14 Internships for High School Students in Orange County
As a high school student, participating in an internship can be a meaningful way to explore potential career paths, gain hands-on experience, and strengthen your college applications. Internships allow you to step outside the classroom and engage with real projects, whether in science, technology, the arts, healthcare, or public service. They help you build transferable skills such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving—abilities that are highly valued in any academic or professional setting.
Choosing a local internship in Orange County has several advantages. For one, it reduces the time and cost associated with travel or relocation, making the experience more accessible and sustainable during the school year or summer. Second, interning in your local community can help you build connections with professionals and organizations in your area—networks that may offer continued support, mentorship, or future opportunities. Local internships also make it easier to balance your academic commitments with your internship schedule, especially if you’re looking to gain experience during the school year.
To help you get started, we’ve compiled a list of 14 competitive internships for high school students in Orange County, including both in-person and virtual opportunities across diverse fields.
1. Scripps Student Research Internship
Location: Scripps Research Translational Institute, La Jolla, CA
Stipend: $4,830 is awarded to interns on completion of the internship.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 12 interns per summer
Program dates: June 2–August 8 or June 16–August 22
Application deadline: March 31
Eligibility: High school students who will be at least 16 years old by the internship start date
As an intern in the Scripps Research Translational Institute’s Student Research Internship, you will have the opportunity to investigate how genomics, computational methods, and mobile health technologies contribute to precision medicine. This internship for high school students in Orange County pairs you with a mentor whose research may involve anything from genome-wide association studies to digital health trials. Expect to focus largely on dry lab work–data analysis, statistical modeling, and research design–with some limited wet lab access. You'll analyze the relationship between genetic variation and health outcomes while exploring how digital tools enhance patient care.
Location: Remote! You can work from anywhere in the world.
Cost: Varies depending on program type (financial aid available)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective
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 connects high school students with early-stage, venture-backed startups for intensive virtual internships. Over eight weeks, you’ll contribute to deliverables in areas like machine learning, biotech, journalism, or product design, depending on your match. The startups average over $1M in funding and expect interns to operate with autonomy. You'll receive support from a Ladder Coach and work closely with your startup manager, culminating in a final presentation. It’s great if you’re interested in fast-paced environments and want experience at the intersection of innovation and execution.
3. Eve and Gene Black Summer Medical Career Program
Location: Various medical centers across California
Stipend: $500 scholarship is awarded upon completion.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Program dates: Online Program 1: July 7–17 | Online Program 2: July 21–31 | In-person Program: Varies by facility
Application deadline: February 14
Eligibility: Open to high school juniors and seniors.
This clinical exposure program introduces you to medical careers through structured rotations with pediatric specialists. You’ll observe a range of healthcare professionals, including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and dietitians, while engaging in Q&A sessions and live demonstrations. The focus is on shadowing and exploring the various interdisciplinary roles that shape patient care. This internship provides a comprehensive view of the collaborative nature of modern healthcare, especially within child-centered clinical environments.
4. BrainSport Summer High School Research Internship at UCLA
Location: University of California, Los Angeles, CA
Cost: Free
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Competitive
Program dates: June 6–August 1
Application deadline: April
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors intending to mentor interns in the next year
Focused on pediatric traumatic brain injury, the BrainSport Summer High School Research Internship at UCLA integrates high school students into ongoing studies like CARE4Kids, which explores persistent post-concussion symptoms. Interns assist with subject recruitment, data collection, neurocognitive testing, and autonomic assessments. You’ll also contribute to data entry, protocol management, and weekly lab meetings. By the end of this sports internship, you’ll design and present a research project in neurobiology or sports medicine, grounded in current methodologies and guided by clinical researchers.
Location: Moores Cancer Center, UC San Diego
Cost: Free; a stipend is awarded to all participants.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective, 10-12 interns per cohort
Program dates: June 16–August 8
Application deadline: TBA
Eligibility: Open to students in grades 10 and 11 who reside in San Diego and attend Lincoln, Hoover, Crawford, Morse, Madison, Garfield, Mark Twain, or Preuss High Schools.
If you're a high school student interested in cancer research and public health, the OPTIMUS Outreach Program gives you the chance to spend eight weeks at the Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego. You'll be paired with research faculty and participate in mentored lab work focused on cancer biology while also shadowing doctors in clinical settings. Alongside your research responsibilities, you will be introduced to an educational curriculum covering core topics in oncology and biomedical science, and engage in professional development sessions. You'll also collaborate with graduate students to design and deliver cancer education modules for local elementary students.
6. Heithoff-Brody High School Scholars Program at the Salk Institute
Location: Salk Institute, La Jolla, CA
Cost: Free; interns are awarded a stipend.
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Program dates: June 16–August 8
Application deadline: March 28
Eligibility: San Diego County residents; will be at least 16 years old by the program start date; check the website for full eligibility criteria
At the Heithoff-Brody High School Scholars Program at the Salk Institute, interns work one-on-one with a research scientist on an original project tied to ongoing biomedical studies. The internship includes lab work such as wet lab techniques, bioinformatics, and data analysis, alongside seminars that span experimental design, science communication, and current topics in molecular biology and neuroscience. You’ll also have the chance to visit biotech companies and attend workshops that give you a broader context for how research transitions into practical applications. Your experience culminates in a formal presentation of your research—either as a poster or an oral talk—at the Summer Scholars Research Symposium.
7. American Psychological Association (APA) – Remote Internship Program
Location: Remote
Cost: None
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Dates: Internships are offered all year round
Application deadline: Rolling
Eligibility: Open to all high school students eligible to work in the U.S. (as verified by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s eVerify service) and residing in one of the states where APA is already registered as an employer.
If you’re inclined toward psychology, this internship program offers the chance to explore psychology through research, communications, policy, or education. You'll be assigned to a department at the American Psychological Association, where tasks may include writing memos, analyzing data, contributing to content development, or supporting strategic initiatives. This internship includes optional programming such as workshops, discussions, and networking, with an emphasis on applying psychological theory in a professional context. It’s remote, flexible, and a great entry point into behavioral science careers.
8. Stanford AIMI Summer Research Internship
Location: Virtual
Cost: $840 + $40 application fee (financial aid is available)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 25 interns
Program dates: June 16-27
Application deadline: December 9–February 28
Eligibility: High school students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents who will be 14 years or older by the program's start are eligible.
If you're seeking a virtual internship, the Stanford AIMI Summer Research Internship is a two-week introduction to how AI is applied in clinical settings. Interns have the opportunity to attend technical lectures on machine learning fundamentals, data-driven diagnostics, and healthcare imaging, and participate in mentored group research projects guided by Stanford researchers and student leads. The program also includes structured sessions with professionals from academia, government, and industry to give you a broader view of career pathways in AI and medicine. Interactive working sessions use healthcare challenges as case studies. Students who complete the full program receive a certificate, and there may be an opportunity to continue with an extended research internship for those interested in pursuing a longer-term project.
9. Johns Hopkins Internship in Brain Sciences (JHIBS)
Location: Virtual
Cost: Free; virtual interns are provided a $500 stipend
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective
Dates: 5 weeks (June to August)
Application deadline: December 1–March 1
Eligibility: Open to U.S. high school juniors and seniors
Another great remote option, the Johns Hopkins Internship in Brain Sciences (JHIBS) offers high schoolers a five-week virtual experience in neuroscience and clinical research. You will engage in activities like educational seminars on brain science topics, professional development workshops, and virtual lab training that introduces you to core experimental techniques. The program emphasizes mentored research, pairing you with scientists from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine to explore topics in neurology and cognitive science. You’ll work on a research project and gain insight into what pursuing a doctoral-level career in neuroscience entails. By the end, you’ll present your findings and receive a certificate of completion.
10. Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program (SEAP) by the Department of Navy
Location: Varies based on lab locations.
Cost: Free; stipend: $4,000 (new participants) | $4,500 (returning participants)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Competitive, 300 students across 38 labs
Dates: June–August (8 weeks)
Application deadline: Applications open in August and close on November 1 every year
Eligibility: Open to high school students in grades 10-12 who are 16 years old by the start of the program and are U.S. citizens
While not all placements are located directly in Orange County, the Department of the Navy’s Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program includes several lab sites across California within a reasonable commute for students in the region. If you're a high school sophomore, junior, or senior with a strong interest in STEM, this federal internship for high school students in Orange County gives you the chance to work in a Navy research lab for eight weeks over the summer. You'll be paired with professional scientists and engineers and take part in research projects tied to naval science, from materials testing and robotics to cybersecurity or ocean engineering, depending on your lab match. Interns are selected based on academic performance, essays, recommendations, and stated research interests.
11. Hutton Junior Fisheries Biology Program
Location: Available across all 50 U.S. states, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, and the Pacific Islands. Participants are assigned a location that is within a 45-minute commute of their home.
Stipend: $3,000
Acceptance rate/cohort size: NA
Program dates: June – August (flexible)
Application deadline: January 19
Eligibility: Rising high school seniors and rising college freshmen who are at least 16 years old by the internship start date
The Hutton Junior Fisheries Biology Program allows you to spend your summer outdoors and in labs working on conservation science. This selective program places students alongside professional fisheries scientists for an eight-week field and lab experience. You’ll assist with population monitoring, water quality testing, habitat restoration, and laboratory analysis. The program is designed to provide exposure to ecological research and conservation work in aquatic systems, offering insight into how fisheries professionals conduct research, manage data, and contribute to sustainability initiatives.
12. LA Times HS Insider Summer Internship
Location: Los Angeles Times, LA
Stipend: $16.90/hour
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Competitive; small cohort selected
Dates: June 16 - August 1
Application deadline: February 26
Eligibility: High school students graduating in the next three years, residing in Los Angeles County and Orange County, California
The LA Times HS Insider Summer Internship is a fully funded journalism program for high school students. Over seven weeks, you'll function as a working journalist–reporting on breaking news, writing features, and experimenting with multimedia formats. With mentorship from LA Times editors, you'll develop pitches, conduct interviews, draft stories, and revise your work for publication on HS Insider. The media internship includes training sessions on journalistic standards, ethics, and tools, allowing you to explore the editorial process in a newsroom context. It’s a paid opportunity that builds both portfolio pieces and professional skills.
13. Internships at the Smithsonian’s Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage
Location: Remote
Stipend: Unspecified
Acceptance rate/cohort size: 100+ interns annually
Dates: Internships are offered year-round and can vary from 6 weeks to one year
Application deadline: March 1
Eligibility: Open to all high school students
For those inclined towards cultural research, storytelling, or the arts, internships at the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage can be a good opportunity to engage in research and production projects tied to fields like folklore, ethnomusicology, linguistics, and museum studies. As an intern, you might assist with curating content for the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, work with archival materials in the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives, contribute to Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, or support initiatives in cultural sustainability. Projects are guided by Center staff and vary depending on your area of focus, with options ranging from web design to educational outreach.
14. CS@Mines Virtual Computing Internship
Location: Remote and in-person options available
Cost: $100 (financial aid available)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Approximately 2-4 research spots and 30-50 Computing For the Good spots
Dates: 6 weeks during summer (exact dates unspecified)
Application deadline: April 18
Eligibility: Open to high school students with a strong interest in learning computer science
CS@Mines is a virtual computing internship that places high school students in direct collaboration with faculty on research projects focused on socially relevant computing challenges. As a participant, you’ll work remotely on topics like algorithm design, ethical AI, software development, or data analysis as part of the broader “Computing for the Good” initiative. The program is competitive, with limited openings available each summer, so a strong academic foundation in computer science or related areas is important. Depending on your assigned project, you might contribute to coding tasks, literature reviews, or prototype development under faculty mentorship.