Nine budding British scientists are being mentored by top Israelis during a research trip to the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot.

The A-level pupils were awarded scholarships to the Weizmann summer science programme and are spending a month covering subjects from biology to computer science.

Among the British participants is David Joseph, 18, from Highgate School, who will be studying natural sciences at Pembroke College, Cambridge. “The trip is fantastic,” he said. The students had spent three days in Jerusalem and “it was enlightening visiting Yad Vashem with an international group, particularly the students from Germany”.

Lisha Lim, 18, from Colchester County High, said: “I’m immersing myself in Israeli culture. I hope to gain a better understanding of the research that’s carried out at Weizmann and to learn more about different cultures that are represented here.”

Extra-curricular benefits were also reported by former Manchester Grammar boy David Baynard, 18, who will be studying chemical engineering at Cambridge’s Emmanuel College.

“On Saturday we walked past a house in the Jewish quarter in Jerusalem full of young Mizrachi Jews saying grace after meals. They heard us walk past and ran out and gave us Yemeni chalah — way better than the stuff in England.”

Daniel Goldberg, Simon Heller, Howard Ko, Carine Moezinia, Sebastian Pozzo and Oliver Segal are the other British participants.