Applications Open! Enroll for Summer 2027 at 2026 Tuition Pricing Until Sept 30
Build an engineering research proposal with Polygence during 2 weeks on the University of Michigan campus for high school students, then continue through 10 mentor sessions.
Course Description
Good engineering research begins before anything is built. It starts with a question that is specific enough to investigate and important enough to pursue. Students learn how researchers move from a broad interest to a defensible question, a workable method, and a clear plan for gathering evidence.
Through literature analysis, research-design exercises, case studies, and proposal workshops, students compare qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods. They practice evaluating source quality, considering ethics, defining variables, and selecting methods that fit an engineering problem. Feedback from peers and the instructor helps students narrow the scope of their ideas and strengthen the logic behind each decision.
This hybrid academy combines an on-campus experience with Polygence’s Core Research Program. During the campus program, each student develops an engineering research proposal, abstract, and professional scientific poster, then presents the work in a symposium-style setting. Afterward, students join a virtual cohort and are matched 1:1 with a Polygence research mentor in their field of interest. Across 10 virtual sessions, the mentor helps each student continue the project at an individual pace toward a research paper, symposium presentation, podcast, or another appropriate final format.
This two-week Summer Discovery full-day academy takes place on the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Students spend the full program focused on one intensive academy. Beyond class, students connect focused academic work with campus life, growing independence, and clearer direction about what students may want to study or pursue next.
What Will You Do?
• Narrow a broad engineering interest into a focused research question
• Evaluate scientific literature and distinguish stronger from weaker sources
• Compare quantitative, qualitative, and mixed research methods
• Design a study with appropriate variables, evidence, and ethical safeguards
• Draft and revise an abstract, research proposal, and scientific poster
• Present the project in a symposium-style session with peer questions
• Continue the project through Polygence’s Core Research Program and 10 one-to-one virtual mentor sessions
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Formulate a focused engineering research question grounded in existing evidence
• Select and justify research methods appropriate to a proposed investigation
• Communicate a research plan through an abstract, proposal, poster, and oral presentation
Students will leave the campus program with an engineering research proposal and scientific poster, a plan for continuing the project through Polygence mentorship, stronger research and presentation skills, and clearer direction for further study.
Why Engineering Research Skills Matter
Engineering research skills help students turn curiosity into a question that can be tested. A strong proposal requires more than an interesting idea. Students must examine what is already known, identify a gap, choose methods that can produce useful evidence, and anticipate limitations.
That process strengthens analytical reading, project planning, ethical reasoning, and communication. Revising a question after feedback teaches students to treat iteration as part of serious inquiry rather than as a setback. Creating a poster also pushes them to organize complex information for an audience. These skills support future work in engineering, science, design, and other fields where decisions depend on evidence and clearly stated assumptions.
Who Should Attend?
Engineering research skills help students turn curiosity into a question that can be tested. A strong proposal requires more than an interesting idea. Students must examine what is already known, identify a gap, choose methods that can produce useful evidence, and anticipate limitations.
That process strengthens analytical reading, project planning, ethical reasoning, and communication. Revising a question after feedback teaches students to treat iteration as part of serious inquiry rather than as a setback. Creating a poster also pushes them to organize complex information for an audience. These skills support future work in engineering, science, design, and other fields where decisions depend on evidence and clearly stated assumptions.
Recommended by More Than 9 out of 10 Students
Based on students surveyed in Summer Discovery’s 2026 program at the University of Michigan.
Why University of Michigan?
Programs on the University of Michigan campus give high-school students the experience of exploring an academic interest in Ann Arbor, a college town where campus and community life blend together. Tree-lined streets, downtown bookstores and cafés, the Nichols Arboretum, and trails near the Huron River create different ways to experience the setting beyond class.
Students learn alongside peers, navigate a large and active campus, and gain independence through everyday choices in a new environment. The experience helps students understand what university life can feel like while giving them space to deepen an interest without having every next step decided. For families, the program offers a meaningful combination of academic depth, community, personal growth, and clearer direction about what a student may want to study or pursue next.
Summer Discovery Certificate of Completion
After successfully finishing this course, you will be awarded a certification completion for your accomplishment.
*This is a preview, not what you will receive