14 AI Internships for High School Students in Chicago
AI internships can provide high school students with early exposure to technical fields while helping them develop skills that are valuable for college and future careers. These programs enable you to explore how AI is applied across various disciplines, including engineering, healthcare, climate science, and research. An internship can strengthen your college application profile by demonstrating engagement with complex topics.
What AI internships are available for high school students in Chicago?
Chicago is home to universities, national laboratories, museums, and civic organizations that offer AI-related opportunities for high school students. The programs in this list include internships, research placements, and skill-building workshops that prepare you for future AI or data science internships. You may analyze datasets, learn Python or machine learning concepts, contribute to scientific or health-related research, or present your work at a research symposium. Some internships are paid and full-time, while others are part-time, running during the school year or summer.
We have compiled 14 AI internships for high school students in Chicago that provide work experience and exposure to the applications of artificial intelligence across various fields.
1. The University of Chicago’s Data Science Institute (DSI) Summer Lab
Location: UChicago Hyde Park campus, Chicago, IL
Cost/Stipend: Free | $5,600
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Competitive, with a limited number of spots
Program Dates: June 15 – August 7
Application Deadline: January 12
Eligibility: High school students who live and attend school in Chicago
The University of Chicago’s DSI Summer Lab places you in an academic research setting where data science and AI are used to study problems. You will work on an applied, interdisciplinary project in areas such as computer science, climate and energy, public policy, or biomedical research. Along the way, you will gain insight into how researchers collect and analyze data while applying machine learning and computational techniques. Each participant is paired with a faculty mentor or graduate student mentor who will guide them along the research process and help them gain insight into various research methodologies. The internship includes weekly seminars with researchers and professionals who discuss their career paths and current work in data science and related fields. At the end of the eight-week paid internship, you will present your findings at a formal research symposium modeled after a professional conference, giving you experience communicating technical work to an academic audience.
2. Ladder Internship Program
Location: Remote! You can work from anywhere in the world
Cost: Varies depending on program type; Full financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Approximately 10%; cohorts of 70–100 students
Program Dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year, including Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter
Application Deadline: Deadlines vary depending on the cohort. Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September), and Winter (November)
Eligibility: Students who can work for 10–20 hours/week for 8–12 weeks. Open to high school students, undergraduates, and gap year students!
Ladder Internships is a selective start-up internship program for ambitious high school students! In the program, you work with a high-growth start-up on an internship. Start-ups that offer internships range across a variety of industries, from tech/deep tech and AI/ML to health tech, marketing, journalism, consulting, and more. Ladder’s start-ups are high-growth companies on average, raising over a million dollars. Interns work closely with their manager at the startup on real-world projects and present their work to the company. The virtual internship is usually 8 weeks long. Apply now!
3. AEOP Internships for High School Students
Location: Various U.S. Army Research Labs across the country, including Chicago, IL
Cost/Stipend: Free | Paid, but the exact amount varies by internship site and duration
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Less than 15% | The cohort size varies by lab needs and funding
Program Dates: Internships are available throughout the year
Application Deadline: Varies by internship
Eligibility: Current high school students who are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents; additional site-specific requirements apply
AEOP Internships place you in paid research roles at U.S. Army Research Laboratories or Army-funded university labs, where you’ll work alongside scientists and engineers on STEM projects. Depending on the lab, you may support research in areas such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics, high-performance computing, or autonomous systems, contributing to real-world defense research. The internship includes formal mentorship from a professional researcher, giving you regular guidance on both technical tasks and STEM career pathways. You will apply classroom knowledge to lab-based work while building transferable skills such as data analysis, technical communication, and collaborative problem-solving. The combination of paid research experience, direct mentorship, and exposure to government-funded research environments helps you understand what advanced STEM and AI research looks like in practice.
4. Field Museum Women in Science Internships
Location: The Field Museum, Chicago, IL
Cost/Stipend: Free | Paid, but the exact amount is not specified
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Around 5 high school interns (tentative)
Program Dates: Full-time summer internship
Application Deadline: Applications open in the spring
Eligibility: Open to high school students living in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, or Michigan
The Field Museum Women in Science Internships are full-time, in-person summer internships for high school and undergraduate students interested in collections-based research work in Chicago. You’ll work alongside Field Museum scientists and researchers on projects that may include digitizing collections, georeferencing specimens, or applying AI tools to biological data, such as training models to classify beetle color patterns. You will gain hands-on experience with scientific data management and research documentation, while also practicing how to communicate scientific findings to broader audiences. The internship emphasizes collaboration, with opportunities to work alongside other interns and interact regularly with professional researchers. You’ll be invited to behind-the-scenes collection tours, staff events, and exhibition previews, offering insight into how large research museums operate.
5. EDIT AI High School Summer Internship Program
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Around 90 participants
Program Dates: June 13 – August 31
Application Deadline: April 15
Eligibility: High school students with prior programming experience in Python
The EDIT AI High School Summer Internship Program places you in a research-focused environment where you’ll work on projects at the intersection of artificial intelligence and cancer medicine. You will contribute to ongoing studies that use pathology images, clinical text, and genomic or multi-omics datasets, building practical skills in machine learning, data analysis, and programming with Python and R. The internship also includes structured workshops and a Virtual Student Laboratory, along with tiered mentorship from researchers, clinicians, and student mentors who guide your technical and research development. You will collaborate with peers and professionals across multiple institutions, reflecting how modern biomedical research teams operate. Depending on the project, you may help develop algorithms for tasks such as cancer detection, image manipulation, or text prediction, and present your work through seminars, conferences, or research publications.
6. STEM Enhancement in Earth Science (SEES) – Virtual Internship
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Around 10%
Program Dates: June – July 21 (exact dates vary by project) | SEES distance learning Modules will be available from May 15 – July 1
Application Deadline: February 22
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors who are at least 16 years old | Must be U.S. citizens
The SEES Internship places you on a virtual research team working with NASA scientists and academic mentors to study space and Earth science problems. You will work on a specified, mission-aligned project in areas such as AI system design for space exploration, satellite-based Earth monitoring, air quality analysis, urban heat study, astronomy, or exoplanet detection. The internship focuses on hands-on research tasks, including analyzing large datasets, using GIS or astronomy software, applying computational methods, and interpreting scientific results. You will collaborate with other high school students and professionals while following structured research timelines similar to those used in NASA projects. Each project team presents its findings at the Virtual SEES Science Symposium, which mirrors a professional scientific conference.
7. UChicago Youth Internship Program
Location: The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Cost/Stipend: Free | Stipends are in line with the city of Chicago’s minimum wage
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective, with only limited spots available
Program Dates: June 22 – July 30, along with orientation events in the spring before the next summer (tentative; subject to change)
Application Deadline: April 24 (tentative; based on previous years) | If you’ve completed the Year 1 experience, you need to apply to Year 2 by February 20
Eligibility: High school students who are at least 16 years old | Must reside in the city of Chicago and attend a Chicago public high school, including charter schools | Must be authorized to work in the U.S. | Only students who have completed the Year 1 experience can apply to Year 2
In the UChicago Youth Internship Program, you will spend two summers building early work experience while exploring STEM pathways at a major research university. During the first summer, you will participate in workshops, college visits, sessions with STEM professionals, and professional leadership lessons. Students who return for a second summer are placed in paid internships with UChicago departments, such as health sciences, computer science, and IT services. Your responsibilities may include supporting projects with data analysis or computational tasks, summarizing research materials, assisting with scheduling tasks, and observing how technical teams operate day to day. You will finish the program by preparing and delivering a formal presentation about your internship experience, which helps you practice communicating technical work in a professional setting.
8. UChicago Medicine – ResearcHStart
Location: Several universities across Illinois, including the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois Chicago, and Rush University
Cost/Stipend: Free | $3,000 taxable stipend
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly competitive, with only up to 30 students selected across all participating institutions
Program Dates: June 15 – August 7
Application Deadline: January 19
Eligibility: Current high school juniors or seniors from Illinois or Lake County, Indiana | Must be at least 16 years old by the start of the program
As part of UChicago Medicine’s ResearcHStart program, you will work full-time in university research laboratories focused on cancer research. You may contribute to ongoing projects in areas such as the molecular mechanism of cancer, bioengineering, cancer imaging, or computational cancer biology, where large datasets are analyzed to study cancer risk and outcomes. Throughout the program, you will meet regularly with university faculty and research professionals who will guide you through lab techniques, data analysis, and scientific problem-solving. The experience also includes career development workshops and a faculty lecture series that explain how research connects to clinical care and public health. You will collaborate with other high school researchers and receive structured mentorship from researchers across participating institutions. The program concludes with a research symposium where you present your findings to peers, families, and members of the scientific community.
9. Urban Alliance High School Internships in Chicago
Location: Organizations across Chicago, IL
Cost/Stipend: Free | Paid; the exact amount may vary based on the internship
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; partnered with more than 25 Chicago high schools and 60 businesses across the city
Program Dates: 9-month internships
Application Deadline: Applications typically open in the summer
Eligibility: High school students enrolled in Chicago Public Schools
The Urban Alliance High School Internship program places you in a paid, nine-month-long internship with a Chicago-based employer with structured career preparation. You will split your time between on-the-job training at a partner organization and weekly workshops focused on workplace skills, communication, and career planning. Depending on your placement in fields like technology, business, healthcare, or finance, you may get to work with AI tools for data analysis, automation, or other digital operations. The internship runs over the academic year, allowing you to gain first-hand insight into how professional teams collaborate in the long term. Through its Obama Youth Jobs Corps partnership, the internship prioritizes expanding access to paid professional experiences and workplace training for students from Chicago’s South Side.
10. The University of Chicago’s Data4All High School Bridge Workshop
Location: University of Chicago campus in Hyde Park, Chicago, IL
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 30 students divided into 6 groups
Program Dates: 8 weeks long with students meeting on Saturdays (Spring and Fall)
Application Deadline: Spring deadline is March 9 (tentative; based on previous years)
Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, and seniors who have completed Algebra 1
This eight-week-long workshop introduces you to the full data science research process, from asking questions and working with raw data to analyzing results and presenting evidence-based findings. You will learn Python programming and apply it to real-world datasets through guided coding notebooks and inquiry-driven group projects. Each session builds practical skills in data analysis, visualization, and AI principles, helping you understand how data is used to study real societal and scientific problems. You will work in small teams with support from undergraduate and graduate mentors, reflecting how collaborative research environments operate. Throughout the program, you will also practice explaining your results clearly through “Journal” prompts and presentations. By the end, you will gain valuable insight into the skills needed for future data science or AI internships by experiencing firsthand how research-oriented technical work is actually carried out.
11. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s Discovery Partners Institute (DPI) Digital Scholars
Location: Tech Law Center at the Conviser Building, Chicago, IL
Cost/Stipend: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 30 students per class; overall, the program accepts around 150 students
Program Dates: June 23 – August 1, with a mandatory orientation on June 16
Application Deadline: February 28 – May 2
Eligibility: Rising 11th and 12th-grade students, as well as first-year college students at City Colleges of Chicago and Illinois institutions
In the Digital Scholars program, you will spend six weeks building technical skills while exploring how Chicago’s technology ecosystem operates. You will enroll in a focused course such as data science, computer science, electrical and computer engineering, or app development, where you’ll work with datasets, programming languages, and technical projects. The curriculum also includes topical workshops on artificial intelligence, machine learning, entrepreneurship, and data science, giving you the chance to engage with professionals from Chicago’s tech community. Alongside technical training, the program also emphasizes developing skills such as collaboration, communication, college and career readiness, personal branding, and professional networking.
12. Fermilab Program for Research, Innovation, and STEM Mentorship (PRISM)
Location: Fermilab, Batavia, IL (less than an hour away from Chicago); on-site and off-site work schedule
Cost/Stipend: Free | $500/week
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Not specified
Program Dates: July 13 – August 7
Application Deadline: January 13 – March 1
Eligibility: High school seniors or recent high school graduates who are enrolled in an Illinois high school; must be U.S. citizens
In the PRISM program, you will explore advanced science and technology topics by working alongside Fermilab researchers and STEM professionals. The program is organized around themed weekly sessions that combine lectures, hands-on activities, and guided facility tours that show how large-scale research labs operate. You will examine areas such as particle physics, quantum science, engineering, and artificial intelligence, gaining context for how these fields intersect in real research environments. A central part of the experience is developing a research abstract and scientific poster based on your work at Fermilab. You will present this work at the end of the internship, gaining experience in how scientists communicate ideas to a technical audience.
13. Argonne National Laboratory’s College Bound Research Program
Location: Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL (less than an hour from Chicago)
Cost/Stipend: Free | $500/week
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly competitive
Program Dates: June 9 – August 1
Application Deadline: February 6
Eligibility: Students graduating from a local high school who are enrolled to attend college full-time in the Fall after the program | Must be at least 18 years old | Must have a minimum unweighted GPA of 3.75/4.0 | Must be U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents
This summer research program places you in a laboratory or office environment at Argonne National Laboratory, where you will work with scientists and engineers on research projects. You will spend your time contributing to a specific project in areas such as artificial intelligence, advanced computing, autonomous discovery, materials science, or energy research, depending on your placement. The program begins with safety training and research strategy planning, followed by several weeks of hands-on work under close supervision from an Argonne mentor. Alongside your project, you will attend weekly seminars and lab tours that explain how different research divisions collaborate within a national laboratory setting. The experience emphasizes research skills such as data analysis, technical documentation, and scientific problem-solving in a professional environment. You will conclude the program by creating and presenting a research poster, giving you practice communicating technical work to a scientific audience.
14. Stanford Center for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine & Imaging (AIMI) Summer Research Internship
Location: Virtual
Cost: $2,400 + $45 application fee (financial aid available)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Around 50 students (tentative; subject to change)
Program Dates: June 15 – 26 (Session 1) | July 6 – 17 (Session 2)
Application Deadline: December 15 – February 20
Eligibility: High school students entering grades 9–12 | Must live and attend school in the U.S. | Must be at least 14 years old
The Stanford AIMI Summer Research Internship is a two-week, fully virtual program for high school students who want to work on applied AI projects in healthcare. You will take part in technical lectures on AI in medicine, followed by team-based research projects where you’ll help address a practical problem with limited step-by-step guidance. The internship includes mentorship from Stanford student leads and researchers, along with structured group work sessions that mirror collaborative research environments. You will also attend “Meet the Expert” sessions with professionals from academia, industry, nonprofit, and government sectors, offering insight into different career pathways in health AI. Students who complete the full internship receive a Certificate of Completion.