Students are admitted to the Governor's School or are selected to participate in the Summer Research Scholars Program through a competitive process. Criteria for selection include an excellent high school record, participation in extracurricular science and math activities, leadership skills, and perhaps most importantly, teachers' evaluations. The Summer Research Scholars Program looks for students who are capable of working independently and as part of a team. Students are matched with professional scientists who serve as mentors in the students' areas of interest and who are within driving distance of the students' homes. In some cases, where no mentor sites are available close by, the students are housed at Clemson or the University of South Carolina in Columbia.
All students receive a small stipend for the weeks that they work with the mentors.
Participants are required to submit a formal abstract and present their work at the annual Governor's School Research Colloquium in January. Students are encouraged to present their work at the South Carolina Junior Academy of Science and at professional society meetings through their mentors. All Governor's School students and many students from other schools write formal papers. These are published in the Governor's School Research Book and can be submitted to the S.C. Junior Academy of Science for competition. Recognizing the value of the Summer Research Scholars Program, more than 250 mentors have volunteered their time to guide students engaged in serious scientific research.