Updated October 2026
TL;DR
This list covers 12 business internships for Boston high school students, from financial firms and insurers to museums and city youth job programs. Depending on the placement, students might support a corporate team, help promote arts programs, or work in a community bike shop. Most are paid, in-person roles around Boston, while one runs fully online. Ladder Internships offers an 8-week virtual start-up project with a company coach, ending in a final presentation.
Before a new shop, app, or service opens, someone has to work out who its customers are, how to reach them, and whether the numbers add up. The U.S. Small Business Administration’s guide to writing a business plan breaks this thinking into parts such as market analysis, marketing and sales, and financial projections. Watching those decisions play out in a real workplace shows how business ideas turn into everyday work with customers, budgets, and deadlines. For a high school student, that experience can turn a general interest in business into something concrete.
We selected these programs for their Boston locations or virtual format, their openness to high school students, and the business-related work they describe.
If you’d like to see what else is open to teens around the city, check out these internships for high school students in Boston and this list of paid internships for high school students in Boston. If a case competition is on your radar, here’s a practical guide to solving a business case as a high school student.
Why should you do a business internship?
School can introduce ideas like pricing, marketing, and budgeting, but an internship shows how those ideas shape real decisions. Working alongside professionals helps you see which parts of business, from finance to communications, actually hold your interest. If you’d like to test that from home, Ladder Internships places high school students on virtual projects with start-ups.
What skills can you pick up in business internships?
You can practice researching a market, organizing data in spreadsheets, and turning findings into clear recommendations. Communication sits at the center of most business work, whether you’re writing to a client, presenting to a team, or speaking with customers. You'll also build habits like meeting deadlines and following through, which matter in any workplace.
How do you choose the right option?
Consider several factors before applying, including your grade level, location, academic background, schedule, and budget. Also check requirements related to citizenship, residency, coursework, or GPA, as these can vary significantly!
|
Program type |
Top programs |
Cost/Stipend |
Best for |
|
Finance and Corporate Internships |
Free; $15 – $21/hr stipend |
Students drawn to banking, insurance, or investment careers who want to see how large organizations operate day to day |
|
|
Arts, Culture, and Marketing |
AFH Teen Jobs, Bloomberg Arts Internship, Summer ZooTeen, MFA Teen Arts Council |
Free; $15 – $25+/hr stipend |
Creative students curious about branding, promotion, and how cultural organizations reach their audiences |
|
City and Community Youth Jobs |
ABCD SummerWorks, City School-Year Youth Jobs, Bikes Not Bombs |
Free; $15 - $20/hr stipend |
Boston residents who want a first paid job and a feel for everyday workplaces, from offices to shop floors |
|
Virtual Programs |
Fee-based (financial aid available) |
Students who want to try start-up strategy and marketing work remotely, with a coach guiding their project |
1. Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD) – ABCD SummerWorks
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Stipend: $15 per hour (ages 14–18); $20 per hour (ages 19–24)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Non-competitive; lottery-based placement
Dates: July 6 – August 28
Application Deadline: Openings filled by lottery
Eligibility: Ages 14–24 as of July 3; Boston residents; income eligibility required for some positions
You complete a paid six-week placement at a Boston worksite, with career pathways in business, government, healthcare, youth services, and early childhood education. Alongside the job, you join career development workshops on financial education, workplace etiquette, and resume writing, and you get mentoring support. This mix can help you build collaboration, leadership, and professional workplace skills while earning an hourly wage.
Who is it best for: Students who want a paid summer job that lets them explore career paths such as business while building workplace skills through workshops and mentoring.
2. Ladder Internships - Business Track
Location: Virtual
Cost/Stipend: Cost varies depending on the program type; full need-based financial aid available
Acceptance rate/cohort size: ~10%; ~70 spots
Dates: Winter: starts December 7, runs 8 weeks; Spring, Summer, and Fall cohorts also offered
Application Deadline: Winter: November 15; Spring: February 8; Summer and Fall: cohort-specific deadlines
Eligibility: High school students; gap-year and undergraduate students who can work for 5–10 hours per week for 8 weeks
Ladder matches you with a start-up in a field such as finance, consulting, or media for an 8-week virtual project. Past business projects include a go-to-market strategy for a personal finance app, a marketing strategy for eco-friendly bags, and a business plan for an AI start-up idea generator. With a company coach guiding you, you present a first deliverable in week 4 and your final project in week 8, and you receive a letter of completion from the host company.
Who is it best for: Students who want to try real start-up business work, such as market analysis, marketing plans, or go-to-market strategy, remotely and with coaching along the way.
3. Artists for Humanity – Teen Jobs
Location: Boston, Massachusetts; Brooklyn, New York
Stipend: Paid, amount not disclosed; in Boston, paid studio work follows 36 unpaid volunteer hours in Foundation Studio
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; >400 teens
Dates: School year: September–June; Boston Foundation Studio cohorts in October, November, and January; Summer: July–August, Monday–Thursday
Application Deadline: Rolling basis with monthly review
Eligibility: Boston: enrolled in and regularly attending a Boston Public School and/or a Boston resident; Brooklyn: enrolled in and regularly attending high school; night, day, homeschool, or GED programs count; US work authorization
You start with Foundation Studio training (in Boston), then join a creative studio, such as graphic design, photography, painting, video, animation, or creative technology, where you work alongside professional artists and designers. As a paid teen employee, you help develop, implement, and market art and design projects commissioned by AFH's business and community clients. Some studios teach the work as a business, with photography covering how to present to a client and graphic design giving you entrepreneurial knowledge for projects like clothing branding, logo design, and website creation.
Who is it best for: Students who want paid, hands-on experience turning art and design skills into client work while learning how creative businesses market and deliver projects.
4. Liberty Mutual Insurance – Charlestown High School Internship
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Stipend: $19 per hour (school year); $18–$19 per hour (summer)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; ~60 interns
Dates: School year: January–May; Summer session also offered
Application Deadline: Employer-specific postings
Eligibility: Junior or senior at Charlestown High School; good attendance record
You work part-time at Liberty Mutual in Boston, where earlier school-to-work postings listed tasks such as company research, data entry, administrative support, managing electronic records, and departmental projects. Liberty Mutual describes this 50-plus-year program as the longest continual school/business partnership in Boston, linking classroom learning with on-the-job experience in the insurance industry. In a past cohort, Liberty Mutual's high school interns took classes in financial literacy, insurance basics, and corporate professional development, and one Charlestown student researched Gen Z audiences for the Global Brand and Communications team.
Who is it best for: Students who want paid, hands-on experience of corporate business operations and the insurance industry while building professional workplace skills alongside school.
5. Bloomberg Philanthropies, X Boston Cultural Host Sites – Bloomberg Arts Internship
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Stipend: $25+ per hour
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Competitive; up to 48 interns
Dates: Orientation from June 29; worksite internship July 8 – August 14
Application Deadline: March–April
Eligibility: Rising seniors at Boston public high schools
You work three days a week at a Boston arts or cultural organization. You may work in marketing and communications, which may involve digital photo archives, creating photo and video content for social media, and brainstorming campaign and poster ideas for an upcoming production. On the other days, you join cohort sessions with mentoring, professional development workshops, and field trips about arts careers, which can help you learn how the business side of the arts works.
Who is it best for: Students who want paid, hands-on experience in arts marketing and communications and are curious about how cultural organizations run as businesses.
6. Fidelity Investments – Summer Internship
Location: Boston, Massachusetts; Merrimack, New Hampshire
Stipend: $18–$21 per hour
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly competitive; cohort size not disclosed
Dates: July 6 – August 6
Application Deadline: Early March
Eligibility: Geared toward upperclassmen; applicants come through Fidelity community partner organizations or as eligible Boundless network students; rising high school seniors or first-year college students; Microsoft Office knowledge required
In this five-week Fidelity internship, you help with tasks and projects on a Fidelity team, network with employees, and build your resume with guidance from a mentor. Placements span functions such as Communications, Finance, Human Resources, Marketing, Operations, and Technology, matched to your interests and capabilities. Working inside a large financial services firm can help you build communication, teamwork, and problem-solving skills while you explore business career paths.
Who is it best for: Students who want to explore business functions such as finance, marketing, and operations inside a major financial services firm.
7. Today's Interns, Tomorrow's Professionals (TIP) Internship Program
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Stipend: Paid, amount not disclosed
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly selective; ~19 student interns
Dates: Early Engagement begins in March; summer internship follows; selected students continue year-round for up to three years
Application Deadline: Late winter
Eligibility: Boston Public Schools students; completed sophomore year; income-eligible; completion of Early Engagement program before summer internship interviews
You work paid placements in departments across the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, starting with a summer work experience that includes job coaching and skill-building workshops on personal finance, professional writing, and Office 365 applications. Based on openings and your interest, effort, and performance, you may be selected for a year-round internship lasting up to three years, from junior year through your first year after high school. Past placements have included communications, real estate services, and IT.
Who is it best for: Students who want a first professional job inside a central bank, with a mentored path that can last several years and builds workplace and personal-finance skills.
8. City of Boston with Boston Public Schools – School-Year Youth Jobs Program
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Stipend: $15 per hour (ages 14–18); $20 per hour for leader roles (ages 19–24)
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; large cohorts
Dates: School year, part-time
Application Deadline: Employer-specific
Eligibility: Ages 14–18 for youth jobs, at least 14 by job start (Boston City Youth Corps: by November 2); completed grade 6; legally permitted to work in the U.S.; most roles limited to full-time Boston residents; proof of residency and school enrollment required; work permit if under 18; some pilots require ages 15–18 or 16–18
You browse the City's futureBOS catalog and apply directly to paid, part-time school-year roles. These range from frontline municipal jobs in the Boston City Youth Corps to positions with employers that have committed hires, including State Street, Eastern Bank, Citizens Bank, John Hancock, and Bank of America. A recent cohort included a Youth Tax Preparation Pilot with IRS Basic Tax Preparer Certification training, an entrepreneurship-focused career academy for immigrant youth, and a Junior Achievement leadership and professional development pilot.
Who is it best for: Students who want paid, part-time work during the school year, including roles with Boston banks, insurers, and other corporate employers.
If you live outside Boston or don't want to commute every day, consider Ladder Internships, which pair you with startups to work on real projects in a fully virtual format.
9. Bikes Not Bombs – Youth Apprenticeship
Location: Jamaica Plain, Boston, Massachusetts
Stipend: At least $15 per hour
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; ~32 apprentices
Dates: Summer: June 23 – August 29; school-year cohort also offered
Application Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: Ages 14–18 during employment period; full-time City of Boston resident; legally permitted to work in the U.S.
You work as a paid Youth Apprentice at a nonprofit community bike organization, getting hands-on training in bike mechanics, entrepreneurship, and career development while supporting transportation equity work such as free repair events and refurbishing donated bikes. In a recent cohort, apprentices worked side by side with staff in the community bike shop selling refurbished bikes, new bikes, e-bikes, and used parts, and gained customer service and shop operations experience. Workshops on budgeting, saving, career exploration, resume writing, and interviewing can help you build practical business and workplace skills.
Who is it best for: Students who want paid, hands-on experience in a community bike shop that combines mechanics with retail sales, customer service, and personal finance skills.
10. Zoo New England, Franklin Park Zoo – Summer ZooTeen Program (Marketing Aide placement)
Location: Boston, Massachusetts (Franklin Park Zoo)
Stipend: $15 per hour
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Highly competitive; ~40 interns
Dates: June 28 – August 14; make-up week through August 21
Application Deadline: Typically, April
Eligibility: Ages 14–18; paid positions limited to Boston youth; volunteer positions open to Boston and non-Boston youth
You would work in one Franklin Park Zoo department several days a week and attend weekly professional development on public speaking, conservation advocacy, and job skills such as networking, resume and cover letter writing, and professionalism. You may serve as a Marketing Aide in the Marketing and Communications office, taking and editing photos and videos, interviewing staff, and helping craft social media posts.
Who is it best for: Students who care about animals and want a structured zoo work or volunteer experience with professional-skills training.
11. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston – Teen Arts Council
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Stipend: $15 per hour
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Selective; cohort size not disclosed
Dates: October 15 – May 27; Sunday events February 7, March 14, and April 11
Application Deadline: September 24
Eligibility: Currently enrolled in grade 10, 11, or 12 of high school or equivalent program; City of Boston resident or Boston Public Schools student
You work with MFA staff, including curators, interpreters, and exhibition designers, on displays and gallery labels; help plan events like the annual Teen Arts Expo; and promote MFA programs to young people through social media. You help bring teen perspectives into the museum and design experiences for teens at the MFA. You also learn about museum careers, and the event planning, promotion, and teamwork involved can help you develop workplace, marketing, and project-coordination skills useful in arts administration.
Who is it best for: Students who want paid, hands-on experience in event planning, marketing, and teamwork while learning how a major art museum reaches young audiences.
12. Boston Private Industry Council (PIC) – Summer Internship Program
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Stipend: $15–$18 per hour, varying by employer
Acceptance rate/cohort size: Competitive; >600 students
Dates: July–August; 6–7 weeks
Application Deadline: Typically, May
Eligibility: Boston Public Schools student in grades 9–12; 16 years old by July 1 (some hospital internships set an earlier age cutoff); authorized to work in the United States
You work with your school's PIC Career Specialist on resumes, applications, and employer preview days, then interview with Boston private-sector employers for a paid summer internship in fields such as business and finance, healthcare, law, and technology. Recent PIC interns have worked at financial services companies, including Bank of America, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, John Hancock, Liberty Mutual Insurance, and State Street. Business and finance interns have worked in areas such as investment management, information technology, and communications and marketing.
Who is it best for: Students who want paid, hands-on experience in Boston's finance and corporate sector, with school-based coaching on resumes, interviews, and workplace skills.
Can a business internship help with your college applications?
A business internship gives you concrete experiences to discuss, such as a project you contributed to or a problem your team solved. Reflecting on what you learned and how it shaped your interest in subjects like economics or marketing can make your application more specific and personal. It can also show that you handled real responsibility outside the classroom.
How do you apply for a business internship?
Start by reading each program’s official page for eligibility rules, deadlines, and required materials, since these differ widely. Prepare a few examples of your interest in business, such as a club role, a part-time job, or a class project. Leave enough time to gather documents and review your application before the deadline.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What areas of business would I actually get to work in?
You’d mostly work in financial services and insurance, marketing and communications, or retail, depending on the placement. Corporate and central bank roles lean toward finance, operations, communications, and IT, while arts and cultural placements focus on client design projects, social media content, and event promotion. Community placements add hands-on retail and customer service, and the virtual option centers on start-up projects such as marketing and go-to-market plans.
2. Will I be doing real business work or mostly observing?
Most of these involve hands-on work rather than shadowing, since nearly all are paid jobs or project-based roles with real responsibilities. Several also add workshops, coaching, or training sessions, so you build skills while contributing to the work itself.
3. Do I need to live in Boston to take part?
Not always, though many of these programs limit eligibility to Boston residents, Boston Public Schools students, or students at one particular school. A few are more flexible, including volunteer roles open to non-Boston youth and options with sites in Brooklyn or New Hampshire. If commuting into the city isn’t practical, Ladder Internships runs fully online and pairs you with a start-up you can work with from home.
4. How long would I be committing to an internship?
It depends on the season, with summer placements running roughly five to ten weeks and school-year roles stretching across several months around your classes. Several programs offer both summer and school-year options, and one central bank program can extend year-round for up to three years for selected students.