<p>Hello, I am a new member here to the fourms.</p>
<p>I am looking for some internships for the summer, but can't find anything for 15 year-olds. (I'm still a highschool freshman) My field of interest is engineering (Aerospace, Electrical, Software) and Computer Science.</p>
<p>Am I too young, or am I just not looking at the right places?</p>
<p>Don't think of yourself as young--go for those internships. Freshmen year will be the best time to get started, do not slack off during the summer. Colleges don't appreciate slackers. Look locally in your field of interest for internships, and gradually move to expand search. :)</p>
<p>-Your guidance counselor might help you cold-call some companies if you can't find any programmes. Here's some tips for you (from my own experience)
-Make a list of companies (in your area) who do stuff you're interested in - e.g. Google, Micron, whatever.
-Write up a resume with relevant experience.
-Think of what you want to get from this. Meet new people, connections? Learn lab skills? Design a new project?
-Elucidate your thoughts to your GC. S/he can only help you if s/he knows what you can do (i.e. resume) and what kind of internship you want.
-If your GC can't or won't help you cold-call, do it yourself... Just be polite.</p>
<p>-If not, you could approach professors at a nearby college? They might have opportunities.</p>
<p>Thanks for the help, but the problem is finding a company willing to accept a 15 year old. I think seeing a guidance counselor will be good, and can also try local colleges. I live north of Philly; What do you think about internships at Villanova, Drexel, and Temple U(or another college if you recommend me some)?</p>
<p>BTW I would prefer an internship that offers pay but that's not an absolute requirement</p>
<p>It is very very unusual for significant meaningful 'internships' at your age. </p>
<p>The best I can suggest is suggest you want to 'job shadow' someone for a week or two (or even a day or two)... As an adult, internships can be a hassle (just being honest) and the younger you are the more 'problematic' you are. </p>
<p>So thi summer a goal would be to find some willing soul to allow you to spend a day with to see what there work world is like, and then enjoy the summer and/or do an enrichment program or something .. generally 15 (or 16 for that matter) is too young for an 'internship</p>
<p>simply put, you aren't going to receive a paid internship at 15 unless you are incredibly lucky/skilled/both. </p>
<p>Essentially, if you'd like to have an internship at all you must grovel. Do the dirty work. Get the coffee. File the papers. Type the reports. Then network, network, network. If you are a hard-working, dedicated paper filer they might promote you. Bring you on for a temporary job. Or maybe even give you a real, paid position. But don't expect to do highly technical work at your age. Not that there aren't such things out there! </p>
<p>The best option (like someone might have mentioned) is to ask some local college professors in your fields of choice if they would like any help (volunteer, as in a mentorship or otherwise). Once you get experience with one, it'll be way easier to find another</p>
<p>Okay, I'll just get a separate job for the money. The only reason I want an internship is so I can get job experience and connections; I just thought a salary will kill 2 birds with 1 stone. The gist I'm getting is that interns are more of assistants. </p>
<p>So maybe I should just look at colleges? Will that be more helpful than an internship at a company?</p>
<p>Let's be realistic here, hurry to your local mall and look for a job asap. Personally, I'd recommend retail and not food services.</p>
<p>Listen to Dawgie :-)</p>
<p>ok, i don't mean this in a condescending way but the chances of getting a <em>paid</em> internship at 15 are slim-to-none...my upperclass college friends from top schools are having trouble finding internships in general, let alone paid ones.</p>
<p>You also kind of missed the boat for applications...for college internships the app seasons starts in Nov/Dec, and for HS stuff it was more like Feb/March...next year make sure you get an early start!</p>
<p>For now I'd recommend...
--calling up local companies and asking if you could volunteer (don't even ask about money...if they offer it, great, but start of saying that you'll volunteer)
--getting another real, paying job for the summer...believeee me it'll make your internship-seeking next year a lot easier. Check out clothing stores, local summer camps and ice cream shops...they often hire younger people. Don't work at Pizza Hut, though...no one tips! :-)</p>
<p>So I can't really get an internship at my age? I guess I'll just focus elsewhere over the summer. I'll try calling "volunteering" at other companies, but I'm not holding my breath.</p>
<p>I mean, I'm nearly 20 and I'm one of the few of my HS friends who has an internship this summer. Most are working at B&N or Baskin Robbins or w/e.</p>
<p>I think you have very ambitious goals at the moment. I think you would be lucky just getting a job at your age. You will be competing with more mature and qualified people. You will definitely need some connections. </p>
<p>I think it is a good idea to start volunterring at companies that will enhance your career goals.</p>
<p>I think you guys are right, I'll just look for a job shadowing/volunteering opportunity. How long do most students typically volunteer at a cooperation?</p>
<p>P.S: What kind of pay can I expect at Ben & Jerry's? Minimum wage?</p>
<p>yep, minimum wage. </p>
<p>You might actually be too young for a lot of jobs...I know in my home state you need to be 16 to handle cash (so you can't hold any job that involves a cash register before then...so malls, ice cream shops, etc are out) and you can't serve alcohol until 18, so most restaurants won't hire you until then! A lot of my friends worked w/ friends' parents or at local camps...those are groups that do tend to hire under 16!</p>
<p>I think I'll be able to secure a job, I know plenty of other 15-year-olds with less credentials who work at restaurants.</p>
<p>Anyway, one last question before I let this thread die; Does university prestige matter in college internships, because UPenn is about a 20 min. drive from my house, and I can probably apply for an internship there, or should I go to another place like Drexel, which has more of an engineering focus?</p>
<p>All depends on the kind of job that you want. If you don't want to work at McDonalds for minimum wage, you will need to act mature/older at other job interviews. </p>
<p>University prestige can carry some weight, but ultimately your connections and your interview will be the deciding factors in whether or not you get the internship.</p>
<p>Ive come to learn that without connections, it's close to impossible to find these sort of internships as a high schooler. Honestly what would a company get out of paying some high school kid 10 bucks an hour as an intern other than getting them to do ***** work.</p>
<p>@techboid
I agree. I spent a good semester of my junior year looking for an internship myself with companies like IBM, SAIC, Goldman, Boeing, etc but in the end they all said no
I ended up getting one with Lockheed Martin through a program at our school.
Look at NASA, they have internships for high school students that you can apply for. Search for their INSPIRE program.</p>
<p>Apply for NASA INSPIRE and Office of Navel Research SEAP. You'll probably be turned down due to competition, but you will gain name recognition and application practice for the next year. And the inspire website, run by University of Oklahoma, will teach you patience and perseverance. Their password criteria alone is an education.</p>