George Mason University Young Scholars Research Program Fall 2026 AI & Machine Learning for Bioinformatics Research

Total $4,050

Description

George Mason University Young Scholars Research Program

Fall 2026 AI & Machine Learning for Bioinformatics Research

AI · Machine Learning · Bioinformatics · Hands-On Research · Scholarly Research Paper

This Fall 2026 program introduces motivated high school students to the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, bioinformatics, and life sciences. Guided by university researchers and faculty, students work with biological and biomedical data, build predictive models, and complete a hands-on research project leading to a scholarly research paper.

Program at a Glance

Dates: October 3 – December 19, 2026
Format: Virtual — Synchronous + Asynchronous
Live Sessions: 12:00–2:00 PM Eastern / 9:00–11:00 AM Pacific
Coding: Advanced coding experience is not required
Research Paper: Final paper due December 19, 2026

What Students Will Learn

Students learn supervised and unsupervised machine learning, predictive modeling, and how AI can be applied to biological, biomedical, and health data.

Using Orange Data Mining, students build graphical machine-learning pipelines without requiring advanced programming skills. They gain practical experience in data preparation, modeling, prediction, visualization, and interpretation.

Hands-On Research Project

Each student completes a machine-learning research project using biological or health datasets. Research topics may include:

Predicting therapeutic peptides
Predicting disease outcomes from gene-expression profiles
Other predictive applications in biology and health

Research & Scientific Writing

Beyond learning AI tools, students develop university-level research skills in statistical analysis, scientific literature evaluation, research questions and hypotheses, research design, abstracts, literature reviews, and professional presentation of research findings.

Scholarly Research Paper Publication

Students complete a scholarly research paper. According to the official program information, final papers will be published on the Schar School Young Scholars Journals Webpage and in the George Mason University Library MARS Repository.

Why This Program Stands Out

AI + Life Sciences · Real Data · Hands-On Research · Scholarly Research Paper · GMU Faculty Mentorship

The program is designed for high school students interested in AI, machine learning, biology, bioinformatics, biomedical science, medicine, biotechnology, bioengineering, genetics, pharmacology, pharmaceuticals, and public health. Students gain exposure to university-level research methods and emerging AI-driven fields in STEM and healthcare.

Certificate

Students who successfully complete the program receive a:

Young Scholars Research Program Certificate of Completion — AI & Machine Learning for Bioinformatics Research & Scholarly Research Paper Writing

Course Director

Dr. Christopher Lockhart
Research Assistant Professor, School of Systems Biology

Dr. Lockhart’s research combines computational methods, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to study biomolecules of medical importance. His current work includes antimicrobial peptides and computational pipelines for designing peptide-based therapeutics.

Registration & Fees

Tuition: $3,950
Registration Fee: $100
HS2 College Counseling Students: $3,650 Special Tuition

George Mason University Young Scholars Research Program Fall 2026 AI & Machine Learning for Bioinformatics Research

For More HS2 Academy Online Classes Offered