Passion Project Ideas for High School Students
Are you a high school student looking to start your own passion project? If so, you’ve come to the right place! In this blog post, we are sharing passion project ideas for high school students.
A passion project is an individualized or independent project that allows students to pursue their own areas of interest or — as the name suggests — passion. In a passion project, students have an opportunity to dive into a specific skill, topic, or medium. There are endless choices for students to get involved!
Curious to learn more about what a passion project is? You may also like this blog post, which outlines how to get started on your own passion project as a high school student.
Examples of Passion Project Ideas for High School Students
There are so many different examples of passion projects that high schools students can pursue! In this blog post, we are sharing plenty of ideas to help you get started with your own passion project as a high school student.
Pursue an independent research project
Getting involved in research as a high school student can help you prepare for the next stage in your academic or professional career. Did you know that high school students can get involved in hands-on research, outside of the classroom?
As a high school student, you can work on a research project by:
Interning in a research lab: Research labs are often looking to hire interns! Internship directories such as Forage can be helpful to explore opportunities from technology and business to fashion and real estate. (Learn more about high school internships here).
Apply to a research program: Many universities, laboratories, academic institutions, and organizations offer summer research programs, available to high school students. These programs typically require applications, so you will need to make sure to plan ahead!
Conduct your own self-guided research: The purpose of a passion project is to pursue your own passions… so why not conduct your own self-guided research? While this option may feel a bit more daunting, it does provide you with flexibility to pursue research on topics you are most interested in! Once you have determined your research focus, we recommend updating your resume and writing a cover letter to email to potential researchers and labs that can support you on this endeavor.
Build an independent research project with mentors from Stanford and MIT: At Inspirit AI, we offer 1:1 mentorship programs to connect high school students to mentors from Stanford and MIT to build their own AI research projects.
This blog post on high school research shares helpful tips and strategies for getting started with research as a high school student.
Develop a website, podcast, or blog on a specific topic
Have you ever thought about starting your own website? What about a podcast or blog?
Blogging and podcasting are two of the most prominent mediums for sharing ideas. Blogging has been around for quite some time — and podcasting, while slightly newer, is also making a big impact in the digital world!
As a high school student, you can create your own blog or podcast where you share your musings on a particular subject area:
Create a blog or podcast on an academic topic: Is there a subject you are passionate about, like anthropology or medicine? Consider creating a blog or podcast on your thoughts about current events or topics in an academic field of your choosing.
Create a blog or podcast on an extracurricular topic: Instead of focusing on an academic topic, maybe you’ll write or speak about one of your extracurriculars! What about starting a sports or food blog/podcast?
No matter what you choose to write or speak about, be sure to always keep your Internet presence professional!
Write a book or series of short stories
Writing a book is certainly a large endeavor, but passion projects allow you to dream big! Consider writing a book or a series of short stories. If you choose to go this route, you may want to do some initial research on best practices for project planning and even time management.
Organize a fundraiser or event to benefit your local community
Many high school students hope to make a difference in the world – and with a passion project, you actually can! A passion project has the potential to make a positive impact on the community. As a high schooler, you could:
Start your own nonprofit that benefits your local community.
Organize a petition that will help solve a problem your community faces.
Film a documentary about an issue in your neighborhood.
Lead a workshop on a topic like sustainability or equity.
Plant a community garden.
Start a small business or nonprofit organization
Do you want to be an entrepreneur? If so, you can start your own business or nonprofit organization as a passion project! First, you will want to come up with a business idea – a product or a service – that will attract future customers. Next, you’ll want to design and build a prototype of that product or service. Once you have gauged interest from potential customers, you can start thinking through:
Coming up with a business name
Building a business plan
Marketing your product or service
Selling your product or service to future customers
Designing a website
And more!
How passion projects help high school students stand out in college admissions
Engaging in passion projects can be a powerful way for high school students to stand out in the competitive college admissions process. Passion projects demonstrate a student's unique interests, creativity, and initiative beyond what can be seen in academic performance or standardized test scores.
Colleges look for students who have demonstrated a commitment to something they are passionate about and have taken the initiative to pursue it on their own. Passion projects not only showcase a student's potential for success in college, but also their character, values, and leadership skills.
By pursuing their passions, high school students can differentiate themselves from their peers and demonstrate their potential to contribute to the college community in a meaningful way.
Get started with your own passion project idea as a high schooler
We have shared a number of different passion project ideas to help you get started, but at the end of the day, a passion project is about exploring what makes YOU excited. Use these ideas as inspiration as you brainstorm your own project topics.
If you are a high school student passionate about computer science or artificial intelligence, consider signing up for one of our programs at Inspirit AI! You can learn more about our AI Scholars program for high school students here.
