12 Medical Internships for High School Students in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
If you're a high school student in Philadelphia with an interest in medicine, internships are a great way to gain experience, build your network, and strengthen your college applications. They also give you a chance to explore different medical fields and some even offer a stipend, which makes them more accessible.
To help you avoid long commutes or added expenses, we've curated a list of 12 medical internships and programs based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While not all are traditional internships, each one offers valuable, real-world exposure to medicine and related fields.
1. Monell Center’s Apprenticeship Program
Location: Monell Center, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: June 23 - August 15
Application Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: Be a high school or undergraduate student eligible to work in the U.S from the greater Philadelphia area (including Camden, NJ)
Cost/Stipend: No cost. An hourly wage is paid, although the amount is not specified
The Monell Science Apprenticeship Program is a great opportunity to explore research within biomedical science or medicine. This 7-week program involves you working directly with a Monell scientist to contribute to research. The program culminates with a conference where you can present your work to staff, family, and friends! Apart from the research itself, you will have the opportunity to attend lectures on scientific topics, public speaking, written communication, and the ethics of research.
Cost: Starting at $2,490 (financial aid available)
Location: Remote! You can work from anywhere in the world
Application Deadline: Deadlines vary depending on the cohort. Spring (January), Summer (May), Fall (September), and Winter (November)
Program Dates: The upcoming deadline is on June 23!
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 medicine, tech/deep tech and AI/ML to health tech, marketing, journalism, consulting, and more. You can explore all the options here on their application form. Ladder’s start-ups are high-growth companies on average raising over a million dollars. In the program, interns work closely with their managers and a Ladder Coach on real-world projects and present their work to the company. The virtual internship is usually 8 weeks long.
3. The Wistar Institute’s High School Summer Program in Biomedical Research
Location: The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: July 7 - July 31
Application Deadline: April 7
Eligibility:
Must be at least 16 by the start of the program
You will need to have completed at least 1 high school science course
Note. This internship prioritizes participation from applications from the School District of Philadelphia
Cost/Stipend: Stipend of $1,500 will be provided post-successful completion of the program. You will also receive SEPTA passes for travel
If you are interested in biomedical research, we recommend looking at Wistar's High School Fellowship in Biomedical Research. This 4-week program will delve into the fundamentals of biomedical research, where you will learn the best practices of biomedical lab techniques, understand how to analyze scientific literature, and explore careers in biomedical research. You will also have the opportunity to contribute to research in the Wistar Training Lab alongside Wistar employees. You will even present your work at the end of the program!
4. UPenn’s Provost Summer Mentorship Program
Location: University of Pennsylvania Campuses, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: July 7 - August 1
Application Deadline: February 21
Eligibility:
You must either be a freshman or sophomore in a Philadelphia High School. Schools can be Public, Private, Charter or Catholic
You must have a minimum 3.0 GPA
You will need to have a high school transcript, write an essay, and have an up-to-date vaccine record
Cost/Stipend: Not specified
The Provost Summer Mentorship Program is a 4-week summer program by the University of Pennsylvania where you will be paired with one of 5 of Penn’s Graduate and Professional School partners. If you are interested in medicine, we recommend working with either the Perelman School of Medicine, the School or Nursing or the School of Dental Medicine. In the program, you will be a part of hands-on learning through activities and sessions from Penn’s career exploration curriculum. The program culminates in a college fair on the Penn Campus itself. Although this is not a traditional internship, it is an opportunity to explore medical careers from a top university!
5. Fox Chase Cancer Center’s Teen Research Internship Program
Location: Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: Session 1: July 7 - 11 | Session 2: July 21 - 25
Application Deadline: Specified date not mentioned, but applications will be reviewed in March and April
Eligibility:
Open to high schoolers who are Philadelphia-area students
Must turn 14 years old before the start of the program
Residents of New Jersey and Delaware can also apply
Cost/Stipend: No cost or stipend
The Fox Chase Cancer Center offers a research internship to high school students who are interested in delving into medical and scientific research. There are 3 phases - the Project Design phase, where you will be given experimental conditions to investigate factors on organismal health and development. This is the stage where you will also develop basic lab skills. The second phase is Experimentation, where you will conduct experiments, analyze data, and hone your scientific reasoning skills. Lastly, the Communication phase includes you presenting your research and talking about its applications, which will also be posted on their website!
6. CHOP’s Research Internship for Scholars and Emerging Scientists (CHOP-RISES)
Location: Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: Not specified, but spans two summers
Application Deadline: Not specified, but applications will open in January
Eligibility:
Must be a rising junior who is from a public or charter school in the City of Philadelphia
Must turn 16 before June 16
You must have faced barriers to participating in any STEM-M opportunities
You should be able to attend the entire program without any absences
Cost/Stipend: No cost
CHOP-RISES is a two-summer research internship where you'll work alongside CHOP researchers on children's health projects and gain research experience. In your first summer, you'll take part in a 6-week internship with research work and career-building workshops, ending with a final presentation of your project. If you complete the first session successfully, you may be invited to CHOP-RISES II the following summer—an advanced 8-week internship where you’ll pursue an independent research project, mentor newer interns, and present your work at a poster session.
7. PCOM’S Philadelphia’s STEM Program
Location: PCOM Philadelphia Campus, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: June 16 - June 20
Application Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility:
Must be a rising junior or senior from a Philadelphia high school
You should be prepared to provide a work permit
Cost/Stipend: No cost
In this medical program, you will get the chance to learn about healthcare through interactive clinical skills simulations at the Saltzburg Clinical Learning and Assessment Center. You will explore the anatomy lab, take part in heart and brain dissections, and even learn life-saving techniques like CPR! Beyond the lab, you will also gain insight into the college application process and have the opportunity to connect with professionals across the healthcare field, including physicians, pharmacists, physical therapists, counselors, and psychologists.
8. UPenn’s Medicine Summer Program
Location: University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine Campus, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: June 29 - July 25
Application Deadline: February 27
Eligibility:
Must be a rising junior or senior
Must have completed a high school-level biology course
Cost/Stipend: $10,875
While not a traditional internship, the Penn Medicine Summer Program is an opportunity for you to gain experience by attending simulations and demonstrations. In this 4-week program, you will attend classes on campus with doctors to explore career paths in medicine. You might even get to attend a live surgery! Some of the concepts you will learn are CPR techniques, tying surgical knots, performing skin biopsies, and attending labs in anatomy, pathology, microbiology, and urine analysis.
9. Shriners Children’s Philadelphia Medical Research Immersion Program
Location: Shriners Children’s Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: June 24 - June 28
Application Deadline: March 15
Eligibility:
Open to all high school and college students
Cost/Stipend: Not specified
This internship is open to 20 high school or college students, and you will explore clinical research over 5 days. In this program, you will not only delve into the clinical research process but also understand the current trends within the field and formulate research topics. The program culminates with you presenting a research topic of your choice! This research topic can potentially be used for further research, which will add to your college applications.
10. The College of Physicians of Philadelphia’s Girls One Diaspora Club
Location: The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Campus, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: Specified dates not mentioned, but it is during the school year, starting from the fall
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions
Eligibility:
Must be African or from the African Diaspora
Must be born outside the U.S. or be first-generation Americans
Must be in a Philadelphia School District high school
Cost/Stipend: No cost; stipend provided, but amount not specified
The Girls One Diaspora Club by the College of Physicians of Philadelphia is an internship for African girls who reside and attend high school in Philadelphia. This is an after-school internship where the club provides academic and personal support. Some of the topics you might cover are the use of plants in medicine, careers in STEM and healthcare, and the importance of building a community. You will even have the opportunity to build an exhibit.
11. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Neurology High School Scholars Program
Location: Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: July 14 - August 15, with a poster presentation on August 21
Application Deadline: March 7
Eligibility:
Must either be a sophomore, junior, or senior
Must be 16 years old before the start of the program
You will be responsible for traveling to CHOP
Cost/Stipend: $1000 stipend offered
The CHOP Neurology High School Scholars Program is a 5-week internship where you will work alongside CHOP neurologists/neuroscientists on a research project. Apart from conducting neuroscience research, you also have the opportunity to shadow physicians and attend weekly sessions. The program culminates with you presenting your research as a poster presentation at the conference.
12. The Jefferson College of Rehabilitation Sciences’ High School REACH Program
Location: Jefferson College of Rehabilitation Sciences East Falls Campus, Philadelphia, PA
Dates: July 28 - August 5 (only on weekdays)
Application Deadline: June 27
Eligibility: Open to rising juniors and seniors
Cost/Stipend: No cost
If you are a rising junior or senior who is interested in physical therapy, athletic training, speech-language pathology, or similar careers, we recommend looking at the Jefferson College of Rehabilitation Sciences’ REACH Program! In this program, you will gain an overview of these professions and the undergraduate degrees required for pursuing such a career. Moreover, you will get help with the financial aid process and tips on writing a personal statement. While this might not be a traditional internship, it is a great opportunity to prepare for an undergraduate degree in these fields.