Lumiere Research Scholar Program

Turn Curiosity Into College-Ready Research

Start Your Application

Why Lumiere?

1:1 Mentorship with PhDs

Work directly with top researchers from Harvard, MIT, Yale, Columbia, Oxford, and more.

Independent Research Paper

Craft a university-level academic paper in your chosen field.

University Recognition

Receive 3 units of post-baccalaureate credit from UC San Diego Extension.

Impressive Outcomes

Students are 2.9x more likely to be accepted into top universities like Harvard, UPenn, Stanford, and Yale.

Global Community

Join a vibrant network of young scholars from over 143 countries.

Popular Research Fields

STEM

  • Data Science
  • Computer Science
  • Engineering
  • Medicine
  • Biology
  • Neuroscience
  • Physics
  • Chemistry
  • Architecture

Humanities & Social Sciences

  • Economics
  • Psychology
  • International Relations
  • Law
  • Philosophy
  • History
  • Gender Studies
  • Sociology & more

Meet Some of Our Mentors

Caitlin Nichols

Cancer Genetics & CRISPR

Samuel Leiter

International Security & Politics

Praise Owoyemi

Clinical & Health Psychology

Bhargav Gopal

Labor & Law Economics

Sanah Bhimani

Cosmology & Exoplanets

Proven Success Stories

Ojas Gupta

Winner, MIT THINK competition

Alexandra Giuliani

Researched mRNA vaccines for breast cancer

Lily Ashraf

Accepted to Princeton with physics-based Lumiere research

Théo Abramo

Published on AI & global power dynamics under MIT mentor

Publications & Competitions

  • MIT THINK
  • New York Times Annual Essay Contest
  • Regeneron Science Talent Search (with support from Lumiere mentors)

Our Impact in Numbers (2023-2024)

9500+

Applications

23000+

Mentorship Hours

2200+

Mentors

760,000+

in Scholarships

Acceptance from 100+ Top Universities

Choose Your Program

Program NameDurationMentorshipOutcomeCost
Individual Research12 weeksPhD/post-docAcademic Paper$2,990
Premium Publication3-4 monthsPhD/post-docPaper + Publication$5,900
Research Fellowship6-12 monthsPhD/post-docCompetitions/Publications$8,900
Professor Premium3-4 monthsTop 20 ProfessorsHigh Impact Publication$8,900

Lumiere Research Inclusion Foundation

Become a Breakthrough Scholar

Upcoming Application Deadlines

ProgramDeadlineCohort Start
Summer II 2025June 23, 2025July 14, 2025
Fall 2025August 24, 2025September 14, 2025
Winter 2025November 16, 2025December 8, 2025
Winter II 2025December 28, 2025January 19, 2026
Spring 2026February 8, 2026March 2, 2026

Ready to Apply?

  1. Fill the Application: Submit your details and research interests.
  2. Get Interviewed: Shortlisted applicants will be contacted.
  3. Mentor Matching: Get paired with a subject-aligned mentor.
  4. Begin Your Journey!
Start Application

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