Work with the world’s best start-ups
Eight weeks. One life-
changing experience.
Ladder Internships is for ambitious high school students who want to solve the world's most pressing problems and get real-world startup experience today.8 weeks are all you need to:
✅ Get a taste of life at a leading startup
✅ Stand out in college and scholarship applications
✅ Stay ahead of the game with future-ready skills and a solid network
Upcoming Spring Cohort Dates
Admission Deadline: Feb 9, 2025
Cohort timing: Mar 3, 2025
Founded by Harvard entrepreneurs, Ladder Internships helps students work with top global startups to build
real-world projects, and stand out in college admission.
Our Impact
50+
Host
Companies
1200
6200+
Applications
Interns
selected
Hear from some of our interns!
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Lan Nguyen
Interned at Vietcetera
“The program catalyzed both my intellectual and personal growth. If you are looking for a challenging and rewarding internship that matches your interests and skills, don’t hesitate to apply!”
Project: Creating machine learning models to boost the company’s subscriber base. -
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Khalid Hajj
Interned at Billion Dollar Startup Ideas
”This was my first real working experience, and I took away a lot of value from it. I also valued my direct interaction with Michael, the founder of my host company, who I found inspiring.”
Project: Building a business plan for a subscription-based AI start-up idea generator. -
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Sriya Bandyopadhyay
Interned at Divercity.io
“Ladder was essential in creating the foundation of the relationship between me and my the host company, Divercity.io. Each task was tailored to fit my interests and strengths while also pushing me to learn new things.”
Project: Creating a go-to-market strategy for a personal finance app. -
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Hannah Bang
Interned at Certintell Telehealth
“Through my host company’s mentoring and being allowed to work independently, I gained work experience that I normally wouldn't be able to receive until after college!”
Project: Coding SMS & email processing systems connected to medical devices enabling broader testing. -
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Christopher Tilley
Interned at Certinell Telehealth
“This program allowed me to get to know myself, my workflow, and how to work with and around other people. Ladder is a great experience!”
Project: Creating strategy documents for a new patient monitoring system.
Our Hosts & Your Mentors
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Dr. Samantha Scott
Founder & CEO,
JuneBrain
Stanford, USC & NIH alum -
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Luke Heine
Founder & CEO,
Fair Opportunity Project
Harvard, YCombinator & Microsoft alum -
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Michael Bervell
Founder & CEO,
Billion Dollar Startup Ideas
Harvard Business School & Microsoft alum -
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Hanh Ha
Co-founder & CEO, Softenmind
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee alum -
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Kevin Junker
Founder & CEO,
Fintech Launch (Stealth Mode)
Cambridge University, Google & Mckinsey alum -
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Min Lee
Founder, CEO & President,
IPMD
UC Berkeley alum
Meet a few of our Host Companies
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JuneBrain
Industry: Healthcare, Tech
JuneBrain is focused on improving remote monitoring in ophthalmology & neurology with a patented wearable eye-scanning device and SaaS platform. -
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Billion Dollar Startup Ideas
Industry: Tech, Media
Billion Dollar Startup Ideas is one of the world’s largest generators and aggregators of unicorn-level start-up ideas, with a reach of over 850,000 people. -
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Softenmind
Industry: Mental Health, Tech
Funded by glocal VC, Antler, SoftenMind aims to bring affordable and professional mental health services to Vietnamese people through using proprietary digital and AI tools.
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IPMD
Industry: Healthcare, Tech
IPMD is on a mission to revolutionize patient experiences using AI solutions, and has been a part of many prestigious start-up programs including those by GCP, Nvidia, AWS and IBM. -
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Fair Opportunity Project
Industry: Tech, Non-profit
Recognized in Forbes, NYT, and the Harvard Education Review, Fair Opportunity Project sends free college application advice to 63,000 public educators and provides free 1:1 mentorship to hundreds of students.
Our Companies & Your Mentors
Funded by
Studied at
Worked at
Available Fields
Finance
Software Engineering
Machine Learning & AI
Tech & Deep Tech
Consulting
Health Tech & Mental Health
Enviromental Science
Media & Journalism
Program By The Numbers
Startup Internship Program
Number of sessions with the host company
8
Hours of work per week
5-10
Duration
8 weeks
CEO Internship Program
Number of sessions with the host company
8
Hours of work per week
5-10
Duration
8 weeks
Internship with high-growth start-up
Work directly with a startup CEO
The CEO/founder from FAANG-level company and/or top 20 university
(E.g., Facebook, Google, McKinsey, etc.)
Mention in Forbes
Have your internship highlighted in a Forbes article
University Internship Program
Our 8-week internship program offers university students the chance to work with startup companies on projects aligned with their interests! With a weekly commitment of 5–10 hours, it’s a flexible way to gain valuable experience.
Combination Program: CEO Internship Program + Mentored Research Program
This 8+12 week program combines a CEO Internship with a mentored research component, offering both professional work experience and the opportunity to complete a college-level research paper.
Program Timeline
Week 1
Meet with the company coach and define the project
Week 2
Work on the project with the company coach
Week 3
Finalize the first draft of the project, meet with the company coach
Week 4
Present the first deliverable to the company
Week 5
Meet with the company coach, define the second deliverable
Week 6
Work with the company coach on the second deliverable
Week 7
Finalize the project
Week 8
Present the final project to the company
What you will get out of this internship
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A real-world project
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Work experience at a top start-up
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Letter of completion by the company
The Application Process
Internships with real-world companies are challenging. That’s why we implement a selection process that helps us select only the best interns.
Submit application form
Interview
Receive application decision
Start the program
Why Is There A Tuition Fee?
We charge a fee to facilitate our internship programs, covering logistics, tailored student training, and coordination with our startup partners.
Last year, we received 6200 applications, interviewed 3000, and accepted 1200 students. We work hard to match the right start-up for YOU!
We have also done our due diligence, interviewed, and selected only 50 start-ups for the program. The companies we recruit are run by FAANG founders (Facebook, Apple, Google…), top 20 university alumni, or have raised over 1 million in funding.
ARE YOU UP FOR THE CHALLENGE?
Upcoming Application Deadlines
Spring Cohort Admission Deadline: Feb 9th, 2025
Cohort timing: March 3rd, 2025
FAQs
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Absolutely! Our team suggests company projects based on an applicant’s interests and notes from their interview. Details of the best fit projects are shared with students who have the final say in whether they wish to move ahead with the suggested match!
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Internships with real-world companies are challenging. That’s why we implement a selection process that helps us select only the best interns. For example, our summer 2023 cohort had over 700 applicants for just 70 spots.
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The program is fully online! Our team itself operates remotely across multiple countries.
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The internship will be fully virtual and will run for a period of 8 weeks. Interns usually require 10-15 hours a week to work on assigned tasks and to meet company management.
The program is designed to deliver tangible results without demanding day-to-day work! -
Yes, we offer full financial aid to those in need. Our sister programs, Lumiere Research Program and Veritas AI, have provided aid to over 150 students.