12 Spring Internships for High School Students
An internship during high school can be a great way to get a jumpstart on your future academics and career planning in the field of your choice. A high school internship also boosts your college applications, demonstrating to admission officers that you are eager to acquire and hone professional skills.
You don’t have to wait for the summer to start interning! Opt for an internship during the Spring months — internships that run between March and May are often less competitive than summer ones. Further, interning in the spring leaves you a lot of time in the summer to relax, prep for college, or even take up another internship!
Several government departments and agencies, universities, and establishments hire high school interns in the spring. We’ve listed 12 spring internships for high school students that you can consider.
1. Ladder Internships: Spring Cohort
Subject areas: Multidisciplinary—machine learning, engineering, biotech, AI, healthcare and medicine, environmental science, media, and more
Location: Virtual.
Cost: Starting at $1,990. Financial assistance is available.
Eligibility: Open to all high school students who can work for 10–20 hours per week, for 8–12 weeks. The internships are also open to undergraduates and gap-year students! Application deadline: Multiple deadlines throughout the year. The deadline for the spring cohort is usually in January/February.
Program dates: 8-week programs with multiple cohorts, including spring, throughout the year.
Ladder Internships is a fairly selective program — last year, it accepted only 100 students out of 700 applicants. The program provides students with virtual internship experiences and matches them with start-ups and nonprofits across the world to work on a real-world project relevant to the organization. You can choose from fields like machine learning, engineering, media/journalism, biotech, finance, software engineering, healthcare and medicine, and more.
What sets the program apart is its emphasis on mentorship, giving students the chance to work alongside experienced professionals. In addition to working closely with the startup, you will also be paired with a Ladder Coach, who will act as your second mentor, guiding you as you navigate the startup environment. The program includes one-on-one skills training and group training sessions with fellow interns.
Ideal for: Students who want to explore the startup environment, work on a real-world project, and don’t want to contribute more than 10-15 hours a week as an intern.
2. U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Headquarters Student Internship Program
Subject areas: Economics, management/business, policy, and public service
Location: Washington, D.C.
Cost/Stipend: None
Eligibility: High school students in the US who are enrolled or accepted at an accredited institution can apply.
Application deadline: Varies for all three Internship periods. You can apply in October for the spring internships.
Program dates: Treasury typically offers internship opportunities in three sessions: Spring, summer, and fall. The spring internships run from January to May.
This an unpaid opportunity for high school students. As an intern, you will collect, analyze, and present policy data, conduct research, and summarize academic literature and news important for the department’s top missions. Additionally, you get to attend and report on Congressional hearings, meetings, and conferences. You will also be expected to come up with talking points, briefing material, and reports for department leaders and stakeholders.
This is a great option if you’re looking to build a foundation for a career in public service. During this internship, you can hone your research and analytical skills as well as management and organizational skills through interactions with Treasury staff and other government agencies. You can intern at any one of the several offices that make up the Treasury Departmental Offices (headquarters). You can look for vacancies here.
Ideal for: Students interested in exploring federal careers and work opportunities in the public sector.
Subject areas: Public service, political science, public policy, legislature
Location: United States Senate, Washington D.C. During the school year, pages have to live in the Daniel Webster Senate Page Residence on Capitol Hill, Washington D.C. This costs $780 per month, which is deducted from the stipend.
Stipend: Stipend is offered on an annual salary of $35,360. As most pages do not serve the entire year, they can expect a monthly stipend of $2,946.
Eligibility: Rising juniors and rising seniors who are 16 or 17 years old and have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0/B can apply.
Application deadline: Rolling
Program dates: Multiple sessions throughout the year. The Spring 2024 session will run from January 28, 2024–June 7, 2024.
The US Senate Page Program, one of the longest-running opportunities for high school students interested in political science, provides you with real-world experience. Pages are sponsored by senators and will reside in Washington D.C. for the duration of the program. As a page, you will be assigned various tasks such as delivering correspondence and legislative material within the Capitol and Senate office buildings, preparing the chamber for Senate sessions, and working on the Senate floor, which would involve offering assistance during roll call votes, offering support to senators and staff during debates, and carrying bills and amendments to the desk. You will also be expected to attend page school every morning. The program only has 30-page positions for supporting 100 members of the US Senate, so not all senators will sponsor or select a page. You can directly reach out to a senator here to check if they are willing to sponsor a page.
Ideal for: High school students interested in learning about the inner workings of the US Senate and experiencing working life in the nation’s capital.
4. Foreign Policy Research Institute Internships
Subject areas: US foreign policy, international relations, and global affairs
Location: Remote and in-person (Philadelphia) options
Stipend: None
Eligibility: High school students authorized for employment in the US can apply.
Application deadline: Deadlines vary for each of the three internship periods.
Program dates: The spring session runs from February to May (exact dates TBA)
Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI) offers a competitive internship program for ambitious high school students interested in pursuing a career in international relations. This program is designed to help interns learn about foreign policy and international relations and hone their critical thinking, communication, and collaboration skills. You will get the chance to connect with members of the foreign relations community and attend weekly foreign policy seminars conducted by guest speakers. You can choose to be a research intern, special events intern, communications intern, or operations intern. The requirements, duties, and internship format (virtual, hybrid, or in-person) can vary for each opportunity. During the internship, you also get to work on a research paper that can published on the FPRI’s Intern Corner.
Ideal for: Students interested in international affairs, and those who wish to explore working for a think tank.
5. American Psychological Association (APA) Internships
Subject area: Psychology
Location: Remote or Washington, D.C.
Stipend: Both paid and unpaid internships are available. Information on the exact stipend amount is not available.
Eligibility: Exact requirements vary as per the position. However, students living in these areas cannot apply.
Application deadline: Varies based on the internship
Program dates: Internships are offered throughout the year on a rolling basis.
The American Psychological Association, also known as APA, is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the US. It offers both remote and in-person internship opportunities for high school students. The specific requirements and duties can vary based on the position — in departments such as policy, research, communications, operations, ITS, and financial services. Additionally, internships at APA typically offer you the opportunity to participate in research, writing, and web-based projects. You may also assist APA staff with administrative tasks and special projects. The goal is to help students have a better understanding of the workplace environment in professional psychology. During the internship, you will also get to attend workshops and discussions and participate in group projects. Additionally, you get the chance to interact with senior psychologists. You can find all available internship opportunities here.
Ideal for: Those interested in exploring a career in psychology, and are curious about what a professional environment in the field looks like.
Subject areas: Multidisciplinary—space science, engineering, aeronautics, technology, space microbiology, ecology, business, IT, and more
Location: Multiple locations in the US. Virtual opportunities are available too.
Stipend: Most interns receive a stipend based on academic level and session length.
Eligibility: High school students who are at least 16 years old and have a GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale are eligible.
Application deadline: Varies from internship to internship. Spring programs typically have an August deadline.
Program dates: NASA’s OSTEM typically offers internship opportunities in three sessions: Spring, summer, and fall. Spring internships run 16 weeks from mid-January to early May.
NASA internships are worth considering for the wide variety of practical opportunities available to high school students interested in contributing to NASA’s mission to advance science, technology, aeronautics, and space exploration. NASA provides internships at all its locations around the USA, and a few virtual opportunities too. Look up available opportunities here.
With a NASA internship, you get hands-on work experience by working with mentors like research scientists and engineers. Internships are offered in three internship sessions throughout the year, including spring. Each internship involves short-term work on a specific project. For instance, you may be involved in designing experiments, analyzing data from space missions, developing new technologies, or even supporting business and program management work. This can help you gain valuable experience and insight into NASA's work. You can select a unique project in the next session if you want to intern with NASA multiple times.
Ideal for: Students looking to pursue a prestigious internship opportunity. Along with STEM internships, opportunities related to business and program management work, including procurement, budgeting, accounting, information technology, and security are also available.
7. Department of Education Internship Opportunities
Subject areas: Multidisciplinary
Location: Washington D.C.
Stipend: Paid and unpaid opportunities
Eligibility: High school students who are at least 16 years old can apply
Application deadline: Rolling, dependent on program dates. Winter/spring internship applications are typically open from September 1 to November 30.
Program dates: ED offers internships in the summer, fall, and winter/spring, with each program lasting 8 to 10 weeks. The winter/spring internships run from January to May.
The Department of Education (ED) internships give students a chance to contribute to government and federal education, policy, and administration. The aim is to tailor the internship experience to the student’s interest, so you can choose opportunities from areas like education policies, data analytics, grants management, and more. You get to explore career paths in your fields of interest. The exact requirements will vary as per the position. You are expected to work 20 to 40 hours per week during the spring term. That being said, all scheduling, including start/end dates and hours per week, is flexible and can be negotiated. This is a great way to network and potentially build a foundation for a federal career. You can look for available opportunities here.
Ideal for: Students looking to gain experience working in government and federal education, policy, and administration.
8. New York City Mayor’s Office Internship
Subject areas: Multidisciplinary depending on the department selected, with a focus on communications, research, policy, public service, and political science
Location: New York City
Stipend: $15 per hour
Eligibility: High school students who are at least 16 years old and residents of NYC (a condition for fall/spring term) can apply. All applicants under 18 need to have their youth working papers to be eligible for the program.
Application deadline: The upcoming summer and fall/spring dates are yet to be announced. The deadline for the summer term is likely to be mid-March and for the fall/spring term is likely to be early September based on previous years
Program dates: The fall/spring term typically runs from September/October to April (dates TBA for 2024-25)
The New York City Mayor’s Office’s paid internship program gives high school students a chance to engage in the city government’s everyday operations. You can choose one of the various departments within the office when you apply. During the internship, you will get the chance to collaborate with the department staff and work on tasks such as conducting research, attending meetings, analyzing data, managing incoming inquiries, drafting briefings, staffing events, and more. The program also conducts a bi-weekly Speaker Series to help students learn more about the inner workings of the NYC government. Guest speakers could be deputy mayors, commissioners, program directors, and other senior staff. Interns are also expected to work together on developing a service project that focuses on helping the most deserving communities and New Yorkers in need. You can apply here.
Ideal for: Students interested in learning about the inner workings of a city government and day-to-operations of a mayor’s office.
9. University of Maryland MathQuantum Fellowships
Subject areas: Mathematics and quantum information science
Location: University of Maryland College Park campus, College Park, MD
Stipend: Fall and spring fellows get a $2,500 stipend + $1,000 for attending conferences/workshops.
Eligibility: High school students familiar with one or more areas of applied mathematics and an interest in quantum information science can apply. Applicants should also be able to commute to the UMD campus.
Application deadline: Applications typically close in December.
Program dates: Varies as per the session.
University of Maryland’s MathQuantum is a Research Training Group that focuses on integrating mathematicians into the field of quantum information science (QIS). In an effort to fill gaps in knowledge and skills needed to apply mathematics toward addressing QIS research problems, it offers MathQuantum Fellowships to high schoolers as well as college students. Although called a fellowship, participants get a stipend, in-depth research training, and one-on-one mentorship. For those with a foundational background in mathematics but limited exposure to quantum information science, the program serves as a gateway into the exciting research area. Additionally, during the fellowship period, you will get coursework, attend seminars, intern at quantum companies and government labs, engage in professional development and networking opportunities, get career guidance, and participate in community-building activities. You will also be expected to participate in a mentored research project, which will focus on applying math to the field of QIS.
Ideal for: Students who are interested in quantum information science research and have some level of familiarity or interest in one or more applied math areas like algebra/representation theory, nonlinear analysis, scientific computing and stochastic analysis, PDEs, data science, and machine learning.
10. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Scholars Program
Subject area: STEM
Location: Several locations across the United States.
Stipend: $492.40/per week
Eligibility: High school students who are at least 16 years old can apply. Check the detailed eligibility criteria here.
Application deadline: Deadlines vary based on the chosen site.
Program dates: The program typically offers summer internships, with a limited number of positions during the fall and spring semesters. Dates vary each year. ARFL internships typically run 10–12 weeks, with a minimum requirement of 8 weeks. They can last up to 14 weeks based on mentor preferences and funding availability.
The Air Force Research Laboratory’s Scholars program is a paid internship opportunity for high school students interested in aerospace engineering. During the internship, you will receive guidance from full-time AFRL scientists and engineers. You will also get to tour AFRL laboratories and work on cutting-edge research and technology during the internship. During the program, you get to work on exciting research, on topics like satellite navigation, machine learning techniques, atomic physics, AI development, astrodynamics, robotics, and more. You can check the range of research topics available here, and the mentor bios here. You can apply to no more than 3 topics per AFRL site. A couple of the topics offered this spring are Cold Atom Experimental Control and Data Acquisition and AI Opponents for Contested Space.
Ideal for: Students interested in pursuing STEM degrees and working on research projects, or those keen to explore aerospace engineering.
Subject areas: Renewable energy and energy storage
Location: Virtual
Stipend: None
Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, and seniors who have taken at least one honors science or honors English class, with a minimum GPA of 3.25, can apply.
Application deadline: None
Program dates: Runs throughout the year. Half-time (2–8 weeks in summer) and quarter-time (1–9 months) virtual internships are offered.
EnergyMag offers virtual internships to high schoolers interested in learning about energy storage. It offers half-time and quarter-time virtual internships. Half-time interns (summer) are expected to work 20 hours per week while quarter-time interns (spring, fall, or other durations) must work 8 hours per week. During the internship, you will research and analyze a specific company, technology, (narrow) market, or similar activities with the help of a mentor who will guide you and supervise your work. You will research the topic, find sources for relevant information, compile and analyze the information collected, and produce an analysis report, which will be published on the EnergyMag site. Following the submission of your report, you will get an Internship Letter of Accomplishment. The goal is to teach interns on-the-job skills like research and professional communication.
Ideal for: Students interested in a virtual internship with a manageable workload (8 hours per week). It is also suited for those interested in developing research and analysis skills and exploring science and business issues, especially in the field of renewable energy.
12. Internships at PAWS Chicago
Subject areas: Animal care, animal science, shelter management, veterinary science, biology, zoology
Location: PAWS Chicago Medical Center and Lincoln Park Adoption Center, Chicago, IL
Stipend: None
Eligibility: High school students who are at least 16 years old can apply.
Application deadline: Spring internship applications typically close in December.
Program dates: The spring session typically runs from January to April.
PAWS Chicago is a non-profit animal shelter organization that offers a few high school students to intern at its adoption or medical centers. During this in-person program, you will help the shelter staff with tasks like cleaning, feeding, walking dogs, and shelter maintenance. You may also get to help with facilitating animal adoption and assisting veterinary staff with paperwork, depending on the position you choose. Each internship opportunity has its own requirements and duties, so you should check the details before applying. Some roles may involve assisting with welcoming guests and visitors, outreach programs, marketing, fundraising, graphic designing, and more. You can choose from opportunities here. While you are expected to put in 12–20 of work per week, the exact schedule and minimum requirements will be established by the program team once you are hired.
Ideal for: Students interested in animal care/veterinary sciences and learning about animal shelter management.
Looking for an immersive internship experience?
Check out Ladder Internships!
Ladder Internships is a selective, virtual internship program where students work with startups and nonprofits from around the world! The startups range across a variety of industries, with a large number of them in tech. As part of their internship, each student will work on a real-world project that is of genuine need to the startup they are working with, and present their work at the end of their internship. In addition to working closely with their manager from the startup, each intern will also work with a Ladder Coach throughout their internship. Apply now!
Stephen is one of the founders of Ladder Internships and a Harvard College graduate.