As a full-time student in high school, you will likely be busy with classes, community service, college applications, and sports. Online internships for high school students offer a flexible way to build work experience. By completing high school online internships instead of waiting until you start college, you can explore potential career paths and gain real-world skills even sooner.
Interning as a high school student increases your employment potential. According to a 2019 survey of internship programs by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, 70 percent of interns received a job offer. To build your resume during the summer, online summer high school internships may be a good option for you as well. Read on to discover different programs.
Can High School Students Access Online Internships?
Yes. High school students with access to the Internet have many options to land their virtual internships. Most organizations and companies offer virtual internships for high school students, even if they don’t have prior experience.
Are There Online Summer High School Internships?
Yes. There are many amazing opportunities for virtual internships, including online summer internship programs. These can give you valuable experiences, earn you some college credit, and build your resume as you prepare for college and your future career. As a virtual intern, you can often choose when to complete your internships and may select to do them during your school holidays. The COVID-19 pandemic has further improved the availability of online studies.
Why Are Internships Important for High School Students?
- College applications. As a high school intern, the hours spent executing work projects in fields like engineering, businesses, and public relations are relevant during the college admissions process. They add more weight to your college application essays and showcase your determination and work ethic during the application process.
- Personal growth. Internships help you build essential personal skills like patience, self-motivation, confidence, and self-discipline. Your time as an intern will test and develop your execution of organizational and leadership skills, which will come in handy in any career path.
- Extra income. Internships are a great way to earn some extra income during your time as a high school student. While some internships are fully paid, others can be either partly paid or unpaid. Most private and government-owned companies, including non-profit organizations, pay students for the hours worked.
- Experience. Internships give you a glimpse into the future of a career. They prepare you for jobs after college and are an opportunity to gain work experience and assess your career goals.
- Time management skills. Internships teach you to manage busy schedules and organize your time. Improving your time management skills will help you down the line during college and in the workforce.
Top 10 High School Online Internships
Virtual Internship Foundations Program
- Length: Four weeks
- Time Commitment: 15 hours per week
This internship was created to provide high school students with quality employability and professional skills that are relevant in the workplace. It is open to students 14 to18 years of age. The students can choose their field of interest so that the internship can be specialized with an emphasis on their selected career.
PHC Group, LLC Mary Miller Summer Program
- Length: Summer
- Time Commitment: Not available
In this paid summer internship, high school seniors and new graduates are trained in leadership skills and are helped to explore their independent interests. Under the guidance of the public health director, interns conduct research on social trends and work on community outreach and social media projects. While the website doesn’t specifically mention how many hours per week this internship will take, students will be on summer break and could be expected to work full-time.
EnergyMag Internship
- Length: Two weeks to nine months
- Time Commitment: 20 hours per week
High school students who are interested in contributing to the efforts of combating climate change can apply for the EnergyMag internship. Through experiential learning, interns will gain research and analytical skills, as well as work experience in the renewable energy sector. This is an unpaid internship. It is up to nine months long in duration but can be done in less time with a heavier workload.
NASA High School Internship Program
- Length: 10 to 16 weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) offers internship programs to high school students every year. Usually, they are in-person internships, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, NASA is offering the programs virtually. Students are trained to work on several projects. This placement does not require prior experience to apply and depending on the length of their internship and academic level, a stipend will be offered.
US Department of State’s Pathways Internship
- Length: Summer
- Time Commitment: At least 130 hours per month
The US Department of State’s Pathways Internship Program provides high school students with paid opportunities to explore various career paths with the federal government through the Department of Health and Human Services. You can opt for one of the three options including a public health analyst trainee, an information technology trainee, or an administrative trainee. The application for internship closed at March 17. You can apply when it reopens next.
South Middlesex Opportunity Council (SMOC) Internships
- Length: Summer, fall, or spring semester
- Time Commitment: Five to 20 hours per week
This internship is offered by a Massachusetts-based organization and was established to help high school students gain on-the-job experience in a human services or social services field. You can choose from programs such as Administration, Headstart and Childcare, or Nutrition Services. You must be approved by your high school with confirmation that the internship is for semester credits
SPIKEVIEW Content Creator Internship
- Length: Spring and summer
- Time Commitment: Five to seven hours per week
This unpaid internship helps high students to improve their content creation skills. Prior experience in blog post writing, social media posts, news articles, Instagram Reel creation, Tiktok creation, or podcasts will increase your chances of getting selected. You will work with the organization’s social media team to understand growth and performance metrics.
Smithsonian Science Education Center Internship Program
- Length: Spring and summer
- Time Commitment: 25 to 40 hours per week
This program accepts high school students for a variety of paid internships. It strives to remove barriers in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields. You will learn how to manage digital platforms for renowned brands and need to be at least 16 years old to be eligible to apply.
AmeriCorps Summer Teaching Fellowship
- Length: Two weeks
- Time Commitment: 40 hours per week
This paid internship teaches students interested in education how to plan and co-lead classes remotely. You will get a scholarship worth $3,600 to fund your future college career. During the internship, you will study instructional strategies, develop relationship-building skills, and practice teaching by planning and facilitating one academic class and one enrichment class.
Virtual International Internships with Global Experiences
- Length: Eight to 12 weeks
- Time Commitment: 25 to 40 hours per week
This highly ranked virtual internship helps high school students develop skills in IT, graphic design, and business fields by investing in their professional and personal growth. Just like with on-site programs, you will get professional coaching, mentoring, and a program advisor. This internship requires a program fee but you can earn credit for a maximum of 12 credit hours.
Online Classes for High School Students
Aside from virtual internships, high school students can take online classes to learn about their career fields of choice. Technological trends predict that online learning for high school students will keep thriving. According to the 12th annual Keeping Pace with K-12 Digital Learning report, hundreds of thousands of students are already enrolled in full-time online classes.
Below are some top online classes for high school students.
- Productivity Masterclass by Skillshare. This is one of the many courses available on Skillshare. This class will help you to study more efficiently as a high school student and improve your grades in the long run.
- College Planning: High School Students by MoonPrep. Your high school years are the best time to build your college candidate profile in preparation for college. The course will help you learn essential life skills and teach you brainstorming techniques needed for college application. As a high schooler, it can also prepare you for a high-paying job.
- Code.org by CareerKarma. Coding is now a basic skill and part of our everyday life. In this high school coding class, students will be offered tutorials to build their coding skills. The platform engages students with content that features popular games and cartoons for easier understanding. Make sure to check out some of the best coding bootcamps available.
- Foreign Language Learning by Duolingo. If you are interested in learning foreign languages, this is the class for you. It makes learning fun and easy with its engaging interface. The class is user-friendly and highly structured with a series of exercises that you need to pass to reach the next level of each course.
- Algorithms Part 1 by Coursera. If you have an eye for programming, this class by Coursera will teach you the foundations like algorithms, data structures, applications, and scientific performance analysis under Java. The course has a step-by-step syllabus that’ll prepare you for a programming career right out of high school.
Should You Do an Internship in High School?
Yes. An internship is a valuable way for high school students to gain new and necessary skills, get experience, and build their knowledge about different job roles and career fields. It is an avenue to garner entry-level experience in a range of professions. A high school internship also gives you a broader spectrum of opportunities when filling out college applications.
Online Internships for High School Students FAQ
Yes. Your online internship is recognized and equally valued as in-person work experience. It can make your resume stronger and provides opportunities for international internships.
Aside from specialized learning experiences and job experience, a remote internship can help you build life skills like teamwork, writing skills, information processing, and verbal communication skills. This will help with future career management.
Online internship positions are open to high school seniors, juniors, sophomores, and freshmen, with specifically structured programs and custom placements to match the needs of each student.
Yes. An online internship is beneficial for high school and college students alike. You will gain hands-on experience, professional skills, and a new set of digital skills, all from the comfort of your home.
About us: Career Karma is a platform designed to help job seekers find, research, and connect with job training programs to advance their careers. Learn about the CK publication.
