Topics We Cover:
- Why Do Internships in High School?
- How to Find Finance Internships for High School Students in Los Angeles
- 5 Finance Internships for High School Students in Los Angeles
- Cold Outreach Strategy for High School Finance Internships
- Email Template for Finding a High School Internship
Finance opens the door to a wide range of career paths for Southern California teens. A finance internship for high school students in Los Angeles could be the first step toward future roles in fields like investment banking, wealth management, or financial analysis.
Why Do Internships in High School?
A finance internship for high school students in Los Angeles—and internships in general—can put you on the path to both academic and career success. High school internships can help increase your odds of admission to a top school.
Completing a high school internship demonstrates you’re driven to pursue fields of interest outside of the classroom and have validated your interest—ultimately setting you apart in a crowded field of applicants. PRISM, the University of Chicago’s premier student-run consultancy, found that 70% of undergraduates at U.S. News Top 50 institutions engaged in at least one high school internship.
Taking on an internship in high school can also help you secure college internships while improving your chances of admission to pre-professional clubs like investment clubs, affinity groups like Women in Finance, and organizations like the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA).
How to Find Finance Internships for High School Students in Los Angeles
Online search tools and lists are great tools for finding high school internships in Los Angeles and beyond. StandOutSearch is one such tool. It’s the largest free online database of high school internships and is searchable using filters including:
- Interest
- Location
- Format (in-person, virtual, hybrid)
- Compensation (paid or unpaid)
- Season (summer, fall, winter, spring, year-round)
Official programs (especially those you find online or in curated lists) are typically very competitive. If you’re serious about landing a finance internship, you’ll want to develop a strong cold-outreach strategy—that is, forming a plan for reaching out to professionals about potential internship providers.
Many high schoolers find cold outreach overwhelming, but the tips and email templates included further below will help streamline the process.
5 Finance Internships for High School Students in Los Angeles
Demand for high school internships far exceeds the number of available spots—most of the internships below have acceptance rates below 20%. Because of this, we recommend you apply to at least five opportunities.
If a finance internship below catches your eye, mark its deadline on your calendar so you don’t miss an opportunity.
1. StandOut Connect
Ages: 15-19
Location: Virtual
Timeline: Summer, Spring, Fall, or Winter
Deadline: November 23, 2026 (Winter cohort)
StandOut Connect is a program that helps match gifted high school students with online internships in their industry of interest. Students match with companies across 25 interest areas such as finance, STEM, medicine, law, arts, and more. Examples of past matches relating to finance include venture capital firms, a Y Combinator fintech startup, and an AI startup that helps small businesses find loans and grants. StandOut Connect is funded by StandOutSearch, the largest free database for high school internships. The program 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. City of Santa Clarita | Youth Employment Services (YES) Program
Ages: 15-19
Location: Santa Clarita, CA
Timeline: Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter
Deadline: Not yet announced
While it isn’t finance-specific, the City of Santa Clarita’s YES program helps local teens land a first paid job at one of more than 25 partner businesses, in roles such as customer service, running a cash register, stocking shelves, and merchandising. Participants earn minimum wage ($18.23 an hour) and attend at least three skill-building sessions.
YES runs two 12-week sessions a year; the Fall/Winter session runs November 23, 2026, to February 12, 2027. It’s for Santa Clarita teens ages 16 to 19 who are still in high school and have never held a job (15-year-olds can join in the summer), with a focus on low-income and high-risk teens and teens with special needs. The City accepts only the first 55 applications.
3. JA Job Shadow Blended
Ages: Freshmen-Seniors
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Timeline: Year-round
Deadline: Not yet announced
JA Job Shadow provides high schoolers with a unique experience. Participants design an individualized career path and engage in a combination of self-guided activities and opportunities to interact with professionals at their workplace. Over the course of the program, participants learn everything from interview and networking skills to how to create an online profile and research potential employers.
4. Emma Bowen Foundation Internship
Ages: Seniors
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: Rolling
No matter where your interests lie—broadcast production, journalism, web development, engineering, business, PR, sales, or another corner of media and tech—the EBF Internship offers a strong launchpad.
Selected students dive directly into paid internships with leading organizations, gaining hands-on experience, expanding their skills, building their professional networks, and accelerating their path toward a future career.
5. LA Promise Fund Intern Project
Ages: Sophomores-Seniors
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Timeline: Year-round
Deadline: Not yet announced (March 15 in 2026)
LA County students in 10th through 12th grade are paired with paid internships through The Intern Project (TIP), providing participants the chance to grow their skills, connect with professionals, receive mentorship, and gain real-world work experience. Placement fields include business, along with government and nonprofits, engineering and tech, and healthcare, and TIP's workshops cover case studies along with resumes, networking and public speaking. The summer program runs eight weeks from June to August, and TIP also runs fall and spring programs. Interns earn a stipend and can receive one free college credit. GPA does not affect whether an application is considered.
For more options beyond Los Angeles, see our list of finance internships for high school students.
Cold Outreach Strategy for High School Finance Internships
If none of these finance internships for high school students in Los Angeles excite you, you’ll want to form a cold outreach strategy. The guide and template below offer a simple solution to this often intimidating process.
How to Find Companies to Reach Out to for a High School Internship
Small companies are a great target when looking for internship opportunities; they’re often understaffed and more likely to take on a high school intern. Use LinkedIn to find companies where you can assist with jobs like collecting and organizing data, assisting with spreadsheets, and performing administrative tasks.
Try to make personal connections when reaching out to professionals, such as bonding over a shared hometown, hobby, or sports team. Use caution when connecting with people you don’t know—virtual meetings and interviews are always the safest approach.
How to Find Professors to Reach Out to for a High School Research Position
Browse faculty and department pages to find professors whose research excites you, then send a thoughtful email. Fully remote research for high schoolers is rare and competitive, as lab work usually requires in-person help.
Remote opportunities are more likely for students using programming languages like Python and R to analyze data, study markets, and model financial scenarios. Both languages are free to learn and motivated students can become proficient in two to four months using resources like Coursera’s Python for Everybody and R Programming.
How to Structure and Send Outreach Emails
Treat cold outreach like a numbers game and plan to make at least 50 contacts—the more inquiries you make, the better your chances of landing an internship. When emailing professionals, make sure to attach your resume. Here are a few tips to increase your chances of getting a response:
- Limit your resume to one page while in high school. Our resume guide and tips, along with the University of Chicago’s free resume template and guide, offer simple advice for crafting a professional resume.
- Share your resume as a Google link—making sure that anyone with the link can view its content—rather than as a PDF or Doc, which can get flagged as spam.
- Share any relevant work experience you may have, such as stock market or portfolio projects you’ve worked on, participation in a business-focused organization like DECA or the FBLA, or serving as treasurer for a school club.
In the end, you want your resume to prove that you’ll be an asset.
Email Template for Finding a High School Internship
If you are unsure how to structure your outreach emails to potential internship providers, here are some basic templates you can customize to your needs.
Template for Finding an Internship
Subject: Student Reaching Out
Dear Mr./Ms.____,
I hope you are having a great day! My name is [your name], and I am a rising [grade] at [your school]. I read about your company on LinkedIn and found the concept quite interesting. For context, [briefly state how the company relates to your interests or experience].
I was wondering if you might be looking for interns. I know I would have a great deal to learn from working with you, and I would love to contribute in any way I can. I have included my resume here. Thanks so much!
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Template for Finding a Research Position
Subject: Student Reaching Out
Dear Professor/Dr. ____,
I hope you are having a great day! My name is [your name], and I am a rising [grade] at [your school]. I recently read your paper on [restate the abstract] in [name of publication] and was quite intrigued by [part you found interesting]. I was wondering if I might be able to intern for you over this summer. [Elaborate on your relevant skills and experience and why you are passionate about the field].
I have included my resume here. Thanks so much!
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Conclusion
No matter if you’re targeting big-name banks or firing off cold emails to local nonprofits, landing a high school finance internship in Los Angeles as a high schooler comes down to perseverance. These positions are incredibly competitive, but almost everyone who pushes through says the early experience and career boost make the effort worthwhile.
If this guide helped you out, bookmark it or send it to someone else who’s on the same hunt. Good luck on landing an internship!
