The Best Coding Internships for High Schoolers
- Estelle Reardon
- 24 hours ago
- 8 min read
Topics We Cover:
Coding can open doors to a wide swath of technology careers, including software, AI, data science, and cybersecurity. Coding internships for high schoolers offer a fantastic opportunity to young people, allowing them to hone their skills and explore different academic and career paths.
Why Do Internships in High School?
In addition to building technical skills and real-world experience, high school coding internships provide numerous advantages. The experience helps them make informed decisions about their futures—drawing on insight into what they liked and disliked—to determine which areas to pursue.
Skills and Experience
Completing a high school coding internship, or any high school internship, demonstrates to admissions officers that you’ve pursued your interests outside of school and validated them with firsthand experience. Internships also showcase college- and career-readiness, as working in a professional environment requires a variety of skills that transfer to your studies as well as other jobs.
College Admissions Advantage
All of this can provide an advantage in college admissions, helping you stand out in deep and competitive applicant pools. How much of an advantage does completing an internship provide in college admissions? According to PRISM, a student-run consultancy at the University of Chicago, about three-quarters of students attending U.S. News Top 50 universities engaged in at least one internship while in high school.
Professional Headstart
Completing a high school coding internship can also open doors to future opportunities. It can make it easier to secure a college internship and get into professional clubs and groups, like coding and hackathon clubs, robotics teams, and tech-focused science fairs.
How to Find Coding Internships for High Schoolers
Online lists and tools are excellent resources for high schoolers looking for internship opportunities. One such asset is StandOutSearch. The largest free online database of internships for high school students, StandOutSearch features a number of filters, allowing you to identify positions by location, field of interest, and format (online, in-person, and hybrid). Another useful reference is the list of prestigious summer programs and internships collected by MIT Admissions.
It’s relatively easy to discover official internship programs, especially in big cities like New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles; however, these positions are typically extremely competitive and challenging to secure. Consequently, students intent on landing an internship will want to form a cold outreach strategy.
Cold outreach is the process of reaching out to professionals you have no connection with to ask about potential opportunities. Many high schoolers find cold outreach intimidating, but the guide and template included below should help streamline your search.
10 Coding Internships for High School Students
The opportunities listed below all have acceptance rates under 20%. Because of this, we recommend applying to at least five programs. If an internship below catches your eye, make sure to mark its deadline on your calendar, so you don’t miss out on an exciting opportunity.
Ages: 15–19
Location: Virtual
Timeline: Summer, Spring, Fall, or Winter
Deadline: Various Deadlines
StandOut Connect is a program that helps match gifted high school students with online internships in their industry of interest. Potential sectors include finance, STEM, medicine, law, arts, and more. 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.
Ages: Sophomores
Location: Menlo Park, CA
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: February 14
Students can gain experience with one of the world’s leading social media networks while building programming skills in this exciting coding-focused high school internship. In addition to technical skills, students also explore careers in tech; develop soft skills such as leadership, teamwork, and communication; and build their professional network.
Meta Summer Academy is open to high school sophomores who are full-time residents of:
East Palo Alto
Belle Haven
North Fair Oaks
Redwood City
If you want to learn more about the Meta Summer Academy, check out our article, The Definitive Guide to the Facebook High School Internship, for a deep dive into the program, along with some similar opportunities you might want to explore.
3. MITES Summer
Ages: Juniors
Location: Cambridge, MA
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: February 2
Strictly speaking, MITES Summer isn’t a coding internship for high schoolers; however, it is an unprecedented opportunity to discover what it’s like to be an undergraduate at one of the country’s most prestigious universities, focused on research and innovation.
MITES participants take high-level coursework, learn how STEM impacts society, explore STEM professions, receive insight into the college applications process, and gain firsthand college experience—living and learning on MIT’s campus.
Ages: Freshmen–Seniors
Location: San Francisco, CA
Timeline: Year-round
Deadline: April 1
The Careers in Science (CiS) Intern Program is a multi-year, year-round, paid opportunity for students from communities underrepresented in STEM. Participants enter the program as rising sophomores and continue through high school graduation. As students move through CiS and demonstrate growth, they’re given increasing levels of leadership and responsibility.
Over the course of the program, students build both hard and soft skills, explore STEM careers, connect with professionals, and receive guidance on topics ranging from the college application process to financial literacy.
Ages: Freshmen–Seniors
Location: Buffalo, NY
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: May 30
Not a coding internship per se, this free, three-day program introduces students to the fundamentals of computing while exposing them to a slice of college life, taking place on the University of Buffalo campus.
During this immersive summer experience, high schoolers learn to use computing to solve real-world problems, explore the college’s research labs, and engage in activities like programming a robot and designing a video game.
Ages: Rising Seniors
Location: New Brunswick, NJ
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: January 8
The Governor’s School of New Jersey in Engineering & Technology is an extremely prestigious free summer program. Participants must be nominated by their high school, and fewer than 100 students are offered admission.
Those selected to the program spend their summer studying at Rutgers University School of Engineering, where they collaborate on a research project, participate in workshops, visit local businesses, and connect with professors, professionals, and similarly high-achieving peers with a shared passion for math, science, and engineering.
The program is open to rising seniors who are New Jersey residents.
Ages: Freshmen–Seniors
Location: Virtual
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: April 15
Girls Who Code is a free, self-paced, six- to seven-week program exposing high school girls and non-binary students to computer science. The program’s curriculum covers five tracks:
AI
Cybersecurity
Data Science
Game Design
Web Development
Students also participate in career panels and workshops, learn about career paths, make meaningful friendships, and begin to build their professional network.
Ages: Graduating Seniors
Location: Redmond, WA, and Atlanta, GA
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: Rolling
This four-week summer internship enables students to gain firsthand experience with one of the world’s largest software companies. Participants gain hands-on project experience, build professional skills, explore careers in tech, and are mentored by Microsoft employees. The program is open to students who live within a 50-mile radius of Microsoft’s Redmond, WA, or Atlanta, GA campuses.
Learn more about the Discovery Program—including details about eligibility, required qualifications, and other similar opportunities—in our blog, The Microsoft High School Internship: Your Ultimate Guide.
9. CS Scholars
Ages: Rising Sophomores
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: February 1
This free, four-week, residential summer program at Carnegie Mellon helps build the skills needed for a successful tech career. Students take courses in computing and mathematics, collaborate on a research project, and showcase their findings at a final symposium. They also connect with faculty and industry leaders and build lasting relationships with their peers, ultimately bolstering their professional network.
Ages: Freshmen–Seniors
Location: Chicago, IL
Timeline: Summer
Deadline: January 12
This paid eight-week program at the University of Chicago and supported by the National Science Foundation pairs students with mentors to hone their skills, research methodologies and practices, as well as develop soft skills like teamwork.
Participants get firsthand experience and access to cutting-edge research in fields such as:
AI
Computer Systems and Architecture
Hardware and Devices
High-Performance Computing
Networking
Security and Privacy
Students will work hard, but also play hard, with social events including attending a Chicago White Sox game, bowling, and an ice cream social.
Cold Outreach Strategy for High School Internships
If none of the opportunities above are the right fit for you, or aren’t feasible due to location or eligibility constraints, your next step to landing a high school coding internship is to launch a cold outreach strategy.
The tips and templates included below will allow you to hit the ground running and fast-track your internship search.
How to Find Companies to Reach Out to for a High School Internship
LinkedIn is a fantastic tool for discovering potential internship opportunities. Target smaller companies and organizations, which are often understaffed and more open to bringing on high school interns. Possible opportunities include assisting with website updates, writing simple scripts, running tests and logging bugs, and cleaning and organizing data.
Make your safety a priority when reaching out to professionals you don’t know. Virtual interviews and meetings are a safe alternative to meeting in person.
How to Find Professors to Reach Out to for a High School Research Position
You can identify professors to contact about research opportunities by searching university directories online. Keep in mind that remote roles are harder to secure, as high school interns are typically brought in for hands-on lab work that can’t be done virtually.
Computational research, however, offers some of the best opportunities for remote internships. These roles generally require a foundational understanding of programming languages like Python and R, both of which you can learn for free and in just a few months through resources like Coursera’s Python for Everybody and R Programming.
How to Structure and Send Outreach Emails
The more internship inquiries you make, the better your chances of landing a position. We recommend sending at least 50 emails to potential internship providers through your cold outreach.
When emailing professionals, include a link to your resume—which is less likely to cause deliverability issues than a PDF or Doc—and make sure the link’s settings allow anyone with it to view its contents. Also, highlight any relevant work experience, such as a website you built, a coding project you completed, or a script you’ve written.
If you don’t have a resume, now is the time to craft one. A resume is something you’ll use all your life, whether it’s for college admissions, applying for scholarships, or seeking employment. Our resume template and tips are a valuable resource for everyone, from high schoolers writing their first resume to those wanting to polish an existing one before sending it out. The University of Chicago’s resume toolkit is another handy reference.
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
Whether applying to official programs or pursuing cold outreach, landing coding internships for high schoolers can feel like debugging a stubborn error; it takes patience, persistence, and a willingness to keep iterating. While the process is at times frustrating, most students find the payoff of jumpstarting their career is worth the time, effort, and challenge.
If you found this guide helpful, bookmark it as a reference or share it with someone you think might also benefit from it. Good luck launching your internship search!
