essays set out clear explanations of a particular topic. You might be defining a word or phrase or explaining how something works. Expository or informative essays are based on facts, and while you might explore different points of view, you won’t necessarily say which one is “better” or “right.” Remember: Expository essays educate the reader. Here are some expository and informative essay topics to explore. ( See 70+ expository and informative essay topics here. )

• What makes a good leader?
• Explain why a given school subject (math, history, science, etc.) is important for students to learn.
• What is the “glass ceiling” and how does it affect society?
• Describe how the internet changed the world.
• What does it mean to be a good teacher?

• Explain how we could colonize the moon or another planet.
• Discuss why mental health is just as important as physical health.
• Describe a healthy lifestyle for a teenager.
• Choose an American president and explain how their time in office affected the country.
• What does “financial responsibility” mean?

Humorous Essay Topics for High School

Humorous essays can take on any form, like narrative, persuasive, or expository. You might employ sarcasm or satire, or simply tell a story about a funny person or event. Even though these essay topics are lighthearted, they still take some skill to tackle well. Give these ideas a try.

• What would happen if cats (or any other animal) ruled the world?
• What do newborn babies wish their parents knew?
• Explain the best ways to be annoying on social media.
• Invent a wacky new sport, explain the rules, and describe a game or match.

• Imagine a discussion between two historic figures from very different times, like Cleopatra and Queen Elizabeth I.
• Retell a familiar story in tweets or other social media posts.
• Describe present-day Earth from an alien’s point of view.
• Choose a fictional character and explain why they should be the next president.
• Describe a day when kids are in charge of everything, at school and at home.

Literary essays analyze a piece of writing, like a book or a play. In high school, students usually write literary essays about the works they study in class. These literary essay topic ideas focus on books students often read in high school, but many of them can be tweaked to fit other works as well.

• Discuss the portrayal of women in Shakespeare’s Othello .
• Explore the symbolism used in The Scarlet Letter .
• Explain the importance of dreams in Of Mice and Men .
• Compare and contrast the romantic relationships in Pride and Prejudice .

• Dissect the allegory of Animal Farm and its relation to contemporary events.
• Interpret the author’s take on society and class structure in The Great Gatsby .
• Explore the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia.
• Discuss whether Shakespeare’s portrayal of young love in Romeo and Juliet is accurate.
• Explain the imagery used in Beowulf .

Narrative and Personal Essay Topics for High School

Think of a narrative essay like telling a story. Use some of the same techniques that you would for a descriptive essay, but be sure you have a beginning, middle, and end. A narrative essay doesn’t necessarily need to be personal, but they often are. Take inspiration from these narrative and personal essay topics.

• Describe a performance or sporting event you took part in.
• Explain the process of cooking and eating your favorite meal.
• Write about meeting your best friend for the first time and how your relationship developed.
• Tell about learning to ride a bike or drive a car.
• Describe a time in your life when you’ve been scared.

• Share the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you.
• Tell about a time when you overcame a big challenge.
• Tell the story of how you learned an important life lesson.
• Describe a time when you or someone you know experienced prejudice or oppression.
• Explain a family tradition, how it developed, and its importance today.
• What is your favorite holiday? How does your family celebrate it?
• Retell a familiar story from the point of view of a different character.
• Describe a time when you had to make a difficult decision.
• Tell about your proudest moment.

Persuasive Essay Topics for High School

Persuasive essays are similar to argumentative , but they rely less on facts and more on emotion to sway the reader. It’s important to know your audience, so you can anticipate any counterarguments they might make and try to overcome them. Try these topics to persuade someone to come around to your point of view. ( Discover 60 more intriguing persuasive essay topics here. )

• Do you think homework should be required, optional, or not given at all?
• Everyone should be vegetarian or vegan.
• What animal makes the best pet?
• Visit an animal shelter, choose an animal that needs a home, and write an essay persuading someone to adopt that animal.
• Who is the world’s best athlete, present or past?
• Should little kids be allowed to play competitive sports?
• Are professional athletes/musicians/actors overpaid?
• The best music genre is …

• Is democracy the best form of government?
• Is capitalism the best form of economy?
• Students should/should not be able to use their phones during the school day.
• Should schools have dress codes?
• If I could change one school rule, it would be …
• Is year-round school a good idea?

A research essay is a classic high school assignment. These papers require deep research into primary source documents, with lots of supporting facts and evidence that’s properly cited. Research essays can be in any of the styles shown above. Here are some possible topics, across a variety of subjects.

• Which country’s style of government is best for the people who live there?
• Choose a country and analyze its development from founding to present day.
• Describe the causes and effects of a specific war.
• Formulate an ideal economic plan for our country.
• What scientific discovery has had the biggest impact on life today?

• Analyze the way mental health is viewed and treated in this country.
• Explore the ways systemic racism impacts people in all walks of life.
• Defend the importance of teaching music and the arts in public schools.
• Choose one animal from the endangered species list, and propose a realistic plan to protect it.

What are some of your favorite essay topics for high school? Come share your prompts on the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook .

Plus, check out the ultimate guide to student writing contests .

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Unleashing Creativity in Research: How High Schoolers Can Find Unique and Engaging Research Topics

In a competitive college admissions landscape, research accomplishments can help make you stand out, both academically and in terms of extracurriculars. But to achieve these goals, you need to start with a unique and engaging research topic. In this blog post we explain the importance of high school research projects for college admissions, share expert tips for finding your own compelling research topics, and offer you lots of examples of great research topics in different subject areas.

The Importance of Research for High Schoolers

Academic knowledge is driven by inquiry, and virtually all inquiry prompts us to engage in research that advances learning or solves problems. Not only will you need research skills to excel in college, but engaging in high-quality research projects while you’re still in high school can do a lot more than just get you a better grade.

For example, engaging in original research that aligns with your personal passions is a great way to spotlight you curiosity and motivation. And, if you tailor your research project to dovetail with other scholars’ interests, or with a compelling practical application or area of public interest, you’re already spotlighting for admissions officers your ability to apply learning to real life problem solving and public service.

Finally, because a sophisticated research project hones core academic skills, boosts subject-matter learning dramatically, and showcases your academic drive and motivation, an extracurricular research project can go a long way in elevating your college admissions profile!

Great Research Starts with a Great Research Topic

To get the most of a research project, it’s crucial to start with a unique and compelling research topic.

With a research topic that’s relevant and engaging, you’ll get more for the time and effort you’ll be investing in your research project.

Here’s just some of the benefits you can get from a well-designed research project with an interesting and relevant research topic:

• learn new information that’s not covered in your regular classes
• discover cutting-edge ideas, interests, and unanswered questions in your field of interest
• move from passive learning to actively exploring hypotheses and contributing to academic conversations to science, to public policy, or to problem solving
• make important strides as a student, by consolidating your learning and contributing new insights to your field of interest

With research projects offering so many benefits for high school students, it’s crucial to remember that all winning research starts with a winning research topic!

So let’s get started!

How to Develop a Great Research Topic

Researching something you’re passionate about that’s original, relevant, and compelling is key to turning your research effort into something that really helps you grow and stand out academically.

But, if you aren’t going to settle for an overly cliche or general research topic, how do you find one that’s truly engaging and also right for your interests?

Using a thorough and tested multi-step process is probably the best way to chart your own path to a unique and engaging research topic.

• Brainstorming: Good old-fashioned brainstorming is almost certain to help you tap into your own passions and jumpstart the work of developing a great topic. You’re likely to surprise yourself with your own creativity. Be sure to write your ideas down; then finish this step by creating a “short list” of the topic ideas you believe to be most promising.
• Exploratory Research: Sometimes you just need to know a bit more about an area of research in order to come up with the best research topics. Exploratory research is often easy to do online, and is a great way to get insights into the subject matter terrain you’re considering in order to:
• find additional topic ideas
• deepen or narrow a topic idea
• decide if a topic is worth pursuing further

TIP: If you’re exploring topics for a PERSONAL ESSAY for college applications, be sure to check out Crimson Education’s Free Topic & Idea Generator .

Or, do you want to learn more about research-focused extracurriculars for high schoolers , with added guidance and learning in the form research mentorships, internship placements, proposal writing competitions, or summer research intensives? If so, reach out to a Crimson Education Advisor for more information.

• Defining and Refining Your Research Topic or Question: A research paper or project typically involves more than just a short essay: you’ll have to craft a driving question or hypothesis and synthesize information from a variety of sources:
• Is your  topic broad enough to invite meaningful inquiry?
• Is it complex enough to incorporate and evaluate competing perspectives?
• Is there a way to use specific experiments, examples, or case study approaches in order to keep the project focused?
• Outside Guidance and Advice: Getting guidance and input from teachers or professors, other mentors, or industry professionals can be immensely valuable for uncovering new topics or for refining your existing topic ideas!

TIP: Many professionals find it gratifying to talk about their work with an interested young scholar, so don’t be afraid to ask someone in the field for input — it’s a great way to get an expert perspective can really transform a good research topic into a great one.

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Examples of Research Topics Across Disciplines

We’ve covered a lot of ground already, but maybe you’re still wondering, okay, what does a good research topic look like?

As you review the examples below, you can evaluate them on your own by asking yourself:

• Is the topic open-ended enough?  Can the topic be explored with evidence, critical thinking, a case study approach, or some form of scientific method?
• Is the topic relevant and interesting? Does the topic advance scholarly or academic conversations? Or contribute to an area of public interest or social debate? Or have some kind of scientific value?

Topics in Schools & Education

• Should high schools re-invest in vocational education or focus exclusively on a college prep curriculum?
• Should ethnic studies courses and curricula in public schools be required, optional, or eliminated ?
• How can we predict the impacts tools like Chat-GPT will have on student learning?
• Should countries have national curriculum standards, or should local communities and school boards decide what is taught in schools?
• Have charter schools helped the US improve the public education system?
• What countries appear to have the best education systems and what features do they have in common, if any?

Topics in History

• What do important examples in history teach us about the causes of civil war and how to prevent civil war?
• Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt are among the highest ranking US presidents, based on scholarly estimations and public opinions. What do their presidencies teach us about the qualities of great political leadership?
• What constitutes the US’s greatest military or national defense failure? What lessons  can policymakers draw from it?
• Does the history of the Israel-Palestine conflict offer any insights into how to end it today?
• What can we learn about democracy today based on the successes and failures of ancient experiments in democracy?
• If used as primary source evidence by historians, how can art illuminate social history or social progress?

Topics in Government

• Should we protect or abolish the Electoral College in the US?
• Using Canada as a model, what are the pros and cons of a nationalized healthcare system?
• Is affirmative action good public policy?
• Should we reform the US Supreme Court? Why or why not?
• Using carbon cap & trade policy, or a similar economic policy as an example, how effective are economic incentives for solving big social problems?
• Should there be a global revenue tax on large global technology companies?
• Should industrial countries do more to help developing countries cope with the effects of climate change?

Topics in Literature

• How does literature give a voice to the voiceless?
• Why are some books banned or censored?
• Is literature educational or just entertainment?
• Do graphic novels count as literature?
• What characterizes the works of authors who have won Nobel Prizes for literature?
• Can literature —  in the form of novels, short stories, essays, or plays — change the course of history?

Topics in Society, Health, & Human Psychology

• What are the best ways to reduce and prevent bullying?
• Should we criminalize hate speech?
• Since loneliness has been shown to decrease life expectancy, are there any promising ways to combat it?
• What can schools do to help reduce mental health suffering in teens and young adults?
• Do we truly live in an “age of anxiety”? What do the indicators tell us about the scope of the problem and possible remedies?

Topics in Sports

• Should college athletes get paid?
• What are the benefits and downsides of participating in athletics in high school?
• What sports should be eliminated from the Olympics and which ones added? Why?
• How can we use sports to increase international goodwill and cooperation?

Topics in Technology and Social Media

• Should there be more age restrictions on social media access?
• How can society address hate speech and/or disinformation in social media?
• Should employers encourage or discourage more remote work arrangements?

Interdisciplinary Examples

Another great way to pick a research topic is to explore interdisciplinary areas of research . In fact, many engaging research topics are going to naturally encompass different disciplines.

Here are some examples of topics that bridge two or more disciplines:

• What concept(s) from the field of economics might help us find ways to improve education?
• How can we use marketing principles to develop better public awareness campaigns for reducing teen vaping?
• Does participating in team sports help improve mental health?
• How can we apply insights from either microeconomics or from organizational psychology to improve health and fitness?
• How can concepts from the study of linguistics help us understand political messaging and address political polarization?
• What are additional ways we can leverage economic incentives to combat global warming?
• Does mainstream advertising have an impact on social prejudices and stereotypes?

The Social Impact Factor

You should always consider if there are ways to shape your research topic to make your research project more relevant and consequential.

As an illustration, look at the two pairs of research topics below.

Compare the topics in each pair. Does A) or B) have more relevance or urgency in your opinion? Why?

A) What are the personal benefits of participating in team sports?

B) How can we use access to team sports programs in high schools to address today’s teen mental health crisis?

A) How can we use insights from linguistics to promote nonviolence and conflict resolution?

B) How can we use insights from linguistics to reduce extreme political polarization?

If your research topic address a clear “need,” “challenge” or “problem,” your audience is likely to find the topic more engaging and relevant.

What to Do When You’re Not Sure You Have a Good Research Topic?

If you’re not sure if you have a good topic, use the simple rubric below and see how your topic stacks up.

Compelling interest and social relevance. Does your research topic set you up to shed light on an important academic or scientific question? Does it illuminate a controversial and consequential social issue? Will it help solve a consequential problem? If so, you have a topic that will help you stay motivated and be more engaging for your audience.

Personally fulfilling. Whatever research topic you choose, it needs to be a research topic that relates to your own learning interests and passions, otherwise it’s hard to imagine that you’ll get the results you hoped for.

Important academic considerations. A good essay topic will offer valuable benefits for your academic growth and college journey: enhancing and accelerating your learning in one or more disciplines you enjoy studying and boosting your overall academic profile.

Research Resources

Once you’ve selected a research topic, you’ll obviously need to gather information from various sources and synthesize it into a coherent set of claims, findings, or arguments.

Here's a list of basic research tools and resources that you might find useful:

Libraries and Librarians

Libraries, especially academic libraries, are the researcher’s paradise.

If there’s a drawback to libraries, it’s not a lack of resources, but the challenge of finding your way to what’s most useful and relevant!

Fortunately, most libraries come with librarians who are trained to help researchers find the right resources, so don’t be afraid to ask for help!

Popular Kinds of Library Research Resources

Books: Useful for in-depth information, background information, historical context.

TIP: Don’t worry about how “long” a book is — use the table of contents and indexes to navigate to the information you need.

Academic Journals: Get scholarly articles useful for gathering more specialized and more up-to-date information about your topic.

Magazines and Newspapers: Good resources for getting interesting quotes from experts in a current events context or for exploring diverse public perspectives and viewpoints.

Online Platforms and Databases: Although some of these, such as Google Scholar are free and easy to access from any computer and internet browser, it’s often easier to get free access to many others with the help of a school or public library acting as an intermediary. Also, there are so many digital resources and databases, that we recommend getting assistance in this area from a trained librarian.

Reference Librarians: Last but not at all least, take advantage of librarians! They are not a direct research source of course, but may help you navigate quickly to the most useful research resources for your particular topic.

TIP: In many larger libraries, the librarians specially trained to help patrons with research are commonly referred to as reference librarians.

Internet Search Engines

Most young scholars today are already well acquainted with internet searches and search engines, with Google and Bing among the most popular.

Here’s a few tips for upping your internet search prowess:

• Refine your search parameters with more sophisticated search terms and search engine settings
• Know how to identify trustworthy and reliable internet sources

Educational Websites

There are a number of .edu websites operated by reputable sources that provide access to a range of educational content for students at different grade levels. Here are just a few examples:

• Khan Academy: Comprehensive overviews and instructional videos on a variety of subjects
• BBC Bitesize: Provides study guides for different topics (especially for UK curriculum)
• National Geographic Education: Great for geography, history, and science topics
• The Learning Network: (NY Times): Educational perspectives on a wide range of current events topics
• The PBS Newshour Classroom: A respected educational website covering a range of topics

Government and Organization Websites

There are also lots of government ( .gov ) websites offering useful information for researchers. An upside of .gov websites is they are among the most objective and reliable sources of information, appropriate for academic research. Examples in the US include:

• The White House
• The Department of State
• Science.gov
• Department of Justice
• Department of Agriculture
• Department of Education

Websites operated by large, well-established, and highly reputable organizations are also typically good sources of information for researchers.

Examples could be highly reputable news organizations , such as US News and World Report , The BBC , Time Magazine , or The New York Times . Most of these news outlets also have searchable online resources.

Alternately, large international organizations , such as the United Nations or the World Health Organization, or the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation can also be reliable sources of information.

Documentaries and Educational Videos

Easy to overlook as research resources are any number of educational videos, podcasts, and documentary films.

YouTube educational channels such as CrashCourse and TED-Ed are two examples.

Likewise, ordinary streaming services may also list informative, high-quality documentaries.

Final Thoughts

In this post, we've explored a wide array of strategies and considerations for choosing a compelling research topic. From brainstorming and exploratory research to defining and refining your topic with guidance from mentors and professionals, the journey to selecting the right topic is as important as the research itself!

The Power of a Good Topic: Remember, an intriguing and relevant topic will not only captivate your audience but keep you motivated to the finish line.

Aligning with Your Interests: Does your topic resonate with your personal learning interests and goals? This alignment is crucial for achieving fulfilling and meaningful outcomes.

Practical Considerations: Consider how your chosen topic can enhance your understanding and passion in your field of study, especially in the context of your future academic and career goals.

Finally, don't underestimate the value of the resources and tools available for research exploration.

From online search to electronic databases and journals, to librarians themselves, these tools are pivotal in helping you refine your research interests and embark on a successful research project.

Interested in exploring more options for pre-college research experiences? Want information about more advanced research mentorships, competitions, internships, or initiatives? Connecting with a Crimson Education Advisor is the best way to find opportunities like these, both online and around the world, based on your individual interests and preferences.

These opportunities can take you well beyond ordinary classroom research assignments, connecting you with like-minded peers for group projects, with schools hosting summer research intensives or fun and prestigious research competitions, or with university mentors…

We’ve helped thousands of students just like you elevate their extracurriculars with opportunities like these! Contact a friendly Crimson Education Advisor today and find out what you can do…

Finally, stay tuned for future blogs that explore extracurriculars, interesting future careers, diverse majors, and insights for boosting your university admissions strategy!

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• Free eBooks and guides to help with the college application process

About the Author

Keith Nickolaus

Keith Nickolaus is a former educator with a passion for languages, literature, and lifelong learning. After obtaining a B.A. from UC Santa Cruz and exploring university life in Paris, Keith earned his Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley, and then worked for 16 years in K12 education before setting up shop as a freelance writer.

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Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, research paper topic ideas for high school.

I have to write a research paper for my English class and I'm not sure what topic I should choose. What are some ideas that would be interesting for a high school research paper? Any tips on choosing a topic?

Selecting an interesting research paper topic is crucial, as it will keep you engaged throughout the writing process and yield a better final product. Here are some general ideas to consider:

1. Current events: Discuss a recent news story or event and analyze its significance, implications, and potential future developments.

2. Social issues: Investigate topics like mental health stigma, homelessness, or income inequality, and explore potential solutions or contributing factors.

3. Environmental concerns: Study the impact of climate change, pollution, or deforestation, and present possible ways of mitigation or adaptation.

4. Science and technology: Dive into the ethics and advancements in artificial intelligence, CRISPR gene editing, or reusable rocket technology.

5. Education: Analyze the advantages and disadvantages of standardized testing, remote learning, or approaches to address the achievement gap.

6. Popular culture: Examine the role of social media influencers, the effects of video game violence, or the representation of minorities in films and television shows.

When choosing a topic, consider the following tips:

a) Relevance: Opt for a topic that is meaningful and important to you. Your passion will be apparent in your writing and will help you remain motivated.

b) Scope: Select a subject that is neither too broad nor too narrow. A broad topic can make it difficult to focus, while a narrow one might leave you with limited resources. To test the viability of a topic, conduct preliminary research to gauge the available information.

c) Originality: Aim for a unique angle, especially if you're tackling a popular subject. It will make your paper stand out and provide fresh insights.

d) Assignment requirements: Ensure your topic aligns with the guidelines provided by your teacher, such as length, format, and citation style.

e) Consult with your teacher: If you're unsure about your choice, discuss it with your instructor. They can provide guidance and suggestions based on their experience.

Remember, a successful research paper stems from an intriguing topic and diligent research. Good luck with your paper!

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100 blazing high school research paper topics to explore.

Finding high school science research paper topics is like looking for a nail in a haystack. However, we open the pile for you and avail not one, but 100 needles, how does that sound?

Thrilling, right? Then keep reading to unravel the professionally handpicked topics for a high school research paper:

Unique High School Research Paper Topics in Literature

• Is feminism the epitome of literature narratives?
• How is the American Dream portrayed in literature?
• The significance of poetry in society
• The works of Leonardo Da Vinci
• The use of hyperbole and its effect on delivery in literature
• Can we use fables and human stories real?
• How does modern literature compare with traditional research?
• Why is “Harry Potter” so famous among literary works?
• How the works of Shakespeare shape literature
• Why sex and romance is hyped in literature

History Research Paper Topics For High School

• The origin of the American national flag
• Why the legislative branch comprises of the house of representatives and senate
• What necessitated the Nazi holocaust concentration camps?
• The rise of totalitarian leadership among political elites
• What is the cold war, and how is it dangerous?
• Which is best: Liberalism or Conservatism?
• A study of the Aztec Empire and its architecture
• The most capable military in the world
• The correlation between the democrats and the republicans
• Is it essential to study human history?

Interesting Research Paper Topics for High School Students in Law

• Evaluate the effectiveness of the International Criminal Court
• Report on the essence of bail and bond terms for penal offenses
• Why is it essential to study business law?
• Is environmental code still valid today?
• How do people perceive Islamic Sharia law?
• How election laws of the world compare and contrast
• What is the legal mandate of a patent office?
• What is the role of the UN advocating for international justice?
• Does gender play a critical role in selecting judges and magistrates?
• Laws that protect citizens against forceful exile

Biology Research Paper Topics High School

• The functioning of the medulla oblongata
• The study of the cell structure
• What is the hierarchical structure of single and multi-cellular organisms?
• Discuss cellular respiration and cell division
• Do fossil and genetic evidence effectively support that evolution?
• How mutations enhance the ability of a species to survive
• Eye and hair color as hereditary traits
• Creating and maintaining an organism through the genome
• How living organisms support each other
• What happens when one breaks the natural cycle?

High School Senior Research Paper Topics on Technology

• The use of tech in developing vaccines: Hoe effective is it?
• Analyze the impact of the infrared and gamma rays
• How will the 5G change the technology landscape?
• Is Artificial Intelligence surpassing the human brain?
• How technology has led to reduced literacy rates
• What is the most competitive smartphone technology in the world?
• How has technology made the world a global village?
• Is the coronavirus a technology test?
• How the use of drones has improved surveillance
• The growth of hackers and why this is a threat to security

Persuasive Research Paper Topics for High School Students

• Should advertisers use animations or real human characters?
• Is it fair to pay taxes and levies during the COVID-19 pandemic?
• Why is it necessary to wear masks in closed spaces?
• Should pregnant school-going girls continue with their studies?
• Why should students in high school put on uniforms?
• Is it justified to award scholarships to international students?
• Should it be legal for students in high school to own guns?
• Is music an essential item in the academic field?
• Does cold weather affect the spread and danger of coronavirus?
• Why do some cancer patients recover, and others lose the battle?

Physics Research Paper Topics High School

• The role of mathematical concepts and vectors in physics
• Kinematics in one direction and its effects
• How Newton’s Laws contribute to the study of physics
• Discuss the Principle of Superposition and Interference
• Calculating the magnitude and direction of the magnetic force on a particle
• How induced electric and magnetic fields lead to electromagnetic waves
• Applying the wave model to the electromagnetic spectrum
• The properties of different types of electromagnetic waves
• Understanding the concept of polarization
• Discuss the two postulates of special relativity

Medical Research Paper Topics for High School Students

• Compare and contrast between herbal and modern medicine
• The benefits and dangers of vaccinations to children
• Discuss the milestone achieved in cancer treatment and research
• The role of a healthy diet in preventing coronavirus
• Effects of smoking on human health
• Analyze the various eating disorders and their prevention
• The impact of aging on mental and physical health
• How to deal with sleeping disorders
• Success and failures of biomechanics in medicine
• Why are antibodies important in treating diseases?

Math Research Paper Topics for High School

• Why geometrical proofs are important
• How non-linearity presents themselves in real applications
• The role of mathematics in digitizing information
• How algorithms in WWII unlocked the science of creating machines
• The use of Chaos theory in real life
• The place of calculus in science and engineering
• How math developed in Europe
• In what ways is Einstein’s mathematical contribution significant?
• Who invented the “zero” concept and how has it shaped math
• How to derive the famous Pythagoras’ theorem

We wind the curtains on this broad topics list with some of the most recent chemistry research paper topics for high school.

Chemistry Topics for Research Paper High School

• How we collect pure oxygen from the mixture of natural gases
• How to determine PH and why it is important
• Discuss the chemical ways of water purification
• Describe how to perform fractional distillation
• The environmental impact of nuclear energy
• How organic chemistry contributes to discoveries
• The forms of hydrocarbons and their uses
• The five states of matter
• Why is the study of electrochemistry critical?
• Discuss radioactive elements and their uses

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Teaching the Research Paper Part 1: Introducing the Research Paper and Preparing Students for the Assignment

There are three things every teacher should do before taking their students to the computer lab to research information for their research papers: teach the difference between reliable and unreliable sources, check to make sure every student has a self-generated research question, and help prepare students with key phrases and words to search.

Whenever I begin teaching the research paper , I always share with my students the story of how I wrote my Master’s thesis paper. It was a 50 page paper with 50 different sources.

I don’t do this to toot my own horn. I don’t do this to scare my students away from post-secondary education. I don’t do this to make the students feel like their research assignment is petty and small. I do this so that I can explain the process of research to them and so that they know I was once in their shoes.

So how exactly do you write a 50-page research paper that has 50 unique, credible sources? One source at a time.

Teaching the Research Paper: 3 Critical Steps to Take

Teaching the research paper: find credible sources.

When teaching the research paper to my secondary ELA students, I first show them about research and credible sources. Before students can even begin looking for their sources, they have to know how to distinguish between reliable and unreliable sources. Being able to do so is the first step in finding a reliable source.

Once I feel my students have a firm understanding of the sources they will be looking at, we then dive into the research topic, and the students select their issues related to the main topic.

Teaching the Research Paper: Create Questions

One of the critical parts of teaching the research paper to students is having them come up with their self-generated research questions. To do this, I encourage students to work collaboratively and talk about their research topics.

Students can work in small groups to see what their peers would like to know about that matter.

Working in small groups first provides extra support for EL and struggling students. From there, students come up with their questions to answer. There is also a graphic organizer in my Research Paper Writing resource that is especially helpful during this process.

Teaching the Research Paper: Brainstorm Key Words

Once students have a self-generated question, it is time to get students to think about keywords and phrases they will use in their search for sources. All too often I see students typing precise, wordy questions into a search engine. This only creates frustration for the students as well as the teacher.

Taking half a class to discuss keywords and phrases helps students tremendously, and it even speeds up the research process because students can find credible sources a lot easier. When teaching keywords and phrases to my students, I encourage them to type no more than four words into the search engine. I tell them that they must think of the most important words directly related to their topic.

To help students think about keywords and phrases they can use in the search engine, have them think about hashtags for their research topic. This fun, easy, and engaging strategy will get students thinking about what to research and what is explicitly related to their subject.

Teaching the Research Paper: A Research Paper Writing Instructional Unit

Take the stress out of teaching your students how to write a research paper with this complete research writing unit ! This comprehensive and complete research paper writing unit will help you teach your students how to write a research paper. Now available in print + digital!

This step-by-step resource teaches your students the eight steps of research writing, and it includes every single thing you could need for a successful research writing unit! Plus, it is updated for 9th edition MLA!

The editable teaching presentation (which comes in both PowerPoint and Google Slides®) is ideal for direct instruction and includes multiple days of guided instruction! The research writing presentation introduces students to the eight steps for completing a research project: selecting topics, generating questions, brainstorming, researching and gathering credible information, organizing and outlining, writing the first draft, peer editing, and finalizing the paper.

Research Paper Teaching Unit

Take the stress out of teaching your students how to write a research paper with  this complete research writing unit ! This comprehensive and complete research paper writing unit will help you teach your students how to write a research paper. Now available in print + digital!

Read more about teaching the research paper

Read more about research in the classroom with Part 2 which covers research paper topics and Part 3 which includes using Google Apps for research.

THANK YOU! I've had to sit through some painfully tedious COLLEGE classes because so many students aren't learning this in K12 that we're required to take classes on things like how to do a search. I greatly appreciate those of you who are teaching these important skills!

Is there a part 2?

Hi Deena, Thank you for reaching out. Yes. There is a part 2 and a part 3. I will link them to this post!

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62 Best Research Opportunities for High School Students

June 2, 2024

Hands-on laboratory-based research experiences are coveted by just about every STEM-oriented teenager on the planet. Of course, this level of demand renders research opportunities for high school students a valuable and rare commodity. Fortunately, there are a number of reputable summer programs run by universities, government agencies, and private research laboratories that afford young scientists this highly sought-after experience. Research opportunities during the actual school year are more challenging to locate as colleges are, at that time, catering to their own students, and the rigidity of the high school calendar makes participation a further challenge.

What type of research opportunities can a high school student have, anyway?

Research opportunities for high school students can range from introductory to highly advanced. Some programs focus on teaching students the fundamental skills required for research while others place students with a real working research group and allow them to contribute to legitimate experiments and papers. Your level of involvement will depend on the university or organization’s policies, your mentor, your lab team, and the type of research being conducted.

What types of research experiences look best on college applications?

Authentic, laboratory-based research experiences that you get paid for are the hardest types of positions to nail down, primarily because very few of these spots are available. Moreover, such research groups are conducting serious work—consequently, they’re looking for serious, high-achieving students who will positively enhance their dynamic. Additionally, these positions typically require a longer time commitment, with students working full-time (or close to full-time) hours for several months or even years. As such, accepting one of these positions may limit the other types of summer opportunities that you can participate in. Finally, due to safety concerns and restrictions, you will likely need to be at least 16 years old to participate in many types of lab-based research.

On the flip side are research opportunities that you pay to be involved in, with some being more selective than others. Many families wonder if these programs offer legitimate research experience or are simply another way to capitalize off of the college admissions craze, and the answer is that you have to do your homework.

Although some research opportunities offer little in the way of experience, others are truly authentic opportunities to work with a mentor and delve into an area of interest for academic enrichment—no different than any other cost-based summer program. In these cases, the fact that a student prioritized their intellectual curiosity and spent several months seriously pursuing a topic of interest will be an excellent addition to their application. We’ve gone ahead and done the hard work for you—any one of the opportunities listed below is legitimate and worthy of investing your time and resources into.

How do I decide what types of research opportunities to apply for?

If conducting research is important to you, we recommend applying to a mix of highly selective and lesser selective programs to maximize your chances of being accepted to at least one. Beyond selectivity, it’s important to consider additional several factors:

• Time commitment —Some programs may require a multi-week, full-time commitment over the summer. Others may require nights and weekends during the school year.
• Time frame —Some programs are only available in the summer while others run year-round (sometimes for multiple years).
• Cost/stipend —Do you have to pay for the program, or does the program pay you? Research whether the program will be a good fit for your financial situation, including how much it costs and if you’ll receive compensation for your work, either via academic credit or a paycheck. Note that many residential programs are cost-based while commuter programs that only accept local students are more likely to be fully funded and/or offer a stipend.
• Location —Evaluate whether you’d like to attend a local program, are willing to travel to a residential program, or would prefer a virtual option.
• Level of mentor interaction —During some programs, you’ll be closely supported by PhD faculty members, while others may be run by graduate or postdoc students and require students to be more independent.
• Opportunity to publish or enter research competitions —If publishing research or submitting your project/paper to a research competition is important to you, you’ll want to look into whether the program prepares you for that venture.

Our list includes a bevy of summer program choices as well as year-long internships and apprenticeships. We’ve divided the list into three sections: Virtual, Residential/Multi-Location, and Location-Specific.

For each entry, we list the geographic location of the program, the time frame and length of the program, any associated costs or stipends, and the eligibility criteria for participation.

Virtual Research Opportunities for High School Students

Virtual research opportunities for high school students offer ultimate flexibility, in regard to time commitment as well as subject matter.

1) Polygence

• Location : Virtual
• Timeframe : Academic year and/or summer
• Length: 2-6 months
• Cost : $495-$3,695
• Eligibility: No age restrictions

For high school students who want to showcase authentic passion on their college applications, Polygence offers the most personalized and flexible online research program that helps students turn their interests into unique research projects. Accordingly, they pair intellectually curious students with PhD-level mentors to design experiments, build robots, create podcasts, write original screenplays, and publish in peer-reviewed journals in all fields from the humanities to STEM. All 1:1 programs include ten meetings with a mentor in your chosen field as well as a self-selected project topic and outcome, which could include a research paper, a prototype, or a creative piece of work.

A multitude of personalized options are available, including additional brainstorming sessions, time with a specialist who will guide the student through the publishing or research competition process, and academic credit through UCI x GATI. Moreover, Polygence’s Pods program allows students to work with like-minded peers in a group setting.

Sound like a good fit? College Transitions readers can save $50 on their Polygence package.

Research areas available include:

• Computer science, engineering, AI, & game design
• Biology, biotech, chemistry, neuroscience, and physics
• Medicine, surgery, dentistry, and public health
• Business, finance, and economics
• Math, statistics, sports analytics, and quantitative analysis
• Psychology, psychiatry, cognitive science, and social sciences
• Creative writing, history, philosophy, and literature
• Animation, the arts, fashion, photography, and dance

Residential/Multi-Location Research Programs

In the following section, we’ve outlined programs that are residential or offer opportunities in multiple locations, making them more accessible to a wider array of students.

Programs are organized alphabetically by discipline.

Biology Research Opportunities for High School Students

2) university of chicago research in the biological sciences (ribs).

• Location : Chicago, IL
• Timeframe : Summer
• Length: 4 weeks
• Cost : $14,000
• Eligibility: Current sophomores and juniors

In UChicago’s highly selective RIBS program, students practice a range of molecular, microbiological, and cell biological research techniques. The goal? To prepare them to work in a research laboratory. Accordingly, for the first two weeks, students undergo basic training in lab skills and techniques. Then, they spend the final two weeks of the course immersed in an independent research project. At the end of the course, they present the project during a research forum. Moreover, students can expect weekly writing assignments and seminars. To be competitive, students should have a demonstrated interest in science as well as top grades in those classes.

Biomedical Research Programs for High School Students

3) rosetta institute of biomedical research molecular medicine workshops.

• Location : Berkeley; San Diego; Columbia; London; virtual
• Length: 2 weeks
• Cost : $3,580-$4,180 (residential); $2,280-$2,480 (commuter); $430-1,050 (online)
• Eligibility: High school students aged 14-18

Curious about biomedical research but not ready to pursue a full-blown lab internship? Rosetta Institute offers a number of residential and online two-week programs that introduce high schoolers to topics in medicine, drug development, pharmacy, and nursing. For example, current workshops include Medicinal Chemistry, Neurological Bioinformatics, and Molecular Biology of Cancer. All students are taught by PhD-level instructors and complete an original research project.

Chemistry Research Opportunities for High School Students

4) american chemical society — project seed.

• Location : Multiple
• Length: 8-10 weeks
• Cost : Free, and students receive a $4,000 stipend
• Eligibility: All high school students whose families meet annual income requirements, but preferably current sophomores, juniors, or seniors

Having been operational for more than fifty years, Project SEED (Summer Experiences for the Economically Disadvantaged) runs programs at over 350 institutions and has served over 12,000 students. The goal of the program is to empower a diverse cohort of high school students to conduct hands-on research experience in the chemical sciences. Accordingly, all students work full-time on meaningful independent or small group projects, are closely guided by a mentor, and either write a report or do a poster presentation at the end of their fellowship.

Genetics Research Opportunities for High School Students

5) jackson lab summer student program.

• Location : Bar Harbor, ME or Farmington, CT
• Length: 10 weeks
• Cost : Free, and students receive a $6,500 stipend plus funded room, board, and travel
• Eligibility: High school seniors can apply to the Bar Harbor program, while eligible undergrads can apply to either program.

Hoping to design and execute an original independent research project? You’ll be able to do just that through Jackson Lab’s Summer Student Program, which immerses students in one of seven areas: bioinformatics and computational biology, cancer, developmental biology and aging, genomics, immunology and infectious disease, metabolic diseases, and neurobiology and sensory deficits. Moreover, students are closely guided by a mentor and present their research at the end of the summer. Finally, the application process is intense and competitive, requiring two letters of recommendation, a transcript, a resume, evidence of a strong interest in genetics and genomics, and four essay responses.

Pre-Health Research Opportunities for High School Students

6) national institutes of health high school summer internship program.

• Location : Research groups are available at many of NIH’s 27 institutes and centers , including the main campus in Bethesda, MD
• Cost : Free; all students receive a stipend
• Eligibility: High school seniors age 17+

Through their HS-SIP Program, the National Institutes of Health places high school students in full-time research positions within their many active research groups. Subject areas include biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences, and are geared toward students who are interested in pursuing research and healthcare. Moreover, students can take part in Summer Poster Day, where they present their research to the NIH community. They also have access to professional development programs and educational/career advising.

Note that this research opportunity for high school students is extremely competitive; approximately 7% of applicants are ultimately accepted. Finally, if you are under the age of 18 when you participate in the program, you will need to live within 40 miles of the campus that you’d like to intern at.

STEM/Humanities Research Opportunities for High School Students

7) army educational outreach program—high school internships.

• Location : Various
• Timeframe : All Year
• Length: 3 months
• Cost : Free, and all interns receive a stipend
• Eligibility: All current high school students. Some sites may have additional eligibility requirements.

With programs currently available in twenty states, the Army Educational Outreach Program places high school students in university research labs or at a US Army Research Laboratory/Center. Each site has its own technical focus, from biology and materials science to cybersecurity and AI. Regardless of specialty, all interns receive formal mentorship from a professional scientist or engineer, have access to high-tech equipment, and work on relevant research that addresses a current major challenge.

8) Boston University RISE

• Location : Boston, MA
• Length: 6 weeks
• Cost : $5,350 plus room & board
• Eligibility: Current high school juniors

A residential program located on the Boston University campus, RISE offers high school students the opportunity to conduct laboratory research in one of two tracks: Internship or Practicum. Students in the Internship track work full-time on a research project that aligns with their interests, and are mentored by a faculty member, postdoc fellow, or grad student. 15 subject areas are available, including astronomy, mechanical engineering, medical laboratory research, and nutrition. Alternatively, Practicum students work in small groups on structured research related to systems neuroscience and neurobiology.

Research Opportunities for High School Students—Continued

9) michigan state high school honors science, math and engineering program.

• Location : East Lansing, MI
• Length: 7 weeks
• Cost : $4,000

HSHSP is a highly selective, residential program where students can pursue research opportunities in science, engineering, and mathematics. After learning more about the research process, students deeply explore a problem of interest while engaging in an authentic (not “fail-proof”) research experience. Along the way, they’ll work with professionals and peers in their field of interest. Finally, many students have gone on to publish their work or be recognized at prestigious research competitions.

10) MIT Research Science Institute

• Location : Cambridge, MA
• Cost : Free
• Eligibility: High school juniors

With a combined focus on academic coursework and hands-on research, RSI students first take one week of STEM coursework with MIT professors. Here, they’ll learn about current research topics in biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics, physics, and the humanities. Then, for the remaining five weeks, students “experience the entire research cycle start to finish.” During this time, they participate in an intensive, mentored individual project experience that culminates in a written and oral presentation.

The program looks for students who are exceptionally academically talented. As such, the application process is quite intensive. PSAT Math scores must be over 740 and ACT Math scores must be over 33. In addition, students must write several essays, acquire teacher recommendations, and provide transcripts. Ultimately, only 100 students are accepted.

11) NASA Internship Programs

• Location : Various; there are 15 centers and facilities in the US. Remote opportunities may also be available.
• Timeframe : Available during the fall, spring, and summer
• Length: 10-16 weeks, depending on session
• Cost : Free; the majority of interns receive a stipend, but some are unpaid
• Eligibility: High school students aged 16+

NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement (OSTEM) offers a number of internship opportunities for high school students. Available projects change each year and are location-specific, and not every NASA center will offer internship opportunities every session. That said, current projects span a range of subject areas, including Climate Change in the Hudson Estuary and Characterizing the Urban Land Surface Temperature. During the research internship, students will be closely mentored by a research scientist, engineer, or other professional. Note that you will need to make your own housing arrangements if you are not a local student.

Are you an undergraduate student? Check out NASA Pathways , which can provide a direct transition into full-time employment at NASA.

12) Smith College Summer Science and Engineering Program

• Location : Northampton, MA
• Length: 2-4 weeks
• Cost : $4,745 (2 weeks); $8,082 (4 weeks)
• Eligibility: Female high school students in grades 9-12; some programs have specific prerequisites

Fun fact: Smith was the first women’s college to create a program in engineering science. As such, their summer programs are an excellent place for young women to participate in hands-on, introductory research experiences. Two-week sessions are offered, and students can take one or both. Each session offers six distinct course choices. For example, the first session offers Chemistry of Herbal Medicine, Designing Intelligent Robots, and Novel Bacteriophage Discovery. Second session courses include Where the Body Meets the Mind, Supercontinents, Rocks, and Fossils, and the Art and Science of Microcontrollers. Students spend five days a week in class, attending lectures and conducting experiments & fieldwork. Additionally, the program is team-based, allowing students to learn from each other’s ideas and perspectives.

13) Stony Brook University Garcia Center Research Experience for High School Students

• Location : Stony Brook, NY
• Timeframe : Summer (with possible academic year continuation)
• Cost : $4,000 plus room & board

At the Garcia Center for Polymers at Engineered Interfaces, high school students can design an original research project in polymer science and technology during an intensive seven-week summer program. Uniquely, the research can then be continued during the academic year under the guidance of a faculty mentor. Students should be highly motivated and high-achieving, with at least three upper-level science courses under their belt. Finally, past participants have regularly published their research and won recognition in national competitions.

14) Stony Brook University Simons Summer Research Program

• Cost : Students need to cover transportation costs (if commuting) or room/board (if residential). Room/board is $2,781. Stipends are also awarded at the end of the program.

After being matched with a mentor and research team, students are fully immersed in the research process. Placement availability varies from year to year, but typically about thirty projects are available across over a dozen disciplines. These include biochemistry, computer science, geosciences, and pharmacological sciences, among others. Moreover, some have prerequisites, such as specific AP courses or previous programming experience.

All students participate in weekly faculty research talks, workshops, events, and a culminating poster symposium.

15) Summer Science Program

• Location : Astrophysics: UNC Chapel Hill, University of Colorado, Georgia College & State University, New Mexico State University; Biochemistry: Purdue, Indiana University; Genomics: Georgetown, Purdue, New Mexico State; Synthetic Chemistry : Southwestern Oklahoma State University
• Cost : $8,800 max; all program fees are scaled according to what each family can afford
• Eligibility: Current high school juniors and exceptional sophomores

The Summer Science Program offers four different immersive research programs that take place on different college campuses around the country. These include programs in astrophysics, biochemistry, genomics, and synthetic chemistry. Each program has its own research focus. For example, astrophysics students will dive into Asteroid Orbit Determination while genomics students explore Antibiotic Resistance and Directed Evolution.

Students spend six days a week in class deeply investigating their research topics and learning more about general experimental science. They also take part in guest lectures and other special programming.

16) Texas Tech University Anson L. Clark Scholars Program

• Location : Lubbock, TX
• Cost : Free; all students receive a $750 stipend upon completion of their projects
• Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors aged 17+ by the start of the program

The Clark Scholars Program is one of the only programs on this list with research disciplines in the sciences as well as the humanities. For example, current research areas include everything from nutritional sciences and mechanical engineering to history. Over the course of seven weeks, students work closely with a faculty member to complete a research paper in their discipline. They also participate in weekly seminars, discussions, and field trips.

17) University of California Santa Barbara Research Mentorship Program

• Location : Santa Barbara, CA
• Cost : $11,874 (residential); $4,975 (commuter)
• Eligibility: High school sophomores and juniors

During this intensive program, students work 35-50 hours per week on an interdisciplinary research project of their choice. Nearly thirty research areas are available in both the STEM disciplines and humanities; current topics include biochemistry, computer science, history, music, and anthropology, among others. Over the course of the program, they also take two courses: Introduction to Research and Presentation Techniques. Finally, students occasionally continue their research remotely during the academic year, depending on their mentor’s availability.

18) University of California Santa Barbara Summer Research Academies

• Cost : $8,224 (residential); $2,575 (commuter)
• Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, and seniors

Running for four weeks, the UCSB Summer Research Academies allow students to earn up to four credits. While taking a university-level course that teaches fundamental research concepts, students spend the first two weeks of the program developing a research question & framework via hands-on labs. They’ll then spend the final two weeks of the course analyzing their results and building presentations. Overall, they’ll spend about 25-40 hours per week working. Finally, twelve different tracks are available; each involves multiple disciplines. For example, “Bionic Creatures” combines mechanical engineering, materials science, soft robotics, biomanufacturing, and collective motion.

19) University of California Santa Cruz Science Internship Program (SIP)

• Location : Santa Cruz, CA
• Length: 9 weeks (two weeks virtual, seven weeks in-person)
• Cost : $4,750 plus room & board
• Eligibility: High school students aged 14+, although some research groups require students to be 16+

UCSC’s SIP Program offers a wide range of research focus areas, including science and engineering as well as social science, humanities, and art. For example, over 100 projects are currently offered that include everything from “Eating Insects in Silicon Valley: Cultural Gaps Between Food-Tech and Tradition” and “Future Projected Changes in the Distribution and Variability of Ocean Chlorophyll in Climate Simulations.” Before you dive in, you’ll spend two weeks doing online research prep (this part is conducted remotely) followed by seven weeks of in-person, mentored research. Students get to engage in authentic, open-ended projects that fully immerse them in the academic research experience. Moreover, they’ll present their findings at a symposium at the end of the program.

20) University of California Davis Young Scholars Program

• Location : Davis, CA
• Cost : $6,750
• Eligibility: High school sophomores and juniors who will be 16+ by the start of the program

Interested in biological, agricultural, environmental, or natural sciences? If so, UC Davis is a stellar place to explore those interests through research. All students have the opportunity to work on independent, original projects while receiving one-on-one faculty mentorship. Moreover, they each produce a journal-quality paper and symposium presentation. In addition to research, students also participate in a lecture series presented by UC Davis faculty; past topics have included forensic entomology and nutrition, among others. Finally, field trips to educational facilities like the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Bodega Bay Marine Laboratory round out the experience.

21) University of Florida Student Science Training Program

• Location : Gainesville, FL
• Cost : $5,200
• Eligibility: Rising seniors aged 16+

Thinking about a career in science, medicine, math, computer science, or engineering? UF’s Student Science Training Program could be the right fit. For thirty hours per week, you’ll work with a faculty mentor and lab team on university-level, ongoing research. Moreover, you’ll participate in a science lecture series as well as a UF Honors Program seminar class. Over the course of the program, you will write a research paper, present a poster, and give two oral presentations. Finally, social programming is included.

22) University of Iowa Secondary Student Training Program

• Location : Iowa City, IA
• Cost : $7,500

During this intensive and competitive program, students conduct research within small groups that are supported by a University of Iowa faculty member. There are twenty current active research areas, including chemistry, geography, neurology, orthopedics & rehabilitation, and religious studies. You’ll be working on your project approximately seven hours per day, attending classes in the evenings, and participating in structured activities on the weekend. Moreover, all groups will create and present a poster at the culmination of the program.

23) University of Massachusetts Amherst Summer Programs

• Location : Amherst, MA
• Cost : $3,636 (residential); $2,167 (commuter)
• Eligibility: Rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors

UMass Amherst offers two introductory, research-focused opportunities for high school students. These are Antibiotic Resistance: A Global Health Crisis, which allows students to join the Department of Microbiology in researching new antibiotics, and Energy Without Borders, which delves into climate change, infrastructure, and green energy. In both courses, you’ll learn research methods, complete multiple lab experiences, and present a research poster. Finally, students can earn two college credits upon successful completion of the program.

Location-Specific Research Opportunities for High School Students

The following programs are not residential and only offered in a specific location. Many also only accept local students, although some do allow out-of-state students to apply. If that’s the case, you will need to secure your own living accommodations and transportation. Moreover, if you are under the age of 18, you will need to be supervised by a parent or guardian.

Programs are organized alphabetically by state.

24) California Academy of the Sciences—Careers in Science Intern

• Location : San Francisco, CA
• Focus: STEM
• Length: Multi-year (2-3 years)
• Eligibility: 9 th or 10 th grade student enrolled in an SFUSD school with a GPA of 2.5 or higher

25) Cedars Sinai INSPIRE High School

• Location : Los Angeles, CA
• Focus: Pre-Health
• Cost : Free; all students are paid
• Eligibility: High school students age 16+

26) City of Hope Summer Student Academy

• Location : Duarte, CA
• Focus: Biomedicine
• Cost : Free; all students receive a stipend of $4,000

27) Sandia National Laboratories—Internships

• Location : Livermore, CA
• Focus : STEM
• Timeframe : Academic year and summer internships available
• Length: Academic year or 10-12 weeks (summer)
• Cost : Free; all positions are paid

28) Scripps Student Research Internship Program

• Location : La Jolla, CA
• Focus : Translational science/genomics
• Cost : Free; stipends are typically offered

29) UCSF SEP High School Intern Program

• Focus : Biomedical research
• Length: 8 weeks
• Eligibility: High school juniors enrolled in an SFUSD high school, SF charter school, or College Track San Francisco

30) UCSF Summer Student Research Program

• Location : Oakland, CA
• Length: 9 weeks
• Cost : Free; all students are given a stipend between $3,000-$4,300
• Eligibility: High school juniors or seniors, aged 16+

Connecticut

31) jackson lab academic year fellowships.

• Location : Farmington, CT*
• Focus: Genetics
• Timeframe : Academic year
• Length: 1 school year
• Cost : Free; students must be able to receive academic credit for their work
• Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors age 16+ within commuting distance of the lab

*Some fully remote opportunities are available

32) Yale School of Medicine Discovery to Cure High School Internship

• Location : New Haven, CT

33) Yale University Social Robotics Lab High School Internship

• Focus: Robotics and human social behavior
• Eligibility: Rising juniors and seniors aged 16+

34) Argonne National Laboratory — Exemplary Student Research Program

• Location : Lemont, IL
• Focus: Engineering
• Eligibility: Application must be completed by participating teacher

35) Chicago EYES on Cancer

• Focus : Biomedicine
• Timeframe : All year, with two 8-week summer research experiences
• Length: 2 years
• Cost : Free; all students receive $3,100 stipend
• Eligibility: High school sophomore, junior, or senior aged 16+

36) University of Kansas Biotech Research Apprentice Program

• Location : Overland Park, KS
• Focus : Biotech
• Length: Semester

37) Jackson Lab Academic Year Fellowships

• Location : Bar Harbor, ME*

38) National Cancer Institute Werner H. Kirsten Student Internship Program

• Location : Frederick, MD
• Timeframe : Academic year & summer
• Length: 1 year
• Cost : Free; academic credit available during school year, stipend provided in summer
• Eligibility: High school junior age 17+ who attends an eligible school located within a 30-mile radius of campus

39) University of Minnesota Lillehei Heart Institute Summer Research Scholars Program

• Location : Minneapolis, MN
• Focus: Cardiovascular medicine
• Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors age 16+ as well as undergraduate students

40) Coriell Institute for Medical Research

• Location : Camden, NJ
• Eligibility: High school student aged 17+

41) Princeton Laboratory Learning Program

• Location : Princeton, NJ
• Focus : Natural Sciences or Engineering
• Length: 5-6 weeks

42) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory High School Internship

• Location : Princeton, NJ*
• Focus : Physics
• Eligibility: High school seniors (program takes place summer after graduation)

*Remote projects may be available.

43) Rutgers Institute for Translational Medicine and Science Summer Research Program (RITMS)

• Location : Rutgers, NJ
• Focus : Translational medicine/science

44) Rutgers Waksman Institute Summer Experience Program

• Location : Piscataway, NJ*
• Focus : Molecular biology/bioinformatics
• Cost : $2,000
• Eligibility: High school students who have completed a high school-level biology course

*Online version of the program is also available

45) Los Alamos National Laboratory High School Internship Program

• Location : Los Alamos, NM
• Length: 11 weeks
• Eligibility: New Mexico high school seniors aged 16+

46) Sandia National Laboratories—Internships

• Location : Albuquerque, NM

47) Baruch College STEM Research Academy

• Location : New York, NY
• Timeframe : Spring/summer
• Cost : Free, but all students receive a stipend of $1,575
• Eligibility: Must be a NYC public high school sophomore junior to apply

48) Burke Neurological Institute NeuroAcademy

• Location : White Plains, NY
• Focus: Neuroscience
• Eligibility: Completion of NYS Regents Living Environment or equivalent Biology class; cumulative GPA of 3.4 or higher

49) City Tech College STEM Research Academy

• Length: Two semesters (January-August)
• Eligibility: NYC public school sophomore or junior

50) Columbia Zuckerman Institute—BRAINYAC Program

• Eligibility: High school sophomores and juniors from select partner programs/schools in Upper Manhattan and the Bronx

51) HOPP Summer Student Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

• Focus: Biomedical or computational research
• Eligibility: High school students aged 14+

52) University of Rochester Laboratory for Laser Energetics Summer High School Research Program

• Location : Rochester, NY
• Focus: Laser energetics
• Eligibility: Rochester-area high school students who have completed their junior year

53) Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute

• Location : Cleveland, OH
• Timeframe : Varies; depends on lab
• Length: Varies; depends on lab

54) OHSU School of Medicine Partnership for Scientific Inquiry (PSI)

• Location : Portland, OR
• Focus: Biomedical research
• Timeframe : Academic semester + summer
• Length: 16+ weeks
• Eligibility: Oregon-based high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors aged 16+

Pennsylvania

55) fox chase cancer center high school research programs.

• Location : Philadelphia, PA
• Timeframe : During school year
• Length: 2-3 months; depends on program
• Eligibility: Philadelphia-area high school students; students must be 16+ for some programs

56) Penn State College of Medicine Research Internships

• Location : Hershey, PA
• Length: Varies; could be weeks to months depending on lab
• Cost : Paid and unpaid internships available

57) University of Pennsylvania GRASP Lab High School Internships

• Focus: Robotics
• Cost : Free; stipend typically available
• Eligibility: Rising high school senior

58) George Mason University Aspiring Scientists Internship Program (ASSIP)

• Location : Fairfax, VA*
• Eligibility: High school students aged 15+ or 16+, depending on program

*Some fully remote and hybrid opportunities are available, depending on the lab.

59) Jefferson Lab High School Summer Honors Program

• Location : Newport News, VA
• Eligibility: High school students aged 16+ who live within 60 miles of the lab

60) Virginia Tech Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Summer Research Program

• Location : Roanoke, VA
• Focus: Health behaviors research
• Cost : Free; all students receive a stipend of $4,800
• Eligibility: Rising high school junior or senior in the Roanoke Valley

61) Pacific Northwest National Laboratory High School Research Programs

• Location : Richland, WA
• Timeframe : Summer & academic year programs available
• Length: Academic year or 10 weeks (summer)
• Eligibility: High school students aged 16+; some labs may require students to be 18+

62) Seattle Children’s Hospital Research Training Program

• Location : Seattle, WA
• Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, or seniors within commuting distance of downtown Seattle

Final Thoughts—Research Opportunities for High School Students

If gaining research experience is important to you, it’s in your best interest to explore a number of different programs, evaluating whether their structure, length, cost, and outcomes are in line with your goals. Finding the right opportunity may take some time, but it will be well worth the effort required.

• Research Programs

Kelsea Conlin

Kelsea holds a BA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing from Tufts University, a graduate certificate in College Counseling from UCLA, and an MA in Teaching Writing from Johns Hopkins University. Her short fiction is forthcoming in Chautauqua .

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High School Research Paper Topics You Shouldn’t Pass By

Students who have a task to write a research paper often are not assigned the topics from their teachers. Still, finding it on your own is not that simple. It is a widespread practice among teachers to give students the freedom to chose the topic independently. This helps instructors to understand the students’ interests and define issues in writing more precisely. Consequently, when you need to get good research paper topic ideas for high school, you can find them at such helpful sources as EssayShark. We are ready to assist in your topic selection process because we are experienced in various fields of study.

Our experts have developed top high school research paper topics on many subjects, so you can choose the most suitable from the list. If everything turns out well, you can write an engaging paper both for you and your audience. Get inspired by our wide range of topics below to research one of the most interesting themes for your class and create high-quality academic text.

Scientific research paper topics for exact science faculty students

• What is a black hole, and how is it created?
• How does the current state of the oceans affect coral reefs?
• How can scientists save endangered species today?
• Should the US rely on alternative energy more?
• How can humanity improve the state of water around the world?
• What have NASA’s biggest successes and failures been?
• What are the challenges of nanomaterials and nano designs?
• What is the best strategy to slow the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases?
• How will cars with automatic driving systems change people’s future?
• Do people, as they age, pass on genetic abnormalities to their children?
• How can atom-thick graphene be used to create new technologies?
• How can scientists use nanotechnology to benefit cancer treatment?
• How much does photosynthesis enhancement improve crop yields?
• Why doesn’t the flu vaccine work all the time?
• Can scientists develop an anti-cancer vaccine?

List of psychology research paper topic suggestions

• Bullying in schools and precaution measures while educating.
• Gender roles and their effect on human development.
• How should parents prevent the impact of media violence on their children?
• The guilty feeling and its effect on mental well-being.
• Antisocial personality disorder and treatment methods.
• The impact of romance, attraction, and love on human world perception.
• What are the main components of effective leadership?
• The causes of eating disorders and how they can be cured.
• How should parents cope with learning disabilities among kids?
• The causes of speech disorders and treatment cases.
• Why does prenatal development have a significant impact on the baby’s life?
• What causes child abuse?
• Why do people dream?
• What is person perception, and how can it be interpreted from a relationship perspective?
• Attitude formation and the role of moral principles for humans.

Easy level of complexity high school research paper topics

• Where does country music come from?
• What roles do prehistoric visual communications play for the development of language?
• Compare anti-nationalism movements in New York with those existing in Hong Kong, China
• The role of women at the beginning of the 20th century.
• History of developing arts on borderlands between Mexico and the US.
• What is the origin of sin according to the Bible?
• Stages of the Civil Rights Movement development in the 1960s in the US. Which event can be regarded as the most meaningful?
• Which of the three branches of government is the most powerful and why?
• How are jails distinguished from prisons? How do those differences reflected on the treatment to prisoners?
• What is the effect of tree size on the level of soil moisture?
• What can be counted as good teaching and why? Is the teacher’s ability to deliver information more important than vast knowledge in a subject?
• Evolution of the telescope: from ancient to modern.
• Greenhouse effect boosts global warming: myth or truth?
• The political impacts of atomic bombing in Hiroshima and Nagasaki for the USA.
• How have social services evolved in the Bahamas, and what steps should be taken first to enhance them further?
• How did Theodore Roosevelt perform as a military leader?
• Is 21 a perfect age for legal alcohol drinking? Should this age be lowered?
• Which of the most meaningful technological innovations in mechanical engineering have been introduced recently?

Middle level of complexity high school research paper topics

• The social causes for the Russian Revolution and the assassination of Alexander II.
• Can the American Revolution be considered profitable for women’s rights?
• How was the chivalric code invented? Did it work in Medieval Europe?
• What is the impact of air pollution to the population’s health?
• How climate has influenced the development of Europe.
• What steps should a government take to provide people with disabilities with high-quality education?
• How to reduce the involvement of violence in sports?
• How are the problems of racism described in media of the USA, including TV shows, animation, and movies?
• What are the specificities of educating Indian teenage boys?
• The flaws of the American prison system.
• The development of cryptography in the USSR.
• Factors that influence the incidence of African American women’s obesity at the age group of 18-30.
• Dark matter: questions that are still unrevealed.
• How can storing radioactive waste in the United States affect prolificacy?

Difficult level of complexity high school research paper topics

• The significance of Plato’s philosophy of mathematics.
• How to act like a leader during times of change?
• What should school administrators do to prevent the increase in the number of students who become addicted to drugs?
• Can the results of pre-election polls that are enlightened in the media affect voters’ behavior?
• Is there any connection between the educational possibilities for women and their will to have babies?
• Should death penalties be outlawed completely?
• The role of women in the industrialization after the American Civil War?
• What was the impact of the eruption of Mt. St. Helens in 1980 on the local population of the surrounding areas?
• Is music treatment an effective means for mental diseases as an additional therapy? (read the whole music therapy research paper )
• How have the latest immigration reforms influenced Hispanics in the USA?
• What is the significant effect of genetically modified food on the environment?
• Social factors that boost teenage eating disorders.
• How do women immigrating to the USA cope with gender equality, marriage, and social identity?
• What impact does the media have on teenagers’ self-esteem?
• What are the factors that encourage people to be highly moral if they do not believe in God?
• How does the parents’ divorce affect the ability of a child to be educated?
• The importance of early motor development at age three or younger.
• Compare and contrast the level of public security before and after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York.

Chemistry research paper topics for high school

• Why is it necessary to study alchemy?
• Why do we need oxygen?
• Historical view on the discovery of hydrogen.
• Was the discovery of noble gases shocking?
• The first thing you need to know about a redox reaction.
• Who was the first person who developed atomic molecular theory?
• What does oxygen value mean?
• What prevents air pollution?
• What is the condition of water in nature?
• Do you find water purification useless?
• What is interesting about the connection of chemistry and human health?
• What was the first usage of chemistry in medicine?
• How did chemistry in industry appear?
• The connection of chemistry and the ecological problems of mankind.
• The history of creating atomic theory.
• The features of periodic table patterns.
• What does the valence of chemical elements show?
• What are features of a covalent nonpolar bond?
• What is the most unusual thing about crystal lattices?

How to pick research paper topic

To select the ideal topic for your research paper, use the tips below.

To prevent students from having to worry too much about formulating a topic on their own, the teacher often gives them a list of ready-made topics and invites them to independently choose one from it. This option is good because you don’t have to rack your brains over the name of the topic yourself. But don’t miss the moment, otherwise you’ll have to choose from what’s left.

Let’s say, your teacher gave you the task of preparing a research paper about manufacturing in Germany. This topic is quite broad, because you can write about the structure of manufacturing, the most popular companies, the history of German manufacturing, it’s development over the past decade, and much more. Consider narrowing down broad general topics.

If you have the freedom to choose your own topic, pay attention to the selection criteria outlined below:

Criteria for choosing a research paper topic

Understand the topic . The clarity of the chosen topic is crucial for the ease of writing the paper. If the wording is unclear, the paper can become a challenge.

Abundance of material. To start your research, consider searching the internet for materials related to your chosen topic. If you find enough relevant information, it can serve as the foundation for your paper and help you formulate your goals, objectives, conclusions, and other important elements of your work.

Have an interest in the topic. If you choose a topic that doesn’t excite you, working on the research paper will become unbearable.You will experience internal resistance every time and have to force yourself to do the unpleasant work. Reflect on what topics resonate with you. Working with a topic you are interested in will fill you with energy and bring you satisfaction.

Significance of the topic. Consider choosing a topic that will aid your future development.

Topic potential. Consider studying not so much simply in order to know a lot (it is no secret that over time knowledge disappears from our heads), but rather in order to develop a variety of skills and abilities. If you approach writing a research paper as an opportunity to develop your skills in expressing your thoughts, analyzing information, structuring your ideas, summarizing your findings, and presenting your work, then the task is already far from pointless. Evaluate a topic in terms of creativity potential and learning opportunities.

Furthermore, you might ask your teacher to allow you to take on a different, relevant topic if the assigned one is uninspiring.

Find the best research paper topic at our service

Studying in college gives many opportunities. They can fully enrich their career potential by gaining new knowledge. Still, we know, sometimes it is not that easy to cope with all tasks assigned to you. Therefore, our specialists provide qualitative assistance on topic selection, sample writing, and other educational questions.

At EssayShark, students can place an order anytime because our service works 24/7. They leave instructions and get bids from our certified experts shortly. By choosing suitable experts, they dive into great cooperation with one of the most reliable writing services. With us, you will learn not only how to write a research paper introduction , body, and conclusion but also get your unique approach to academic research.

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31 Research Opportunities + Internships for High Schoolers in 2024

What’s covered:.

• Research Opportunities and Internships for High School Students
• How to Find Research Opportunities in High School
• How Will Doing Research Impact Your College Chances?

Research drives innovation across every field of study, from natural sciences to health to history. Pursuing curiosity can impact industries, drive policy, and help us to better understand the world around us. Without curiosity and research, our society would surely stagnate. 

Contrary to popular belief, however, you don’t have to be a seasoned professional to conduct meaningful research. There are plenty of opportunities for high school students to get a head start on their future careers and contribute to substantial change. Keep reading to learn about 30 great opportunities for students looking for early chances to conduct research! 

Research Opportunities and Internships for High School Students 

1. memorial sloan kettering human oncology and pathogenesis program.

Application Deadline: February 9

Location: New York, NY

Duration: Eight weeks (June 27 – August 22)

Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) is one of the most well-known cancer centers in the world. The Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program (HOPP) at MSK hosts a Summer Student Program for students to conduct independent research projects while participating in extracurricular activities, training, and other opportunities.  

During the eight-week program, participants work with a mentor who will act as a supervisor to help them develop their research skills. Additionally, students have the opportunity to complete an independent research project that aligns with their mentor’s work. All participants will present their projects at a poster session at the end of the summer.

To participate, you must have completed at least 9th grade by June 2024, be at least 14 years old by June 27, have a 3.5 GPA in science subjects, and submit two letters of recommendation. This is a paid opportunity—participants will receive a stipend. 

2. Rockefeller University Summer Science Research Program  

Application Deadline: January 5 

Duration: Seven weeks (June 24 – August 8) 

The Rockefeller University Summer Science Research Program allows high school students to conduct real, innovative research over seven weeks through the renowned Rockefeller University, under the guidance of leading scientists. 

SSRP scholars will be able to design and conduct their own research project as part of a themed research track, which is modeled after a Rockefeller research topic and/or technique, with the help of scientist mentors from the Rockefeller community. Most of the research will be conducted in the RockEDU Laboratory—a 3,000-square-foot research space specifically dedicated to developing biomedical research skills.

Students must be at least 16 years old by the start of the program to participate.  

3. Lumiere Research Scholar Program

Application Deadline : Varies by cohort. Main summer deadlines are March 15, April 15, and May 15

Location:  Remote — you can participate in this program from anywhere in the world!

Duration: Options range from 12 weeks to 1 year

Founded by Harvard & Oxford researchers, the Lumiere Research Scholar Program is a rigorous research program tailored for high school students. The program pairs high-school students with PhD mentors to work 1-on-1 on an independent research project . At the end of the 12-week program, you’ll have written an independent research paper! You can choose research topics from subjects such as medicine, computer science, psychology, physics, economics, data science, business, engineering, biology, and international relations.

This program is designed to accommodate your schedule—you can participate in the summer, fall, winter, or spring, and the program is also conducted fully remotely. While you must be currently enrolled in high school and demonstrate high academic achievement (most students have an unweighted GPA of 3.3), no previous knowledge of your field of interest is required. The cost of the program ranges from $2,800 to $8,900, but financial aid is available.

Note that this is a selective program. Last year, over 4000 students applied for 500 spots in the program. You can find more details about the application here .

4. Research Science Institute (RSI)

Application Deadline: December 13 

Location: Cambridge, MA

Duration: Five weeks (June 23 – August 3) 

The prestigious RSI, which takes place at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) annually, brings together 100 of the world’s top high school students. The free program blends on-campus coursework with off-campus science and technology research. 

Participants complete individual research projects while receiving mentorship from experienced scientists and researchers, and present their findings through oral and written reports in a conference-style setting at the end of the program. 

5. NYU Tandon – Applied Research Innovations in Science and Engineering (ARISE)

Application Deadline: March 6

Duration: 10  weeks (June 3 – August 9)

Open to New York City high school students who will complete 10th or 11th grade in June 2024, the ARISE program provides access to college-level workshops and lab research across fields like bio, molecular, and chemical engineering, robotics, computer science, and AI.

Over the course of 10 weeks—four virtual and six in person—participants will receive guidance from graduate or postdoctoral students at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering. 

6. Simons Summer Research Program

Application Deadline: February 7

Location: Stony Brook, NY

Duration: Five weeks (July 1 – August 9) 

During Stony Brook ’s Simons Summer Research Program, high school students conduct hands-on research in areas like science, math, and engineering while working with faculty mentors. Simons Fellows have the opportunity to join real research teams and learn about laboratory equipment and techniques. They also attend weekly faculty research talks and participate in special workshops, tours, and events. 

At the closing poster symposium, students will receive a stipend for their participation. To apply, you must be at least 16 years old by the start of the program and currently be in your junior year. 

7. SPARK Summer Mentorship Program

Application Deadline: N/A

Location: Greater Seattle area

Duration: 8-10 weeks 

SPARK is a summer mentorship program that pairs high-achieving and highly motivated high schoolers with industry experts, university professors, and mentors to conduct research on customers and financial markets. The program is only open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents.  

8. MDI Biological Laboratory – Biomedical Bootcamp 2024

Application Deadline: March 18 

Location: Bar Harbor, ME

Duration: One week (July 15 – 19) 

In this bootcamp, students will receive a hands-on introduction to biomedical research at MDI Biological Laboratory. Participants will learn essential scientific skills such as experimental design and hypothesis testing, cutting-edge laboratory techniques, data analysis, bioinformatics, and scientific communication. 

During the program, scientists and bioentrepreneurs at the lab will help participants explore scientific ethics at large, as well as career paths in biomedicine, research, and entrepreneurship in Maine and beyond.

Participants must be at least 16 years old by the start of the program and must be entering their junior or senior year in September 2024, or graduating in June 2024. 

9. Boston University – Research in Science & Engineering (RISE) Internship  

Application Deadline: February 14  

Location: Boston, MA

Duration: Six weeks (June 30 – August 9)  

RISE is a six-week program for rising seniors with an interest in pursuing a major and/or career in STEM. There are a multitude of tracks available, in areas such as astronomy, biology, chemistry, computer science, environmental science, and neuroscience. In each track, students conduct research under the mentorship of Boston University faculty, postdoctoral fellows, or graduate students. They will also attend weekly workshops with their peers. 

10. The Wistar Institute – High School Program in Biomedical Research

Application Deadline: March 31 

Location: Philadelphia, PA

Duration: Four weeks (July 15 – August 8) 

A leading biomedical research organization, The Wistar Institute is an ideal setting for students to learn research skills. Participants will complete their own research project while being trained in a principal investigator’s laboratory. They’ll also attend seminars, receive mentorship, and deliver a final presentation about their work.

Students are expected to participate Monday through Thursday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Absences of more than two consecutive days cannot be accommodated. Students will receive a stipend of $1,000 upon completion of the program, to compensate for commuting costs or other personal expenses accrued during the program. 

11. California Academy of Sciences – Careers in Science (CiS) Intern Program

Application Deadline: April 1, 2024

Location: San Francisco, CA

Duration: Multi-year, year-round participation (after school and on weekends)

This long term program gives San Francisco students from communities that are underrepresented in STEM the opportunity to learn about the world of science and sustainability. Students receive mentorship, develop career skills, and more—all while getting paid for their work. Students also attend workshops and conferences throughout the course of the program. 

12. NASA OSTEM Internship

Application Deadline: February 2

Location: Varies

Duration: Varies

NASA offers a variety of internships for high school students across its numerous campuses. Interns gain real-world work experience by working side by side with research scientists and engineers, which will strengthen their resume and help prepare them for their eventual careers. All participants must be at least 16 years old and enrolled in high school full time.

13. New-York Historical Society Student Historian Internship Program

Application Deadline: April 7

Duration: July 9 – August 15

Not all research is conducted in STEM subjects! Developed for students interested in history, the New-York Historical Society’s Student Historian Program gives participants the opportunity to conduct research on a history topic—2024’s theme is Our Composite Nation: Frederick Douglass’ America . During the program, participants will work with historian mentors, visit history archives around New York City, lead gallery tours, and develop their historical thinking, communication, and digital media skills.

Applicants must be entering grades 10, 11, or 12, and live in the New York City metro area. This opportunity is unpaid for most participants, but some interns with demonstrated financial need can potentially receive a stipend.

14. Adler Planetarium Summer High School Internship  

Application Deadline: March 1

Location: Chicago, IL

Duration: Six weeks (July 8 – August 14)

During this summer internship program, students will learn about the Adler Planetarium and the career opportunities within it and planetariums and museums in general, in areas ranging from Visitor Experience and Learning to Research. Students will also get the chance to see how research gets translated into a museum experience. 

15. Zuckerman Institute Brain Research Apprenticeships in New York at Columbia University (BRAINYAC)

Application Deadline: TBA for 2025 program

Duration: Eight weeks  

BRAINYAC participants receive the rare opportunity to work on research in a lab at Columbia University , one of the most prestigious institutions in the world, as high school students, which results in a stronger, more comprehensive understanding of how scientific discovery happens. They connect with real scientists, acquire essential research and laboratory skills, and learn about advances in neuroscience research. 

In order to apply, you must be in 10th or 11th grade and must be nominated by one of the program’s partners—S-PREP, Lang Youth Medical, Double Discovery Center, Columbia Secondary School, or BioBus.  

16. Brookfield Zoo King Conservation Science Scholars Program

Application Deadline: Rolling admission 

Location: Brookfield, IL

Duration: N/A

Interactive workshops, fun activities, research, and community-based projects are at the core of this exciting internship. It’s an excellent opportunity for students who love animals and also want to gain research skills in the domains of zoology, environmental science, and conservation. 

As a King Scholar, you’ll learn about different topics through Foundation Courses, such as Diversity Awareness and Introduction to Conservation, all while networking with others and preparing for college and an eventual career in a related field. After one year of participation, you’ll be invited to apply for scholarships and paid positions at the zoo. 

17. The Science Research Mentoring Program (SRMP) at the American Museum of Natural History  

Application Deadline: March 8

Duration: One year (August to June) 

The American Museum of Natural History is one of the most iconic and fascinating places in New York City. Its Science Research Mentoring Program is an amazing opportunity for NYC high school students to conduct a yearlong research project with Museum scientists. 

Students in SRMP get paid to learn how scientific research is conducted. Depending on their topic of study, students can learn a variety of different research skills, like working with DNA in the lab, analyzing data from space-based telescopes, reading scientific articles, and learning to code and analyze data in Python, R, and other programming languages. 

18. Anson L. Clark Scholars Program

Application Deadline:   February 15

Location: Lubbock, TX

Duration: Seven weeks (June 16 – August 1) 

Through the Anson L. Clark Scholar Program, an intensive seven-week summer research program for twelve highly qualified high school juniors and seniors, students will gain hands-on experience with practical research alongside experienced and knowledgeable faculty at Texas Tech University .

Students can choose to participate in research in one field from a broad variety of options, including cell and molecular biology, chemistry, computer science, economics, engineering, history, and more! 

To apply, students must complete an online application that includes short essays, high school transcripts, test scores (at least a PSAT if no others are available), three recommendations (at least two from teachers), and a list of the student’s top five activities.

19. UChicago Data Science Institute Summer Lab Program  

Application Deadline: January 16 

Duration: Eight weeks (June 10 – August 2)

The Data Science Institute Summer Lab Program is an immersive eight-week paid summer research program at the University of Chicago . During the program, high school and undergraduate students are paired with a data science mentor, whose expertise could be in computer science, data science, social science, climate and energy policy, public policy, materials science, biomedical research, or another related field.

Participants will hone their research methodology, research practice, and teamwork skills. No prior research experience is required to apply. All participants will receive access to applied data science research, which they will use to craft a research project. The project findings will be presented in a video that will be shown at an end-of-summer symposium.

20. UT Austin College of Natural Sciences High School Research Academy

Application Deadline: March 24

Location: Austin, TX

Duration: Five weeks (June 10 – July 17) 

Through UT Austin ’s HSRA, high school students participate in interdisciplinary research projects being conducted by active College of Natural Sciences laboratories in fields such as biochemistry, biology, environmental science, genetics, neuroscience, genome engineering, data analytics, ecology, and more. 

There is a scholarship fund for underserved groups, so some stipends and free tuition scholarships may be available to students with demonstrated financial need. 

21. Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience – Summer Research Internship

Location: Jupiter, FL

Duration: Six weeks (June 17 – July 26) 

The MPFI Summer Research Internship offers rising juniors and seniors an immersive laboratory experience where they can learn from seasoned researchers. The program is designed specifically for students with an interest in brain structure, function and development, and the advanced imaging techniques and technologies used in neuroscience. 

Program participants will participate in research projects alongside MPFI scientists, prepare a written scientific abstract based on their research project, and deliver a short presentation at the end of the summer. Research tracks include neuroscience, scientific computer programming, and mechanical engineering as it relates to neuroscience.

Applicants must be entering their junior or senior years in a Palm Beach or Martin County high school, be residents of one of those two counties, and be at least 16 by the beginning of the internship. Interns will be paid at a rate of $12.50 per hour.

22. Lincoln Park Zoo Malott Family Zoo Intern Program

Application Deadline: March 11 

Duration: Seven weeks (June 24 – August 9) 

During this paid seven-week program, high school students learn how to educate others about animal and conservation sciences while crafting digital messages to engage audiences. The program culminates in a final project. Throughout the internship, students meet with researchers and the Animal Care staff to explore careers in the animal science and conservation fields. 

Applicants must be Chicago residents between the ages of 15-18, and must be entering grades 10-12 or their freshman year of college by the start of the internship.

23. The Scripps Research High School Internship Program  

Application Deadline: April 19

Location: La Jolla, CA

Duration: Seven weeks  

The Scripps Research Institute’s La Jolla, California headquarters is proud to offer a seven-week hands-on research experience for San Diego County high schoolers. The program is specially designed to expose students to careers in the biological and chemical sciences, to provide hands-on laboratory experience, and to motivate and prepare students for continuing education in STEM. 

Because Scripps is committed to increasing the number of students from underrepresented communities in STEM college programs, a special emphasis is placed on identifying and recruiting students who are from groups that are historically underrepresented in the sciences. All students will receive a $4,760 stipend.

24. QuarkNet Summer Research Program  

Application Deadline: January 31

Location: DuPage County, IL

Duration: Seven weeks (June 17 – August 2) 

High school sophomores, juniors, and seniors with a strong interest in STEM have a unique opportunity to work with scientists on research projects during this paid seven-week program at the prestigious Fermilab, located just outside of Chicago near Batavia, IL.

Interns are encouraged to indicate areas in which they have a particular interest, although research projects vary yearly based on the work ongoing at the lab. Broadly speaking, Fermilab’s focus is on particle physics.

Required application materials include a questionnaire, a letter of recommendation, and an essay. To apply, students must have U.S. citizenship or permanent resident status and must provide evidence of identity and eligibility to work in the United States. Participants will be paid at a rate of $17.20 per hour.

25. RISE Environmentor Internship

Location: Far Rockaway, NY

Duration: Six weeks (July 1 – August 15)

The Environmentor Internship offers a great opportunity for 9th through 11th graders who live or attend school near the Rockaway Peninsula to gain firsthand research experience. Participants are mentored by scientists from local universities and research institutions as they work on projects focused on the Rockaway shoreline. Past research topics have included sea turtle strandings, octopus behavior, mussel denitrification, and dolphin fin morphology.

Students will also take part in water safety courses, receive CPR training, and explore on-water activities like kayaking and surfing. Students receive up to a $1,200 stipend, as well as community service hours for their participation in the program.

26. Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program (SIMR)

Application Deadline: February 24

Location: Stanford, CA

Duration: Eight weeks (June 10 – August 1)

Students in this summer program are given the chance to perform research on a medically oriented project and work side by side with Stanford University students, researchers, and faculty. Students can choose from eight areas of research, including topics like immunology, cancer biology, and bioinformatics, which are all designed to increase their interest in the biological sciences and provide a deeper understanding of how scientific research is conducted.

The program is open to current high school juniors and seniors. Students will receive a minimum $500 stipend for their participation in the program.

27. Secondary Student Training Program

Application Deadline: February 16

Location: Iowa City, IA

Duration: June 19 – July 26

High schoolers in grades 10 and 11 can take part in an immersive research experience, which will allow them to explore their interests, enhance their academic skills, and build relationships with their peers during this research-focused summer program.

Participants can choose from a multitude of research areas, ranging from biology to industrial and systems engineering to religious studies. The program culminates with students creating and presenting a poster of their findings. All participants will live on the University of Iowa ‘s campus for the duration of the program, and have access to all of the university’s libraries, study areas, and computer facilities.

Although this program is quite expensive, with a fee of $7,500, financial aid is available to cover up to 95% of the cost.

28. Young Scholars Summer STEMM Research Program

Location: Urbana, IL

Duration: Six weeks (June 20 – August 2)

This program, offered by the prestigious Grainger College of Engineering at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) , allows students to gain hands-on research experience in fields such as cancer immunology, AI, physics, quantum mechanics, and electrical engineering. They will also build valuable general life skills by participating in seminars on topics ranging from the college admission process to how to communicate scientifically.

The program is open to rising 10th through 12th graders from Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Iowa, and Wisconsin.

29. Summer Science Program (SSP)

Duration: Varies depending on location and field of focus

Students in the SSP get the chance to work in small teams on a real research project and gain firsthand experience taking and analyzing data. Research opportunities are offered in three fields—astrophysics, biochemistry, and genomics—and are held at a variety of institutions, including University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , Georgetown University , Purdue University , and New Mexico State University .

The program is open to high school juniors, although a small number of exceptional sophomores have attended the program. You must be between 15-19 to participate, and have completed prerequisite coursework, which varies by field. Financial aid is available for this program.

30. The Jackson Laboratory Summer Student Program

Application Deadline: January 29

Location: Bar Harbor, ME, and Farmington, CT

Duration: 10 weeks (June 1 – August 10)

Students immerse themselves in genetics and genomics research while learning about laboratory discovery and scientific communication, as well as building professional skills. Over the course of the 10-week program, students work with a mentor to develop a research project, implement their plan, analyze their data, and report their results.

This prestigious program is competitive. Just 40 students are selected to participate annually. Participants receive a $6,500 stipend and have their room, board, and travel expenses covered.

31. Fred Hutch Summer High School Internship Program

Application Deadline: March 31

Location: Seattle, WA

Duration: Eight weeks (June 24 – August 16) 

This full-time, paid internship opportunity offers students a chance to immerse themselves in activities at the Fred Hutch Cancer Center, one of the top cancer research centers in the world. The program begins with two weeks of laboratory training and is followed by six weeks of mentored activities, research seminars, workshops focused on college and careers, and social activities.

The program is open to high schoolers entering their senior year with a strong interest in science and high academic achievement, and is specifically aimed at students from backgrounds underrepresented in biomedical science. Interns receive a stipend upon successful completion of the program.

How to Find Research Opportunities in High School 

Define your area of interest .

Before you start looking for opportunities, narrow your area of interest a bit, whether it’s cancer, engineering, computer science, neuroscience, or something else entirely. Also bear in mind that while there may be more STEM opportunities available for high school students, research isn’t limited to these fields—research is also a key component of the social sciences, humanities, and other non-STEM fields. 

While you should be somewhat specific about what you’re hoping to research, don’t narrow your scope so much that it’s impossible to find a valuable opportunity, especially since opportunities for high schoolers in general are more limited than they are for students who have completed at least some college.

Talk to People in Your Immediate Circle 

Teachers, neighbors, your family, parents of friends, friends of your parents—any of these people could know about a research opportunity for you, or at least know someone else who does. Throughout your life, you will find that networking is often the key to finding career opportunities. 

Leveraging your network can help you uncover unique opportunities crowdsourced by the people who know you best—the best opportunities aren’t always hosted by large universities or programs. 

Reach Out to Local Institutions and Laboratories 

In addition to networking with your immediate circle, reach out to local facilities, such as labs, hospitals, clinics, and universities that conduct research. Even if opportunities aren’t publicized, these institutions and laboratories may be willing to make room for you. Remember: when pitching your idea, don’t make it too niche—this will make it more difficult to find a fit and market your skills to labs. 

Cast a Wide Net 

Research opportunities are hard to secure, especially when you’re a young student, so you need to be persistent. You may need to write a hundred emails, but if you put in the effort and cast a wide net, you’ll vastly improve your chances of landing a great opportunity. 

Try not to be too picky, either. Of course, you shouldn’t just accept any offer , especially if it doesn’t appeal to you. But even if the opportunity doesn’t align perfectly with your skills and interests, it can still be a great chance to gain experience and make you a better candidate for future experiences.

How Will Doing Research Impact Your College Chances? 

How much participating in research enhances your college admissions profile depends on many factors, including the scope of the project, the prestige of the program or institution, your individual role and performance, the institution’s connections to or sponsorships by certain colleges, and even how much weight a college places on extracurricular activities in general. 

Generally speaking, there are four tiers of extracurricular activities that colleges think about when reviewing applicants’ activities. Selective, competitive, and prestigious activities are often found in the top tiers, Tier 1 and Tier 2. Tier 1 includes things such as being a highly recruited basketball player or an award-winning national science fair competitor. 

Tier 2 is similar, but is usually reserved for activities that are less exceptional than those in Tier 1. Tiers 3 and 4 are reserved for more common extracurricular achievements, such as holding school leadership positions or being a member of a debate team.

Research usually falls into Tier 2, and some particularly prestigious opportunities could even be Tier 1. That’s because it’s somewhat unusual for high school students to conduct research in professional and collegiate settings, so it’s more likely to impress colleges than other kinds of extracurricular activities.

Do you want to find out the impact research and other extracurricular activities might have on your chances of admission to top colleges and universities? Try using CollegeVine’s free chancing calculator ! 

Our tool evaluates your admissions profile, by accounting for factors like your grades,standardized test scores, and extracurriculars (including research!) to show you how you stack up against other applicants and how likely you are to get into hundreds of different colleges and universities. You’ll also receive tips on how to improve your profile and your odds—all for free.

Disclaimer: This post includes content sponsored by Lumiere Education.

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