THE International STEM Program

The purpose of the BAFTX International STEM Program is to provide a summer program in the UK for high school students, passionate about STEM, from low income families in Texas.

Purpose Of The Award:

General Description Of The Award:

British American Foundation of Texas provides High School Juniors an all-expenses paid (program, flights, passport, food, transfers, accommodation, insurance, etc.) attendance at the London International Youth Science Forum - www.liysf.org.uk.

LIYSF is 2 week summer STEM program held at Imperial College London (UK’s MIT) & The Royal Geographical Society with lectures from world-leading scientists and Nobel prize winners and visits to other leading research centers, including Oxford and Cambridge Universities. Departure from Houston will be July 22nd and return on August 6th 2025.

Educators and Counselors, you can download our flyer here.

what will I do in London?

Please view the previous year’s program here for an example of lectures and workshops offered and details of the 2025 program here.

The 2025 program is taking shape but confirmed speakers as of January 2025 include:

What will I learn?

You will attend lectures and workshops from world-leading experts about the field of STEM as well as specialized lectures in your field of STEM. These are yet to be announced for 2025 but in 2024 included:

  • Chemicals in the Urban Water Cycle

  • Genome Detectives: Decoding Bacterial DNA to Help Fight Infections

  • Sustainable Cyclical Ecosystems & Waste Use

  • Waking Up to The Importance of Sleep

  • Machine Learning

  • AI in STEM: Unlocking Potential & Navigating Risks

  • The Mathematics & Physics of Wound Healing

  • Searching for New Fundamental Interactions

  • Quantum Science, Technologies & Quantum Computers

  • Understanding the Data from the Large Hadron Collider

  • Forensic Science: Challenges, Break-Throughs & What Next?

  • An Introduction to Tissue Engineering

  • Tackling the Climate & Biodiversity Crisis Right Now

  • X-ray Vision: Beyond Black & White

  • The Impact of Hydrogen Fuel Technology

  • Blood Cancers & Harnessing the Immune System to Treat Them

  • Future-Proofing Our Planet: the Rise of Industrial ClimateTech

  • Ice, Ocean & Atmosphere: Unravelling the Building Blocks of Our Climate

What will I visit?

You will support your classroom learning with visits to laboratories at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and others that may include Imperial College London, University College London (UCL), King’s College London, London Metropolitan University, University of Birmingham, Cardiff University, Cranfield University, University of Essex, University of Nottingham and University of Sussex. as well as private laboratories (for example Airbus, Rolls Royce, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, National Space Centre, National Oceanography Centre, British Antarctic Survey, ​​the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy) and more.

How will I spend my downtime?

Evening events may include team building, quiz night, bus tour of London, cultural showcase, theater night, debate night and more.

Weekends will include sightseeing in London and further afield including Tower of London, Hampton Palace, Stonehenge and more.

Requirements:

Applicants must:

  • Be resident in Texas

  • Be enrolled as a full time High School Junior within the Texas education system;

  • Come from a low income household;

  • Be in possession of a valid passport or eligible to receive one;

  • Be passionate about STEM;

  • Maintain a competitive GPA and hold an excellent school attendance record;

  • Be able to attend a brunch with their families in Houston in March and be able to depart for the UK from Houston in July 2025;

  • Be able to attend an Awards Dinner to receive the award in Houston on April 24th 2025.

Applicants need to provide:

Applicants need to complete an application form (click on the link below) and upload the following to it:

  • Letter of recommendation from a STEM teacher on a school letterhead. If your teacher prefers to keep this letter confidential, it can be sent in separately by email to info@baftx.org before the deadline of 12pm on January 31st. Guidelines for teachers to write your reference letter are available here;

  • School transcript - official or unofficial;

Please note that the deadline for applications is 12pm on January 31st and we cannot accept incomplete or late forms.

Before completing the form, please read our FAQs and Tips for Completing BAFTX Application Forms.

For more information please contact info@baftx.org