If you love chasing a story, asking good questions and seeing your name in a byline, a journalism internship lets you do all three before college. High school journalism opportunities include paid newsroom internships at papers like the Los Angeles Times, online reporting roles with PBS News and free selective programs where students publish their work. Below are 10 journalism internships for high school students, with who can apply, cost or pay, and deadlines, plus a step-by-step plan for landing a newsroom role on your own.
Topics We Cover:
- Why Do a Journalism Internship in High School?
- How to Find Journalism Internships for High School Students
- 10 Journalism Internships for High School Students
- How to Land a Newsroom Internship on Your Own
- Email Template for a Journalism Internship
Why Do a Journalism Internship in High School?
Journalism is learned by doing. A high school internship gives you clips (published stories you can show editors and admissions officers), a portfolio that proves you can meet deadlines and editors who can write you a recommendation.
It also shows colleges what you care about. Reporting on your community, interviewing sources and working with an editor show curiosity, persistence and strong writing, qualities admissions committees value in every major.
And it helps you decide what kind of storyteller you want to be. Newsrooms need reporters, photographers, podcast producers, video editors, social media producers and data journalists, and an internship lets you try several.
How to Find Journalism Internships for High School Students
StandOutSearch, the largest free database of high school internships, lets you filter opportunities by interest area, location and pay. Your school newspaper adviser, your local public radio station and nearby university journalism schools are also good places to ask, since several programs below recruit through schools.
Newsroom internships are often run for students in a particular city, so check the program list below for your area and use the cold-outreach plan later in this post to approach local newspapers, magazines and radio stations directly.
10 Journalism Internships for High School Students
1. StandOut Connect
Ages: 15-19
Location: Remote
Timeline: Summer, Spring, Fall, or Winter
Deadline: November 23, 2026 (Winter cohort)
StandOut Connect matches high school students with remote internships at companies in their area of interest, and journalism is one of the areas students can choose. Examples of past matches relating to journalism include news organizations whose journalists have won the Pulitzer Prize and startups using technology to change the way we consume news in the modern day. Students train in professional skills, complete a project at their company and can earn a recommendation letter. StandOut Connect is funded by StandOutSearch, the largest free database for high school internships, has been featured in Forbes and was created with the help of investment from The University of Chicago's Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
2. PBS News Student Reporting Labs
Ages: Under 25
Location: Online; Summer Academy in person
Cost/Pay: Free; podcast co-host roles are paid
Timeline: School year and summer
Deadline: Rolling
PBS News Student Reporting Labs trains young people to report and produce news stories, and accepted student work is considered for PBS national and local platforms. For the 2026-27 school year, students can apply to co-host the On Our Minds podcast, a paid role, or pitch stories through Pitch & Publish, whose spring pitch form opens December 15. The all-expenses-paid Student Reporting Labs Summer Academy, a weeklong journalism program, opens applications in early spring 2027. Most of the work happens online, so students anywhere in the country can take part.
3. Los Angeles Times High School Insider Summer Internship
Ages: High school students (2026: classes of 2026, 2027 and 2028)
Location: El Segundo, CA (hybrid)
Cost/Pay: Paid hourly
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: Not yet announced (April 16 in 2026)
The L.A. Times High School Insider internship gives students six weeks of experience as working journalists. Interns cover breaking news, produce feature stories with multimedia elements and pursue their stories with support from mentors, training and newsroom workshops. In 2026 interns worked 24 hours a week from June 22 to August 1, in the El Segundo office on Tuesdays and Thursdays and from home on Mondays and Wednesdays. Applicants must live in Los Angeles County or Orange County, be able to work in El Segundo and be legally authorized to work in the United States.
4. VOX ATL
Ages: 13-19
Location: Atlanta, GA
Cost/Pay: Free; stipends up to $500 a semester
Timeline: School year
Deadline: Rolling
VOX ATL is an Atlanta teen media nonprofit. It's free for teens ages 13 to 19 living in DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett, Clayton and Cobb counties. Fellows earn stipends of up to $500 a semester, and students who complete a VOX ATL program can go on to paid internships and paid contributor roles.
5. The Spokesman-Review Teen Journalism Institute
Ages: 16-18
Location: Spokane, WA
Cost/Pay: Paid
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: Not yet announced (June 8 in 2026)
The Spokesman-Review offers four paid positions for incoming high school juniors and seniors in its downtown Spokane newsroom. Over eight weeks, interns work across newsroom departments, attend daily news meetings and finish a group community journalism project. Public, private and homeschooled students can apply.
6. WNYC Radio Rookies
Ages: Grades 9-12
Location: New York, NY
Cost/Pay: Stipend
Timeline: Not yet announced
Deadline: Rolling
Radio Rookies, from WNYC (New York Public Radio) and The Bell, recruits New York City high school students for its youth radio program. The program is open to students in grades 9 to 12 at New York City public or charter schools, and Radio Rookies receive a stipend. Interested students can contact radiorookies@wnyc.org.
7. ThreeSixty Journalism
Ages: High school students
Location: St. Paul, MN
Cost/Pay: Free in 2026, with a stipend for completing
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: Not yet announced (April 17 in 2026)
ThreeSixty Journalism at the University of St. Thomas runs summer programs for Twin Cities high school students, open to beginners and experienced writers. In 2026 its Multimedia Storytelling Institute, normally $3,000, was tuition-free for all students, and its radio camp met at MPR News headquarters. Students who complete the workshop receive a stipend and can apply for ThreeSixty's scholarship covering full tuition at St. Thomas.
8. Princeton Summer Journalism Program
Ages: High school juniors
Location: Online and Princeton, NJ
Cost/Pay: Free
Timeline: Summer and senior year
Deadline: Not yet announced
The Princeton Summer Journalism Program is a free, year-long journalism and college preparation program for high school juniors from limited-income backgrounds. Up to 40 students a year complete a multi-week summer intensive that begins online and ends with a residential stay on Princeton's campus and the publication of the Princeton Summer Journal. Each student is then matched with a college adviser through senior year. Applicants need at least a 3.5 unweighted GPA, must live in the United States or Puerto Rico and must meet one of the program's income criteria. The 2027-28 application opens in mid-November.
9. AAJA JCamp
Ages: High school sophomores and juniors
Location: Host city changes each year
Cost/Pay: Free, all expenses paid
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: Not yet announced
JCamp, run by the Asian American Journalists Association, is a free six-day national journalism program that covers tuition, lodging, meals and domestic travel. Students report and publish multimedia stories on JCamp Live, practice anchoring and do breaking-news live shots alongside working journalists. Students of any background can apply.
10. NYU Urban Journalism Workshop
Ages: 16+
Location: New York, NY
Cost/Pay: Free
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: Not yet announced (March 18 in 2026)
NYU's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute runs this free, residential workshop for students who live in the New York City area. Participants stay in an NYU residence hall, visit city newsrooms and report and produce multimedia stories published on The Spectrum. The 2026 workshop ran July 12 to 18.
How to Land a Newsroom Internship on Your Own
- Build a small portfolio. A few published pieces make your pitch stronger: school newspaper articles, a blog, a podcast episode or stories for a youth news site.
- List local outlets. Community newspapers, alternative weeklies, local magazines, public radio and TV stations, and neighborhood news sites often need help with event coverage, social media, photography and research.
- Find the right person. Look for a managing editor, community engagement editor or news director on the outlet's staff page or LinkedIn rather than a general inbox.
- Pitch a specific contribution. Offer one or two concrete story ideas from your school or neighborhood, or a skill they can use, such as social video, photography or covering high school sports.
- Follow up once. If you don't hear back in a week, send a short, polite follow-up with one new idea.
Email Template for a Journalism Internship
Subject: High school reporter interested in a summer internship
Dear [Name],
My name is [Your Name], and I'm a [grade] at [School], where I [write for / edit] [publication]. I've followed [Outlet]'s coverage of [topic or recent story] and would love to learn from your newsroom this summer.
I can help with [specific skills: reporting on local events, photography, short-form video, social media], and I have two story ideas I think your readers would value: [Idea 1] and [Idea 2]. Samples of my work are here: [link].
Would you be open to a 15-minute call about a part-time internship or other ways I could contribute? Thank you for your time.
Best,
[Your Name]
[Phone] · [Email]
Conclusion
High school journalism internships give you published clips, real editors and an early start on the stories you care about. Apply to two or three of the programs above, keep publishing on your own and reach out to local newsrooms directly. If you'd like a remote internship matched to journalism, StandOut Connect places high school students with partner companies each season, and StandOutSearch lists more opportunities you can filter by interest area and location.
