<p>I'm a high school senior this year, and I'm looking for a summer internship, preferably paid. I'm interested in technology, renewable energy, and the environment, but mainly I'd like to get some sort of experience in a major organization. What's the coolest summer internship experience you or someone you know has had as a high school student? I'd love to hear about it to get some idea of what's out there and how to take advantage of opportunities for HS students.</p>
<p>Honestly, as a high school senior, you’d be hard-pressed to find any internships in the areas you mentioned, let alone paid ones or ones in major organizations. What experience do you have with technology, renewable energy and the environment? (perhaps you did an independent research project, wrote a paper, or have great activities/community service related to these things)</p>
<p>As a prospective high school intern, you’ll need either expertise they want or connections to get an internship. You should probably ask your parents and their friends first.</p>
<p>Thanks for your reply. I have some experience in environmental activism within my community, though no experience in renewable energy research. The only research experience I’ve had was a biomedical research internship, a very top-notch program that gave me valuable lab experience, but I soon discovered that I’m actually not too interested in that area. Given my limited expertise, you’re probably right in pointing out the difficulties of getting a really top-notch, paid internship. However, I am very interested in these areas, so I’m going to give it my best shot.</p>
<p>You’re at the bottom of the food chain:</p>
<p>grad students
recent college grads
college upperclassmen
college lowerclassmen
you</p>
<p>Look at the process from a prospective employer’s point of view, not yours. Calibrate accordingly.</p>
<p>Your best bet is in a high school out-reach program.</p>
<p>biomedical research internship? where did you do this and is there a link to it? i am very interested in this field. if you could PM me or something, that’d be great!</p>
<p>For a high school internship it’s all about FOMD (friend of mom or dad).</p>
<p>or mom/dad of friend</p>
<p>i agree with jnpn. I had an internship with a top 50 company in fortune 500 before I graduated from high school because i was a good friend of the CEO’s son…
and my job was tasting chocolate</p>
<p>tasting chocolate? that sounds like an awesome job…lol!</p>
<p>I agree 100% with TheDad. You are at the totem pole of any potential employers internship search. They rarely, rarely, rarely ever pick up a college underclassman as interns. </p>
<p>My advice to you: go out, have fun, do something interesting with your time.</p>
<p>Don’t let these guys get you down. I’ve met several interns who interned right after graduating highschool.</p>
<p>Simply send in a good resume (emphasizing academic and work experience) to the companies you want to work for, with a great cover letter that focuses on your interest in the field. Also mention your desired major, and what school you are planning to go to.</p>
<p>Be specific about what possible working experience you’d like to have.</p>
<p>If you do it correctly, most employers will eat it up, as they are far more interested in a high school student who expresses a desire to learn, than in a college student who sends them a generic cover letter.</p>
<p>You sound like you could be a future hydrologist, geologist, chemical engineer, agricultural engineer, or biomedical engineer. These majors have a strong emphasis on environmental work.</p>
<p>I would suggest applying with mining companies for doing reclamation work at reclaimed mine sites. Also, there are craploads of environmental contractors and consultants. Try CH2M hill, the national science foundation, URS, Fluor, Parsons.</p>
<p>Check out a list of the top environmental engineering firms at engineering news record.
[The</a> Top 200 Environmental Firms - ENR | McGraw-Hill Construction](<a href=“http://enr.construction.com/people/topLists/topEnvDesign/topEnv_1-50.asp]The”>http://enr.construction.com/people/topLists/topEnvDesign/topEnv_1-50.asp)</p>
<p>Show the slightest ambition and they will snap you up immediately. There are a number of very smart college students who have been doing internships since highschool… so I don’t know why people here are saying it’s so difficult.</p>
<p>Very helpful post! Thank you!</p>
<p>Wealth management may take you. Just need great ECs, exceptionally high test scores, and be entering an ivy league. My roommate last summer was an incoming freshman working at a PBIG, he had a strong reference from his brother who’s already in IB.</p>
<p>That’ll land you a paid gig.</p>
<p>That sounds cool. How would I start out trying to get such a position? Just e-mailing the company, or are there special high school programs?</p>
<p>Unless you have mad connections, you’re probably not going to get a paid internship without a couple years of college under your belt. I mean, think about it – the economy sucks right now, and you’re competing not only with college students but with unemployed adults! </p>
<p>That said, you’ve basically got two options:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Unpaid internship: this really isn’t so bad, since I assume you’ll be living at home and your parents will be paying for your food, etc. (A salary for an internship becomes crucial if you have you pay travel/room/board.) Lots of companies will be more than happy to get a very capable high school grad to work for them for free. You will probably have to do a lot of “scut work” – making photocopies, brewing coffee (yes, this really happens, haha), licking envelopes – but your employers will probably throw a bit of substantial work your way, and you’ll make valuable connections and gain work experience that will help you get a paid internship next summer. You’ll also get a really good feel for what you want to do with your life, as you’ll be immersed in a potential career choice.</p></li>
<li><p>Paid job: The classic “high school job” where you work at the mall or a restaurant for fairly low (but hey, still existent) wages. Probably boring, probably frustrating, but you’ll get paid and get work experience.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I actually combined the two the summer after my senior year – I worked 4 days a week in a sucky but paid job, and 1 day in an unpaid internship at my Representative’s office.</p>