The next ISPEED in BME program will be held June 29 through July 24, 2026 on the Johns Hopkins Homewood campus in Baltimore, MD. Students selected for ISPEED should plan to live on campus and participate for the entirety of the four-week program.
The application for Summer 2026 is now closed.
The application deadline for Summer 2026 was Monday, March 16, 11:59:59 pm EST. All required application components, including the teacher recommendation and transcript, must have been received by the application deadline for your application to be considered. Please allow us up to ten business days to process transcripts and other supporting documents. If your materials were received by the March 16 deadline, your application will be forwarded to the review committee, even if it takes several additional days for our office to update the application status.
To learn more about applying to ISPEED in Biomedical Engineering, please review the information in the tabs below. This information applies to the Summer 2026 application cycle; information on future cycles will be posted here approximately six months prior to the anticipated program start date.
The application for Summer 2026 is now closed. Program eligibility for Summer 2026 is described below; information on future cycles will be updated approximately six months prior to the anticipated program start date.
Applicants for Summer 2026 must be:
- High-school sophomores or juniors (10th or 11th grades) during the 2025-26 school year
- US citizens or permanent residents
- At least 15 years of age on move-in day and not yet 18 years of age on the last day of the program. Students must meet the age requirements for Johns Hopkins residential summer programs in order to live in the residence halls. For Summer 2026, students must have birthdays that fall between July 25, 2008 and June 28, 2011 to be eligible.
- Motivated to explore concepts in biomedical engineering and solve important problems related to human health, with a demonstrated record of high academic achievement
No exceptions can be made to the eligibility requirements above.
This program is open to all applicants who meet the eligibility requirements described above, regardless of race or ethnicity. Students with diverse experiences, talents, backgrounds, and perspectives are encouraged to apply. In accordance with applicable law, race and ethnicity will not be considered in the selection process.
ISPEED in BME does not have specific course prerequisites. While previous coursework in STEM disciplines is encouraged, our project-based ISPEED in BME curriculum is designed so that students from a range of academic experiences and backgrounds can benefit and succeed. We do not request standardized test scores (PSAT, SAT, or ACT) on the ISPEED application.
The application for Summer 2026 is now closed. The deadline for Summer 2026 was Monday, March 16, 2026 at 11:59:59 pm EST. The admissions process for Summer 2026 is described below:
- Complete and submit the online application prior to the deadline of March 16, 2026, 11:59:59 pm EST. In addition to the online application, you must ask your school to send us your transcript using this form. All application materials, including the online application, transcript, and teacher recommendation, must be received prior to the deadline for the application to be considered.
- Our faculty committee reviews applications throughout March and early April
- You are notified of your application decision around April 17
- If you are admitted into the program, you should accept or deny your offer using the online application portal by April 27
- If you accept your offer of admission, you will receive enrollment forms that you should complete and submit by May 11
- If you are from outside of the Baltimore-Washington, DC metro area, you will receive information about booking your travel to Baltimore by May 18, after all enrollment forms have been received and processed
- Enrolled students will move into the residential hall on Sunday, June 28, and move out on Friday, July 24 or Saturday, July 25
The application for Summer 2026 is now closed. The deadline for Summer 2026 was March 16, 2026, 11:59:59 pm EST.
During the application period, students can apply using an online system. Detailed instructions can be found in the online portal. A completed application for Summer 2026 must have the following components, and each of these components must be received in full by the application deadline in order for the application to be considered. Please allow up to ten business days to process transcripts and other supporting documents. If your materials were received by the March 16 deadline, your application will be forwarded to the review committee, even if it takes several additional days for our office to update the application status.
- The online application
- Two short essays in response to the following prompts:
- [in approximately 250 words] Explain why you want to participate in the Immersive Summer Program for Education, Enrichment, and Distinction (ISPEED) in Biomedical Engineering and what you hope to gain from the experience. Please mention any academic or career goals that you may have, and how this program would help you work toward or achieve those goals.
- [in approximately 150 words] Please reflect on a past or ongoing challenge or life experience that influenced your decision to apply to the ISPEED in Biomedical Engineering program. This can include a challenge or experience related to your academic, extracurricular, or social life.
- Teacher recommendation form: The online application system will prompt you to provide the name and email address of one math or science teacher, guidance counselor, or other advisor/coach/mentor from a STEM-related discipline who can provide a recommendation for ISPEED in Biomedical Engineering. This recommender will receive an email with instructions for submitting the recommendation form electronically. You should ask this person if they are willing to provide a recommendation before entering their contact information into the online application.
- Official high school transcript(s) and most recent report card: A copy of the official high school transcript, as well as interim grades for classes that are in progress, must be sent to ispeed-transcripts@jhu.edu directly from the school. We do not accept transcripts sent by applicants and/or their parents except in the case of homeschooled students. Applicants should give this form to their guidance counselor and allow adequate time for the school to prepare and send the transcript. If a school uses Parchment, Gradelink, PowerSchool SIS, National Student Clearinghouse, or the like, the transcript may be sent that way, in which case a cover sheet (Official Transcript Request form) is not required. Please note that we will not contact a school to request a transcript; this is the responsibility of the applicant. If the original transcript is not in English, an official translation must be provided.
- (Optional) financial aid section: You may apply to receive a one-time, need-based stipend (payment) for your participation in the program. Read more about stipend eligibility and the application process below.
Test scores (PSAT, SAT, or ACT) are not required. You do not need to pay an application fee to submit your application.
All required application components, including the teacher recommendation and transcript, must have been received by the application deadline of March 16, 2026, 11:59:59 pm EST, in order for your application to be considered and reviewed. If your school has submitted documents as part of your application (transcripts, report cards, etc.), please allow up to ten business days for processing. Documents received by the deadline will be considered on time, even if processing extends beyond that date.
Financial support and stipend:
The program and our sponsors provide all students enrolled in ISPEED, regardless of financial need, with full tuition, on-campus housing, meals, required program supplies and equipment, and weekend excursions.
You can apply to receive a one-time, need-based stipend (payment) for your participation in the program as part of the ISPEED online application. Our goal is to make the ISPEED program accessible to all, regardless of financial need. A one-time stipend is available to a subset of ISPEED participants based on financial need and individual household circumstances. Stipends are not guaranteed for all ISPEED participants. Depending on the number of students who qualify, the stipend amount may vary and can be as much as $2,400 for Summer 2026.
You will indicate in the Financial Aid section of your online application if you want to apply to be considered for a stipend. During this process, you will be asked to answer questions about your family’s financial status and to provide supporting documents, such as a copy of the most recent U.S. tax form 1040 for your parent(s)/guardian(s). The information that you provide does not influence admissions decisions and is reviewed confidentially after the application review process is complete. You do not need to apply for a stipend, or have financial need, to be eligible for the ISPEED program. Should you be accepted into the ISPEED program, you will receive a decision regarding your stipend application in your offer letter.