Applications Open! Enroll for Summer 2027 at 2026 Tuition Pricing Until Sept 30
Build medical prototypes in this 3-week biomedical science program for middle school students on UCLA’s campus.
Seats are limited, and this course may sell out for summer 2027. Enroll early to save your seat.
Course Description
How would you design a replacement body part that must fit, move and work with a real patient? Students begin by building a life-size anatomy model, then investigate how stem cells, medical devices and engineering can help repair or replace damaged tissues and organs.
Design challenges make each body system concrete. Teams develop a prosthetic limb, map how 3D printing supports artificial organs and compare treatment options for kidney failure. They build and test an artificial heart valve, model lungs, investigate liver function and create an ear trumpet while considering hearing technology. Vision simulations and a cochlear-implant discussion add patient experience and ethics to the engineering work.
Students document designs and reflections in a science journal while building a capstone proposal for a new application of regenerative medicine. The final project explains the medical need, proposed solution, possible benefits and drawbacks, and connections to areas such as cost, law, education or technology. Students choose a presentation format and share the finished proposal with the class.
This three-week course is part of Summer Discovery’s Institute for the Gifted program on UCLA’s campus. The course is available to residential and commuter students. Beyond class, students connect focused academic exploration with campus life, growing confidence and independence, and clearer direction about interests students may want to explore next.
What Will You Do?
• Build a life-size body model and connect organs to their functions
• Design a prosthetic limb and evaluate its materials and constraints
• Research 3D-printed organs and compare kidney-failure treatments
• Construct and test an artificial heart valve and lung model
• Explore vision, hearing and cochlear-implant questions through simulations and discussion
• Propose and present a new regenerative-medicine application
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Explain how selected organs function and how a medical device may support them
• Apply an engineering design process to build and evaluate biomedical prototypes
• Present a regenerative-medicine proposal that considers benefits, limits and wider effects
Students will leave with a course completion certificate, a science journal, several biomedical models and a capstone proposal, plus a clearer sense of what they may want to explore across medicine and engineering.
Why Biomedical Engineering Skills Matter
Biomedical engineering asks students to connect how the body works with how a design must perform. A heart valve must control the direction of flow. A prosthetic limb must respond to movement and fit the user. A lung model must account for expansion and gas exchange.
Building and testing models develops observation, iteration and evidence-based problem solving. Students also consider the person behind the device. Cost, comfort, access and ethics can be as important as technical performance. Balancing those factors helps them see why medical innovation requires both scientific knowledge and human judgment.
Who Should Attend?
This course is for middle school students who have completed 6th, 7th, or 8th grade and are curious about the human body, medicine, engineering or how devices can solve health problems. It is a strong fit for students who enjoy building, researching, testing ideas and explaining how a design works.
Students should be ready to collaborate on prototypes, record observations, discuss patient and ethical questions respectfully, and develop a project across several checkpoints. The experience can help students identify which medical or engineering questions they want to explore next.
Why UCLA?
UCLA gives middle-school students an energetic place to learn, have fun, and experience campus life in Los Angeles. The setting brings together science, technology, creativity, entertainment, and culture, helping new subjects feel connected to a wider world of ideas.
The program combines hands-on academics with friendships, campus activities, clear routines, and support as students become comfortable in a large university environment. Students can try new challenges, share interests with peers, and build confidence through participation without needing to decide where those interests will lead. For families, UCLA offers a structured middle-school experience that balances substantive learning with fun, community, and age-appropriate independence. Students leave with new memories and a clearer sense of what they may want to explore next.
Summer Discovery Certificate of Completion
After successfully finishing this course, you will be awarded a certification of completion for your accomplishment.
*This is a preview, not what you will receive