How to Do Research as a High School Student

Most high school students think research is for college or grad school.
Reality: you can start now—and do real work that gets published.

This guide gives you a practical path we use inside the YRI Fellowship (YRI) to take students from idea → paper → recognition.

Step 1 — Pick a field you’ll actually stick with

Curiosity beats credentials.
If you love bio, think genetics, neuroscience, public health.
If you love CS, try machine learning, AI ethics, bioinformatics.

Quick scan: read abstracts on Google Scholar and PubMed to see what hooks you.

Step 2 — Build a foundation (fast)

• Short courses: Khan Academy, Coursera, MIT OCW
• Read 2–3 review papers to map the landscape
• Learn the bare-minimum tools (Python/R, basic stats, or lab method)

Don’t wait to be “ready.” Mix learning with doing.

Step 3 — Get a mentor (the cheat code)

A mentor turns chaos into a publishable plan.

• Email local professors (department pages list research areas)
• DM grad students/postdocs on LinkedIn
• Apply to the YRI Fellowship — YRI matches you 1:1 with PhD mentors from top universities

Mentorship accelerates topic selection, methods, and paper quality.

Step 4 — Define one tight, feasible question

Great first projects answer a small question really well.

Ask:

• Can this be done in ~8–10 weeks?
• Do I have data/tools?
• Is the analysis realistic for my skills?

Write a 1-page mini-proposal (Intro → Question → Data/Method → Expected Result).

Step 5 — Execute like a scientist

• Collect/build your dataset or experimental setup
• Track everything in a lab log (dates, choices, versions)
• Analyze with the right tools (Python/R/Excel or lab pipeline)
• Visualize results clearly

Deliverables to create:

• Research paper (Abstract → Intro → Methods → Results → Discussion)
• Clean figures (reproducible)
• Dataset + code or lab notes (organized)

Step 6 — Publish and present

Don’t hide your work.

• Submit to student journals and appropriate conferences
• Enter fairs like Regeneron ISEF, JSHS, BioGENEius
• Present at school/university symposiums; post updates on LinkedIn

Publication = credibility multiplier for fairs, internships, and college apps.

A simple 10-week starter timeline

Inside YRI, we follow a similar cadence with checkpoints and paper reviews.

Common pitfalls (and fixes)

• Too broad → Narrow scope to one variable/method.
• No data access → Use public datasets or simulations.
• Messy figures → Redo visuals with consistent fonts/scales.
• No mentor feedback → Schedule weekly reviews (or join YRI).

Final thoughts

Research in high school isn’t about waiting—it’s about starting.
If you want structure, expert feedback, and a publishable outcome, the YRI Fellowship gives you the exact path many students use to become published researchers before college.

YRI is where ambitious students turn curiosity into real impact.