15 Economics Summer Programs for Low-Income High School Students
If you are a high school student who wants to explore economics in more depth before college, summer programs can be a smart way to do that.
What do economics summer programs involve?
Economics summer programs give you time during the break to focus on how markets work, how decisions are made, and how economic ideas connect to everyday life, without the rush of regular classes. Many economics summer programs are designed to be accessible. Several are free, while others offer full financial aid or even provide a stipend. This removes the cost barrier that often prevents students from taking part in academic programs.
What do economics summer programs for low-income students offer?
For students who qualify, these programs offer more than academics. You can learn valuable economics skills that you can use to pursue economics or finance internships or build your own business. They also give you experiences you can clearly talk about in college applications or interviews, showing early interest, commitment, and effort.
For more options, you can explore online economics programs. Additionally, to apply your economics skills, you can consider pursuing paid economics internships.
With that in mind, here are 15 economics summer programs for low-income high school students!
15 Economics Summer Programs for Low-Income High School Students
1. Bank of America Student Leaders® Program — Bank of America
Cost: Paid internship; travel, housing, and meals covered for the national summit
Location: Local nonprofit organizations across the United States; Washington, DC (summit)
Program Dates: June–August
Application Deadline: Typically, Mid-January
Eligibility: You must be a high school junior or senior, legally authorized to work in the U.S., reside in an eligible location, and commit to a full-time eight-week internship.
The Bank of America Student Leaders® Program places you in an eight-week paid internship with a local nonprofit organization. Your work focuses on projects connected to community development, workforce access, or economic mobility, such as program support, data collection, outreach coordination, or needs assessment. Alongside the internship, Bank of America runs structured leadership sessions that examine civic engagement, organizational decision-making, and professional communication. The program also includes a national summit in Washington, DC, where you study how business, government, and nonprofits intersect around economic opportunity.
2. Young Founders Lab
Cost: Varies depending on program type. Full financial aid available.
Location: This program is 100% virtual, with live, interactive workshops
Program Dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year, including summer, fall, winter, and spring
Application Deadline: Varies according to cohort. You can access the application link here!
Eligibility: The program is currently open to all high school students
The Young Founder’s Lab is a start-up boot camp founded and run by Harvard entrepreneurs. In this program, you will work towards building a revenue-generating start-up that addresses a complex 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 ideations, economics principles, and financial concepts. The program is an excellent opportunity to delve into the world of business in high school and have a space to explore multiple theoretical as well as practical frameworks that lead to a successful business. You can check out the brochure for the program here.
3. Headquarters Student Internship Program — U.S. Department of the Treasury
Cost: Free
Location: Washington, DC
Program Dates: May–August
Application Deadline: December
Eligibility: You must be a U.S. citizen and enrolled in high school (or accepted into an accredited institution); you must maintain student status throughout the internship.
The Headquarters Student Internship Program at the U.S. Department of the Treasury places you inside a federal agency responsible for economic and financial policy. You support teams working on domestic finance, tax policy, international affairs, or economic analysis, depending on office placement. Your work may include collecting and organizing data, reviewing economic research and policy briefs, and helping prepare internal reports used in decision-making. You may also attend Congressional hearings, interagency meetings, or policy discussions and summarize key economic implications for staff.
4. Ladder Internship Program
Cost: Varies depending on program type. Full financial aid available
Location: Remote! You can work from anywhere in the world
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 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. Past founders have included YCombinator alums, founders raising over 30 million dollars, or founders who previously worked at Microsoft, Google, and Facebook. By working with a finance or economics company, you will learn about how economic principles influence business decisions. In the program, interns work closely with their managers and a Ladder Coach on real-world projects and present their work to the company.
5. Chicago Summer Business Institute (CSBI)
Cost: Free (paid internship; fully sponsor-funded)
Location: Chicago, IL
Program Dates: Summer (6 weeks)
Application Deadline: February–March (application portal opens February 1)
Eligibility: Chicago residents in grades 10–11 (sophomores and juniors); minimum 3.0 GPA; family household income below $80,000/year
The Chicago Summer Business Institute is a six-week paid internship program centered on finance and economics-adjacent careers. You work full-time at host organizations such as financial services firms, accounting offices, or public-sector finance departments. Tasks may involve spreadsheet analysis, accounting support, or research tied to municipal budgets, bonds, or capital allocation. CSBI workshops break down financial literacy, professional communication, and workplace expectations, often using real examples from banking, accounting, and public finance. The program consistently connects daily work to how money flows through institutions and local economies.
6. Business Opportunities Summer Session (BOSS) — Penn State Smeal College of Business
Cost: $350. Housing, meals, and all program activities are fully covered; limited scholarships are available to assist with the registration fee.
Location: Penn State University, University Park, PA
Program Dates: June 14–June 26
Application Deadline: March 20
Eligibility: You must be a high school junior entering 12th grade and reside in the U.S. or Puerto Rico with a strong interest in pursuing a business education.
Penn State’s BOSS program is a two-week residential experience centered on college-level business academics and career exploration. You take business fundamentals courses taught by Penn State faculty, focusing on how organizations operate, compete, and make decisions. Classroom learning is paired with group projects, presentations, and site visits that apply concepts to real business scenarios. The program emphasizes analytical thinking, teamwork, and professional communication.
7. High School Internship Program — Port of Seattle
Cost: Paid internship (hourly compensation; exact rate varies by role)
Location: Seattle, WA (SEA Airport and Seattle waterfront sites)
Program Dates: Summer (exact start and end dates vary by position)
Application Deadline: Applications open in May (closing dates vary by role)
Eligibility: You must be at least 16 years old, currently enrolled in high school (or graduated within the past 12 months), authorized to work in the U.S., and able to commit to a summer internship.
The Port of Seattle High School Internship Program places you in paid roles tied to aviation, maritime operations, and regional infrastructure. Your work may include project coordination, communications, or data support connected to large-scale transportation and logistics systems. These systems play a central role in regional and global trade, making economic activity a constant backdrop to daily operations. Mentorship sessions and facility tours show how public institutions manage resources, balance budgets, and plan long-term investments. The internship offers direct exposure to how economic development, public finance, and infrastructure planning intersect.
8. SFEPD Academy (Financial Literacy Camp)
Cost: Free
Location: Virtual
Program Dates: July 27–31
Application Deadline: Not specified
Eligibility: Rising high school freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors
The SFEPD Academy is a weeklong virtual program focused on financial decision-making and economic reasoning at the personal level. You work in teams on structured challenges involving budgeting, spending tradeoffs, and financial planning. These activities introduce core economic ideas such as scarcity, opportunity cost, and incentives through everyday scenarios. Group discussions and presentations reinforce how individual financial choices connect to broader economic outcomes. The program follows a daily schedule and emphasizes applied reasoning over abstract theory.
9. University of Colorado Boulder – Business Leadership Program (Leeds School of Business)
Cost: Free. Tuition, housing, meals, and program activities are fully covered by the Leeds School of Business and corporate partners. The winning team of the case competition receives a $1,000 scholarship to the University of Colorado Leeds School of Business.
Location: University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO
Program Dates: June 21 – June 27
Application Deadline: March 13
Eligibility: Colorado residents or students currently attending a Colorado high school; current high school juniors, and incoming Leeds School of Business first-year students for Fall
The University of Colorado Boulder’s Business Leadership Program is a one-week residential experience built around a real corporate case competition. You work in teams to design a marketing strategy for a partner company, requiring you to think about consumer behavior, competition, and value creation. The case framework introduces how firms respond to market constraints, pricing pressures, and strategic tradeoffs. Faculty-led sessions and workshops connect leadership decisions to economic reasoning inside organizations. Interaction with industry professionals adds perspective on how business strategy functions within broader market environments.
10. Paul Merage School of Business – Future Leaders Initiative (FLI)
Cost: Free. Transportation, meals, and required program resources are fully covered.
Location: University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA
Program Dates: July 27 – August 1
Application Deadline: April 6
Eligibility: Incoming high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors from Southern California, as well as first- or second-year community college students; program prioritizes underserved and underrepresented students
UC Irvine’s Paul Merage School of Business hosts the Future Leaders Initiative, a six-day in-person program that blends business fundamentals with economic and financial literacy. You take part in full-day sessions covering investment management, real estate, healthcare systems, digital transformation, and entrepreneurship. Case discussions and workshops emphasize how firms allocate capital, assess risk, and operate within regulated markets. Guest speakers from finance and technology firms discuss how economic forces influence industry strategy. The program combines applied economics with practical skill-building through leadership exercises and structured mentorship.
11. Youth Entrepreneurship Program (YEP)
Cost: Paid internship; $12–14/hour plus a $2,500 scholarship upon completion
Location: Kansas City, MO (primarily in-person; limited remote options)
Program Dates: June 2–June 27 and July 7–August 1
Application Deadline: February 1
Eligibility: You must be a high school junior or senior; most placements are in-person in the Kansas City area.
The Youth Entrepreneurship Program places you in a high-growth startup for a paid, full-time summer role. You work within teams supporting functions such as operations, sales, marketing, finance, or analytics, depending on placement. Daily work exposes you to how startups manage costs, respond to demand, and make decisions under limited resources. Weekly company visits allow founders to explain their business models, pricing strategies, and growth tradeoffs. Mentorship sessions help you connect hands-on work to core microeconomic ideas like competition, incentives, and market structure.
12. Mayor Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program (MBSYEP)
Location: Washington, D.C.
Dates: Certification begins from Feb 4 - March 22, program starts from June 23- August 1
Cost: Free; includes paid stipend (amount varies)
Application Deadline: Typically closes in March
Eligibility: D.C. residents ages 14–24, able to commute to the job site
The Mayor Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program offers D.C. youth hands-on work placements in both public and private sector organizations. You’ll gain exposure to the workplace while developing skills in teamwork, communication, and time management. You’ll also participate in structured training in areas like financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and career planning. MBSYEP offers the Pathways to Finance Grant, which places students in roles explicitly centered on accounting, economics, international finance, and risk management. Those accepted into this track spend six weeks in finance-focused internships, followed by visits to universities and professional finance institutions, helping interns understand real-world applications of economics and build career-related networks. Internships span sectors such as business, government, and nonprofit work, depending on your age and experience.
13. New York Institute of Technology High School Business Bootcamp
Cost: Free
Location: Virtual and on-campus (Long Island and New York City, NY)
Dates: Ongoing sessions from July to December; each session is one day
Application Deadline: None; register individually for each session
Eligibility: Open to all high school students, regardless of intended major
The High School Business Bootcamp at New York Institute of Technology is a series of workshops designed to prepare you for both higher education and early career experiences. Taught by faculty from the School of Management, the sessions cover a range of practical topics including financial literacy, social media branding, real estate and stock market investing, and college transition strategies. You can attend any session individually or complete multiple sessions to build your skills and resume. Each workshop concludes with a certificate of completion, and sessions are offered both virtually and in-person at NYIT’s Long Island and New York City campuses.
14. Today's Interns, Tomorrow's Professionals (TIP) — Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
Cost: Free (paid internship; fully sponsor-funded)
Location: Boston, MA (Federal Reserve Bank of Boston)
Program Dates: Summer (typically June–August; exact dates vary by cohort)
Application Deadline: Rolling (applications typically open in winter/early spring)
Eligibility: High school juniors and seniors; Boston-area residents or students attending Boston-area schools; commitment to full-time summer work; U.S. citizenship or work authorization required
The Today's Interns, Tomorrow's Professionals program places you inside the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, one of twelve regional central banking institutions responsible for monetary policy and financial system oversight. You work directly on projects connected to banking operations, economic research, financial stability, or community development initiatives. Your role may involve analyzing economic data, supporting policy research, or assisting with financial education outreach. Daily exposure to how central banks function provides critical insights into monetary policy transmission, interest rate decisions, and how financial institutions manage systemic risk.
15. High School Fed Challenge — Federal Reserve System
Cost: Free (competition-based; no registration or participation fees)
Location: Virtual (online participation) and regional/national tournaments
Program Dates: September–April (academic year competition); nationals typically in May
Application Deadline: Varies by regional Federal Reserve Bank (typically August–September for fall registration)
Eligibility: High school students in grades 9–12; teams of 4–5 students; school-based team requirement
The High School Fed Challenge is a nationwide economics competition run by the Federal Reserve System in partnership with the National Council on Economic Education. Your team studies current monetary policy, analyzes economic conditions, and competes in a simulated FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) meeting where you propose policy recommendations to a panel of Fed economists and judges. Preparation involves deep research into inflation, employment, asset prices, and financial conditions using real Fed data and publications. The competition teaches applied macroeconomics, policy analysis, and how the Fed uses monetary tools to achieve price stability and full employment. Teams compete at regional levels, with winning teams advancing to nationals in Washington, DC, where you present to actual Federal Reserve officials.