AAN Neuroscience Research Prize Mentorship
Admission Insight mentors high school students for the AAN Neuroscience Research Prize from the American Academy of Neurology. A physician-led team helps the student frame a neuroscience question, run it, and write an abstract that holds up on its own.
The prize is judged by physicians and scientists, and the first round reads only the abstract. Projects do not need a traditional lab.
About the AAN prize
Who can enter
U.S. students in grades 9 to 12, regardless of age. Individual work only.
What to submit
An application form, an abstract of at most 300 words, a research report, a bibliography, and e-signatures from a parent, teacher and mentor.
How it is judged
Two rounds. Every application is first judged on the abstract alone; the top applications get a full review. Four winners are chosen.
Prizes
Three winners each receive $1,000 and present a poster at the AAN Annual Meeting with travel paid. A fourth prize presents at the Child Neurology Society Annual Meeting.
Dates
The 2026 cycle opened July 29 and closed October 20, 2026. The next cycle is not posted yet, so the time to start the research is now.
What we help with
A question in neuroscience
Behavioral, computational or bench, sized to what the student can run without a university lab.
Clinical framing
A physician reads the question the way the judges will.
The abstract
Round one is the abstract alone. The student drafts it; we push on every line.
Review rules
Projects with human participants need approval before data collection. We plan for it early.
The student does the work
The student owns the question, the data and the writing. We meet one on one, ask the hard questions a judge will ask, and say plainly in any disclosure what help was given.
Who mentors
Dr. Harman Brah, MD
Physician and judge at the California Science & Engineering Fair.
Wesley Hatcher, PhD
Organic chemistry, UC San Diego. NSF Graduate Research Fellow. Directed research mentorship for more than 100 UCSD undergraduates.
Results
Our students have been Regeneron STS and ISEF national semifinalists and category award winners, and have taken 1st place at JSHS and the Alameda County Science & Engineering Fair.
Free AAN prize guides
Questions families ask
Do you mentor for the AAN Neuroscience Research Prize?
Yes. We mentor high school students one on one for the AAN Neuroscience Research Prize, led by a physician.
Does the project need a lab?
No. AAN says projects do not need to occur in formal or traditional lab settings.
Can students apply as a team?
No. Each project must be the work of one student.
Start with a consultation
Tell us your student's grade, interests and the competition they are aiming for. We offer a complimentary 20-minute call and will say plainly whether we can help.