Free Internships Programs for High School Students

Every program on this page costs $0 to attend — cost should never be the reason a strong student skips internships opportunities.

Many free programs are more selective than paid ones precisely because they are funded; treat their deadlines seriously.

45 verified programs match this page; 30 of the featured listings are completely free; 4 can be done online.

Featured programs

Browse 30+ curated programs for high school students:

• White House Internship Program — The White House: Gain hands-on leadership experience with this prestigious White House internship. Perfect for building government skills and boosting college applicat
• Scripps Research High School Internship Program — Scripps Research: Gain hands-on biomedical research experience in this free high school internship for grades 11-12. Build STEM skills and boost college applications th
• Microsoft High School Internship Program — Microsoft: Paid summer internship offering hands-on computer science experience for high school juniors and seniors. Boost college applications while developing
• Science Internship Program (SIP) at UC Santa Cruz — UC Santa Cruz: 8-week summer research internship. Students work in UCSC research labs. Competitive admission.
• Fermilab TARGET Program — Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory: Summer research internship at premier US particle physics laboratory. Work with world-class physicists on cutting-edge experiments. Exceptional prepar
• NASA Internships - High School — NASA: Gain hands-on STEM experience through a paid NASA internship. Perfect for high school students in grades 10-12 to boost college applications and build
• NIH Summer Internship Program — National Institutes of Health: Eight-week paid research internship at National Institutes of Health. Work alongside NIH scientists on biomedical research projects.
• WCS High School Internship Program — Wildlife Conservation Society: Explore a paid summer internship at the Bronx Zoo or New York Aquarium! Gain hands-on biology and conservation experience to boost skills and strength
• NIH Summer Internship Program in Biomedical Research — National Institutes of Health: Paid 8-week research internship at NIH. Work with leading scientists.
• Google Computer Science Summer Institute (CSSI) — Google: Competitive free 3-week Google-hosted summer program in computer science for graduating high school seniors from underrepresented groups, including co
• Garcia Summer Scholars Program — Stony Brook University: Residential research program at Stony Brook University.
• Dow Jones News Fund — Dow Jones News Fund: Gain hands-on journalism experience through a paid hybrid internship for high school juniors and seniors. Build writing skills and boost your college
• Palantir Women in Technology Scholarship — Palantir Technologies: Empower your future in computer science with this free scholarship and mentorship opportunity for high school women. Boost skills, gain experience, an
• State Department Student Programs — U.S. Department of State: Explore leadership and government through free State Department internships and exchange programs. Gain hands-on diplomacy experience to boost college
• Goldman Sachs Possibilities Summit — Goldman Sachs: Selective multi-day career exploration program at Goldman Sachs headquarters for high school juniors from underrepresented groups interested in financ
• Fred Hutch Summer High School Internship Program (SHIP) — Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center: Paid laboratory internships in cancer and biomedical research.
• AFRL Scholars Program (High School) — U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory / USRA: Explore a paid high school research internship in STEM with hands-on aerospace and defense projects. Boost college applications and gain real-world ex
• Mount Sinai High School Research Program — Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai: Competitive summer research program at top NYC medical school. Students work in biomedical labs on real research projects. Strong pathway for medical/
• DOE Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships - HS Track — Department of Energy: Paid high school research internship offering hands-on STEM experience at DOE national labs. Boost your college applications while gaining real-world
• Mikva Challenge Summer Fellows — Mikva Challenge: Gain hands-on experience in government and civic leadership with this paid summer internship for grades 10-12. Build skills and strengthen your colleg
• BU RISE Internship Program — Boston University: Summer research internship at Boston University. STEM research with BU faculty mentors.
• BioBuilder Apprenticeship Challenge — BioBuilder Educational Foundation: Selective biotech internship and training for high school students in grades 10-12. Build real-world synthetic biology skills and boost college applic
• CodeDay Labs Internship Program — CodeDay: Build real open-source software in this free virtual internship for high schoolers. Gain hands-on coding experience, boost college apps, and learn fro
• NIH High School Summer Internship Program (HS-SIP) — National Institutes of Health (OITE): Explore biomedical research through a paid summer internship at NIH labs. Gain hands-on STEM experience, boost college applications, and work with top
• Scripps Institution of Oceanography High School Research Program — UC San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography: Summer research internship at premier oceanography institution. Work alongside scientists on cutting-edge marine research. Highly competitive, demonst
• Girls Who Invest Summer Intensive Program — Girls Who Invest: Highly selective free 4-week summer program placing high school girls and nonbinary students at top investment management firms for training in financ
• Smithsonian Environmental Research Center Internships — Smithsonian Institution: Explore hands-on high school research internships in environmental science at the Smithsonian. Build skills in ecology, boost college applications, an
• Ladder Internships — Ladder Internships: Virtual internship program connecting high school students with startup and organizational work experiences.
• TurnUp Pre-College Program — TurnUp: Pre-college program at TurnUp for high school students focusing on youth activism remote internship.
• Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation Internship — The Ronald Reagan Foundation: Internship at the Reagan Presidential Library focused on leadership, communication, and civic engagement.

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