15 Business Internships for High School Students in North Carolina
If you’re a high school student in North Carolina interested in a career in business or planning to major in a related field, you should consider doing a business internship. Business internships allow you to learn about marketing concepts, financial planning, customer relations, project management, and other core areas that shape how companies operate. You’ll work on projects like developing a marketing plan, analyzing sales data, or helping with event planning, which are not usually taught in high school classes.
This type of experience can help you figure out which area of business you enjoy most, decide whether you want to study it in college, and give you a head start when you get there. It can also give you a solid edge in your college applications and something to discuss with admission officers.
To help you choose the right fit, we have compiled a list of 15 business internships for high school students in North Carolina!
15 Business Internships for High School Students in North Carolina
1. Ladder Internship Program
Location: Remote! You can work from anywhere in the world.
Cost: Varies according to program (financial aid available)
Application deadline: Deadlines vary depending on the cohort
Program dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year
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 remote internship program for high school students. You will work with a high-growth startup on a real-world project over 8 to 12 weeks. Startups span fields like artificial intelligence, health tech, finance, journalism, and consulting. Past interns have built machine learning models, developed patient monitoring systems, and created research reports on medical topics.
You will be matched with a startup based on your interests and work directly with a company manager. A Ladder Coach will guide you through the internship and help you prepare a final presentation. Founders of host startups have backgrounds at Y Combinator, Google, Microsoft, and McKinsey. Many companies have raised over one million dollars in funding. Apply here
2. Young Founders Lab
Cost: Varies depending on program type
Location: This program is 100% virtual, with live, interactive workshops
Dates: Vary according to cohort
Application Deadline: Varies according to cohort. You can access the application link here!
Eligibility: All high school students can apply
The Young Founder’s Lab is a real-world start-up boot camp founded and run by Harvard entrepreneurs. You will work towards building a revenue-generating start-up that addresses a real-world problem. You will also have the opportunity to be mentored by established entrepreneurs and professionals from Google, Microsoft, and X.
Apart from building the start-up itself, you will also participate in interactive classes on business fundamentals and business ideation, workshops, skill-building sessions, case studies, panel discussions, and more. While this isn’t a traditional internship, it follows the same work-learn structure as the other programs on this list. You can check out the brochure for the program here.
3. Bank of America Student Leaders® Program
Cost: Paid (8-week paid internship)
Location: Offered in multiple NC locations, including Charlotte, Raleigh, and Greensboro/ Winston-Salem
Dates: Eight-week summer internship (June–July) with the National Student Leaders Summit in Washington, D.C. (July 21–26)
Application Deadline: January 15
Eligibility: Current high school juniors and seniors with legal authorization to work in the U.S. through September
Bank of America Student Leaders Program gives you a paid eight-week internship at a local nonprofit where you’ll learn how organizations run and how they serve their communities. You’ll work on real projects, build leadership and communication skills, and get mentoring from nonprofit staff and Bank of America professionals. At the end of the summer, you’ll attend the Student Leaders Summit in Washington, D.C., where you’ll see how businesses, governments, and nonprofits work together to create social and economic change.
4. Young Nonprofit Fellowship
Cost: Free
Location: Various local nonprofit partner organizations across the state
Dates: Academic-year-long internship (August – May)
Application Deadline: April 27
Eligibility: Current high school students in North Carolina
The Young Nonprofit Fellowship places you in a yearlong internship with a local nonprofit where you learn how organizations operate and lead community work. You gain experience in strategic planning, project management, and professional communication while contributing to your host nonprofit’s daily operations. You also complete an Impact Initiative, a large-scale project designed to strengthen the organization and benefit the community. Monthly cohort meetings, mentorship, and self-paced trainings help you build leadership and business-relevant skills while expanding your network across North Carolina’s nonprofit and civic sectors.
5. Act & Advance Program – Youth Ambassadors of Service
Cost: Free (seed funding provided for projects)
Location: Various local nonprofit partner sites across NC
Dates: September – May (nine-month program)
Application Deadline: Priority: April 27; Final: June 14
Eligibility: High school students in North Carolina
Act & Advance is a nine-month program where you lead service projects with North Carolina nonprofits while building business and leadership skills. You plan drives, fundraisers, and events, manage seed funding, and work directly with nonprofit leaders to build partnerships. Monthly workshops teach you project planning, fundraising strategy, and social entrepreneurship. You finish the program by pitching and launching a community initiative. With mentorship and hands-on experience, you build skills in budgeting, communication, and organizational leadership that apply to business and civic work.
6. CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA) High School Internship Program
Cost: Pays a stipend
Location: CLA offices across the state (subject to availability)
Dates: Summer (starts June; 6–8 weeks)
Application Deadline: Typically opens in January and closes in March
Eligibility: High school students ages 16–18
CLA High School Internship Program gives you a paid summer internship at one of the largest accounting and advisory firms in the U.S. You’ll work on projects in areas like audit, tax, consulting, and digital services, gaining hands-on experience in business operations and client service. You’ll work with professionals, explore career paths in finance and professional services, and build skills in communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. The program includes mentoring, workshops, and networking with interns across the country.
7. NASA OSTEM High School Internship Program
Cost: Paid (stipend amount varies by session and academic level)
Location: Virtual and in-person placements available; NC applicants often work with Langley Research Center or regional NASA partner facilities
Dates: Summer Session: June–August
Application Deadline: February 27 (Summer); September 12 (Spring); May 22 (Fall)
Eligibility: U.S. citizens; high school students age 16+ with 3.0 GPA or higher
THE NASA OSTEM High School Internship Program offers paid internships where you work on real projects inside one of the most respected federal agencies. You can choose a business and management track focused on budgeting, procurement, accounting, communications, human resources, and program analysis. You’ll work with NASA mentors, build career readiness skills, and gain experience in how large organizations operate. This track helps you develop professional communication, strategic thinking, and organizational insight you can use in business, government, or nonprofit work.
8. AEOP High School Internship STEM Research Program – UNC Charlotte
Cost: Paid (stipend through AEOP)
Location: UNC Charlotte, Charlotte, NC
Dates: June 16 – July 25 (six-week program; orientation week of June 9)
Application Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors; U.S. citizens or permanent residents
UNC Charlotte AEOP High School Internship Program is a six-week paid summer research internship hosted at the Center for STEM Education in Charlotte, NC. You’ll be matched with a faculty mentor and complete 220–300 hours of research, including pre- and post-internship work. While the focus is STEM, the program builds key business skills like project management, data analysis, and professional communication. You’ll present your findings at the end-of-program events and attend orientation and showcase sessions with scientists and engineers. Site visits and networking opportunities help you understand how research connects to real-world business and tech careers.
9. NCDOT High School Internship Program
Cost: Paid (part-time, hourly)
Location: Various NCDOT divisions and units statewide
Dates: Year-round; one-semester or multi-semester options
Application Deadline: Rolling; applications accepted via N.C. Office of State Human Resources
Eligibility: Current NC high school students age 16+; minimum GPA 2.3; must provide a transcript
NCDOT High School Internship Program offers paid, part-time positions in business-related roles across the North Carolina Department of Transportation. You’ll work in areas like finance, human resources, administration, and project management, gaining experience in public sector operations. You’ll participate in meetings, complete assigned tasks, and take part in educational tours. Interns are placed in local offices or central divisions and work directly with NCDOT hiring managers to customize their experience.
10. Forage Virtual Internship Programs
Cost: Free
Location: Virtual
Program dates: Year-round; self-paced (4–10 hours per program)
Application deadline: None; open access year-round
Eligibility: Open to high school, undergraduate, and graduate students worldwide
Forage offers free, self-paced virtual internship programs created by leading global companies such as JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Citi, Bank of America, Accenture, BCG, PwC, and more. These programs are short, self-paced, and open to everyone. You’ll work through real tasks that professionals do on the job, so you can build practical skills in areas like finance, consulting, law, software engineering, marketing, and data analytics. Each program takes around five to eight hours to finish, and you’ll get a certificate with the company’s name on it when you’re done.
11. Research Apprenticeship Program (RAP) – North Carolina A&T State University
Cost: Fully funded; $25 application fee; stipend provided upon completion
Location: North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro, NC
Dates: June 15 – June 27 (two-week residential program)
Application Deadline: February 28
Eligibility: U.S. citizens; rising high school juniors and seniors; minimum GPA 2.8
RAP (Research Apprenticeship Program) is a fully funded two-week residential internship at NC A&T’s College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences in Greensboro, NC. You’ll live on campus and work with university scientists on independent research projects in food, agriculture, and environmental science. You’ll build business-relevant skills like data analysis, project planning, and professional communication. You’ll present your findings at a closing event and receive a stipend upon completion.
12. Youth Conservation Crews – Conservation Corps North Carolina
Cost: Paid (40 hours/week; wages vary by crew)
Location: Raleigh, Durham, Old Fort, Davidson, and the National Forests statewide
Dates: Summer; 3–6 week sessions in June, July, and August
Application Deadline: Positions posted in March; rolling applications thereafter
Eligibility: North Carolina residents ages 15–18
Youth Conservation Crews are paid summer positions for North Carolina high school students focused on project execution, team coordination, and operations management. You’ll work 40 hours per week on trail building, habitat restoration, and park infrastructure projects with partners like the City of Raleigh and the Forest Service. Crews consist of 4–6 members and 2 leaders. Day and camping formats are available. You’ll build skills in logistics, operations, and team coordination, core tools for business, project management, and public service. You must be a North Carolina resident.
13. Interns 4-Good
Cost: Free
Location: Virtual (U.S.-based nonprofit, accepts international applicants)
Dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year.
Application Deadline: Rolling admissions throughout the year
Eligibility: Open to high school students globally; strong interest in community service, nonprofit work, and virtual collaboration preferred.
Interns 4-Good is a nonprofit organization connecting high school students with service-oriented virtual internships at nonprofits, schools, and community initiatives. You can contribute to projects in areas such as marketing, social media, fundraising, tutoring, graphic design, and more, all while gaining professional skills and volunteer experience. The program is entirely remote, making it globally accessible. You’ll join a diverse volunteer pool representing over 38 countries and work with partner nonprofits across the U.S. Certificates and recommendations are rewarded for exceptional contributions.
14. UNC Nutrition Research Institute High School Virtual Internship Program
Cost: Free
Location: Online; hosted by UNC Nutrition Research Institute, Kannapolis, NC
Dates: June 3 to June 26
Application Deadline: March 14
Eligibility: Rising high school freshmen through seniors
UNC Nutrition Research Institute High School Virtual Internship Program lets you explore how a major research institute runs behind the scenes. In the business track, you’ll learn about budgeting, staffing, planning, and operations while attending weekly lectures and working on projects. You’ll create a scientific poster to share what you learned. This track helps you build skills in communication, planning, and organization that you can use in business or nonprofit work.
15. Babson Summer Study for High School Students
Cost: $6,295 and a $95 application fee. Limited partial and full scholarships are available.
Location: Online
Program dates: July 7 – 28
Application deadline: March 15
Eligibility: Rising high school juniors and seniors
Babson Summer Study for High School Students is a three-week residential program focused on entrepreneurship and business leadership. You’ll earn 4 college credits while learning how to apply business tools to global challenges using Babson’s Entrepreneurial Thought & Action framework. You’ll study topics like marketing, finance, leadership, and business communication. You’ll work in teams to develop business ideas, analyze real-world problems, and pitch solutions. You’ll also be matched with a mentor who guides you through the process.
Krishnapriya, or KP, is the Head of Partnerships at the YFL and an LSE graduate. She is super passionate about the environment (especially nonhumans with 3+ limbs) and considers walking her dogs as the most important part of her day!