15 Finance Internships for High School Students in Pittsburgh

Internships can help you understand finance beyond textbooks, spreadsheets, and classroom examples. 

What finance internships are available for high school students in Pittsburgh?

Pittsburgh is a useful place to explore finance because the region has a mix of banks, public agencies, universities, nonprofits, startup organizations, and workforce programs. You may not always find a traditional "finance intern" title open to high school students, but you can find finance-related opportunities in accounting, business operations, entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and paid youth employment.

Why pursue a finance internship in Pittsburgh?

Through an internship or a structured work-based program, you can practice skills such as budgeting, data analysis, financial research, communication, and professional decision-making. You also get material for future college applications, since you can show that you explored your interests through real projects rather than only coursework.

Here are 15 finance internships for high school students in Pittsburgh. For related opportunities, check out our guides on finance workshops for high school students and business internships for high school students in California.

Quick Look

• 6 paid, local internships: Learn & Earn Summer Youth Employment Program, SMART Start, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania High School Internship, and Summer High School U, among others.

• 1 fully virtual, entrepreneurship-focused option: Young Founders Lab, useful if you want finance exposure through building your own venture's pricing and revenue strategy rather than a traditional office internship.

• 3 free, fully funded academic pathways: BNY Early College Program, Accelerated Career Awareness Program, and Point SPARK: Entrepreneurship.

• 1 girls-specific finance literacy series: Invest in Girls' Financial Foundations, requiring completion of earlier parts before advancing.

• Morgan Stanley JumpStart Scholars in Finance is the only virtual, mentorship-based option that isn't a hands-on internship, running biweekly over five months with a capstone competition.

15 Finance Internships for High School Students in Pittsburgh

1. Learn & Earn Summer Youth Employment Program

Location: Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, PA

Cost/Stipend: Free; paid summer employment

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; placement depends on available positions

Program Dates: Tier 1 and Tier 2: June 22–August 7; Tier 3: June 1–August 31

Application Deadline: June 5

Eligibility: City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County residents ages 14–23 who can provide required documents, including proof of address, household income, age, Social Security, and citizenship or alien status

The Learn & Earn Summer Youth Employment Program gives you a paid introduction to the workplace while helping you build professional habits. If you are interested in finance, you can use this program to look for placements or activities connected to business operations, office administration, nonprofit budgeting, customer service, or career exploration. Younger participants focus more on work-readiness, job shadowing, and industry exposure, while older participants may be placed at worksites where they take on more direct responsibilities. You may attend workshops, meet professionals, complete assigned workplace tasks, and learn how organizations operate day to day. This is a strong local option if you want paid experience and are still building the foundation for more specialized finance internships later.

2. Young Founders Lab 

Location: 100% virtual, with live interactive workshops

Cost/Stipend: $2,900; need-based financial aid available

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; cohort size not specified

Program Dates: 4-week program starting tentatively June 5

Application Deadline: Early Decision: March; Regular Admission 1: April; Regular Admission 2: May

Eligibility: Open to all high school students

The Young Founders Lab is a real-world startup bootcamp founded and run by Harvard entrepreneurs. In the program, you work toward building a revenue-generating startup that addresses a real-world problem. This can be useful if you are interested in finance because you will think through pricing, costs, revenue, market demand, and business strategy while building a venture. You will be mentored by established entrepreneurs and professionals from companies such as Google, Microsoft, and X. Alongside startup-building, you will participate in interactive classes on business fundamentals and ideation, workshops, skill-building sessions, case studies, and panel discussions. The program gives you a structured way to explore the theoretical and practical frameworks behind building a business.

3. SMART Start High School Internship Program 

Location: Pittsburgh/Washington area, PA

Cost/Stipend: Paid internship; exact pay not specified

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; finalists complete an interview

Program Dates: Summer

Application Deadline: April 18 (Tentatively)

Eligibility: Students must be at least 16, be juniors or seniors in the Pittsburgh/Washington area, have a GPA of 3.0 or higher, provide a teacher or counselor recommendation, submit transcripts, and have reliable transportation

Range Resources’ SMART Start internship gives you paid work experience in the natural gas industry with access to departments such as Business, Finance, Gas Marketing, Information Technology, and Supply Chain. You typically work 10–20 hours per week and are paired with mentors in your area of interest. If you are placed in a business or finance-related area, you may learn how corporate teams support budgeting, operations, supply chains, market activity, and internal planning. The program is valuable because it gives you exposure to finance inside an industry setting rather than a classroom-only environment. You also build interviewing skills, workplace habits, networking experience, and mentorship connections with professionals.

4. Ladder Internship Program 

Location: Remote; work from anywhere in the world

Cost/Stipend: Starting at $2,490; financial aid available

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective

Program Dates: Multiple cohorts throughout the year

Application Deadline: Spring: January; Summer: May; Fall: September; Winter: November

Eligibility: High school students, undergraduates, and gap year students who can work 10–20 hours per week for 8–12 weeks

Ladder Internships is a selective startup internship program for ambitious students. You work with a high-growth startup on real projects across fields such as technology, AI/ML, health tech, marketing, journalism, consulting, and more. If you are interested in finance, you can look for startup projects involving business development, market research, operations, fundraising support, pricing, data analysis, or strategy. Ladder’s startups are high-growth companies that, on average, have raised over a million dollars, and past founders include Y Combinator alumni and former employees of Microsoft, Google, and Facebook. During the internship, you work closely with your manager and a Ladder Coach, then present your work to the company at the end. This can be especially useful if you want finance exposure in a startup environment rather than a traditional banking setting.

5. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania High School Internship

Location: Pennsylvania state agencies; placements may vary by location

Cost/Stipend: Paid; pay scale listed by the Commonwealth; exact rate depends on classification and posting

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; depends on agency openings

Program Dates: School-year based; internships can begin during the school calendar year and should be completed by June 30

Application Deadline: Varies by posting

Eligibility: High school juniors or seniors who are at least 16 on the first day of the internship and are recommended by their school

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania High School Internship program gives you supervised work-based learning inside state government. Depending on the agency and placement, you may assist with administrative tasks, records, public service operations, data organization, or budget-related support. This is not a finance-only internship, but it can be valuable if you are interested in public finance, government operations, policy, or administration. The program expects supervisors to provide hands-on learning, observation, professional opportunities, mentorship, and regular feedback. If you want to understand how public agencies manage resources and serve communities, this can be a practical early step.

6. Summer High School U

Location: Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, PA

Cost/Stipend: Free; students ages 15–19 earn $12/hour for 20 hours of weekly work experience

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; based on eligibility and program capacity

Program Dates: June 16–August 7

Application Deadline: Application opens March 9; final deadline not specified

Eligibility: Rising 10th–12th grade low-income students ages 15–19 living in the City of Pittsburgh or surrounding Allegheny County suburbs; students cannot be graduating high school

Neighborhood Learning Alliance’s Summer High School U combines college coursework, tutoring, study skills, and paid summer work experience. If you choose the Business pathway through Careers Unlocked, you can build skills connected to entrepreneurship, workplace communication, business planning, and professional decision-making. You participate in college courses, career workshops, site visits, and paid work experience at local businesses in the Pittsburgh region. The program is valuable because it gives you both academic and workplace exposure at no cost, including tuition, books, bus passes, and student experiences. If you are interested in finance, this can help you practice business fundamentals while earning money and exploring local career pathways.

7. Finance Technology Program

Location: Pittsburgh Carrick High School, Pittsburgh, PA

Cost/Stipend: Free for eligible Pittsburgh Public Schools students; stipend not specified

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective through CTE enrollment; cohort size not specified

Program Dates: Academic year

Application Deadline: Varies by Pittsburgh Public Schools CTE enrollment timeline

Eligibility: Pittsburgh Public Schools students eligible for CTE programming; specific grade and transfer requirements should be confirmed with PPS

The Pittsburgh Public Schools CTE Finance Technology Program is not a short summer internship; it provides structured training in accounting and finance-related workplace skills. You learn how to use generally accepted accounting principles in manual and computerized formats. Your work may include entering transactions into journals, posting transactions to accounts, balancing records, preparing financial statements, and completing tax-related reports. The program also covers business ethics, business law, office procedures, and public relations. If you are successful, you may have the opportunity to earn free college credits and certifications such as Microsoft Office Application Specialist credentials. This is a useful option if you want a school-based pathway into accounting, bookkeeping, data capturing, or business office roles.

8. PartnerUp Program

Location: School-based and employer-connected; PNC is headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA

Cost/Stipend: No cost specified; stipend not specified

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; depends on participating schools and employers

Program Dates: Academic year; exact dates vary

Application Deadline: Varies by school or partner

Eligibility: High school students in participating schools; exact eligibility varies by location

PNC’s PartnerUp Program is a school-based career readiness program designed to help you move from high school to professional opportunities. It is not listed as a traditional finance internship, but it is relevant if you want exposure to banking, workplace expectations, interview preparation, and professional skills. Through the program, you can build your personal brand, practice interviewing, learn what employers look for, and connect with businesses before jobs are posted. For finance-minded students in Pittsburgh, the value is the connection to a major financial institution and its network of workplace partners. You should check with your school counselor or career office to see whether your school participates and whether finance-related employer experiences are available.

9. Mentored Internships 

Location: Pittsburgh, PA; off-campus internship sites

Cost/Stipend: No cost; unpaid internship for academic credit

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Available to City Charter High School students as part of the school’s internship model

Program Dates: 13-week internship, usually during junior or senior year

Application Deadline: Internal school timeline

Eligibility: City Charter High School students

City Charter High School’s mentored internship program places you in a supervised off-campus work experience connected to your career interests. You are treated as an “authentic employee” while earning academic credit, and you are paired with an approved adult mentor at the internship site. If you are interested in finance, business, accounting, entrepreneurship, or office operations, you can work with the internship office to seek a placement that matches those goals. You complete workplace tasks, maintain attendance, follow site expectations, and reflect on your progress through journals and performance reports. The program is valuable because it gives you structured, school-supported work experience with mentorship and real accountability.

10. BNY Early College Program 

Location: CCAC, Allegheny County, PA

Cost/Stipend: Free for eligible students; tuition, fees, and books are funded; stipend for successful course completion is referenced in application steps

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; depends on eligibility and course availability

Program Dates: Follows CCAC academic terms

Application Deadline: Varies by term and course availability

Eligibility: High schoolers in 11th and 12th grade, or homeschool equivalent, who reside in Allegheny County; 9th and 10th graders or students under 16 may participate with additional requirements

The BNY Early College Program lets you take college-level classes while still in high school, with tracks in accounting, business, or computer information technology. While this is more of a dual-enrollment and career pathway program than a traditional internship, it can be especially useful if you want a finance foundation before applying to internships. You can take a few classes or work toward a certificate that supports future study or entry-level employment. In the accounting and business tracks, you build knowledge that connects directly to finance, operations, supervision, leadership, and workplace communication. The program is valuable because it removes cost barriers while helping you earn college credit and explore business-related careers.

11. Accelerated Career Awareness Program

Location: Point Park University, Pittsburgh, PA

Cost/Stipend: Free tuition for accepted students; $25 non-refundable registration fee; travel costs to Pittsburgh are the student’s responsibility

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; limited capacity

Program Dates: July 26–July 31

Application Deadline: Applications are open; exact deadline not specified

Eligibility: Qualified high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors; residential only; students must be at least 14 and must apply and be accepted

The Accelerated Career Awareness Program introduces you to accounting, business, economics, and finance through a residential experience at Point Park University. You attend classes, meet professionals, tour local companies and CPA firms, and work through career preparation activities. The program is especially useful if you are from an underrepresented background and want structured exposure to accounting and finance careers. You also receive support with college preparation, FAFSA, scholarships, resume building, interview skills, dining etiquette, and networking. This is not a workplace internship, but it gives you direct access to business and finance professionals and can help you decide whether accounting or finance is a realistic long-term path for you.

12. Point SPARK: Entrepreneurship

Location: Point Park University, Pittsburgh, PA

Cost/Stipend: Free tuition; $25 non-refundable registration fee

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Limited capacity

Program Dates: June 29–July 1

Application Deadline: Not specified

Eligibility: Students entering grades 9–12 in Fall 2026 and/or 2026 high school graduates

Point SPARK is a three-day entrepreneurship program where you explore how business ideas move from concept to pitch. You participate in workshops on ideation, product design, public speaking, customer discovery, business building, and pitch preparation. The program also includes a college and financial advising workshop, which can help you think about the financial side of planning for college and future careers. If you are interested in finance, the value comes from learning how entrepreneurs think about customers, costs, product strategy, and presenting ideas to others. You finish by preparing and delivering a pitch, which can help you build confidence in business communication.

13. Morgan Stanley JumpStart Scholars in Finance

Location: Virtual

Cost/Stipend: No cost specified; stipend not specified

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Selective; cohort size not specified

Program Dates: Five-month program beginning in November and culminating with a capstone competition in April

Application Deadline: Applications open in early fall; exact deadline varies

Eligibility: Ambitious high school seniors

Morgan Stanley JumpStart Scholars in Finance is a five-month virtual program designed to introduce high school seniors to finance. You attend biweekly sessions taught by Morgan Stanley employees and study topics such as introduction to finance, entrepreneurship, wealth building, financial literacy, career development, emotional intelligence, and leadership. The program ends with a capstone competition where you apply what you learned to a real-world case study. This is a strong option if you want exposure to a major financial services firm while staying in Pittsburgh. You will not be doing a conventional office internship, but you will build finance vocabulary, professional awareness, and case-based problem-solving skills.

14. Financial Foundations

Location: Virtual

Cost/Stipend: Free; stipend not specified

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Not specified

Program Dates: Multiple course cycles; exact dates vary

Application Deadline: Varies by course cycle

Eligibility: High school students who identify as girls; later courses require completion of earlier Invest in Girls courses or comparable financial literacy coursework

Invest in Girls’ Financial Foundations series helps you build personal finance and career-readiness skills through live online workshops. In Part 1, you learn budgeting, credit cards, interest rates, taxes, and an introduction to finance careers. In Part 2, you move into investing topics such as saving vs. investing, stocks, bonds, funds, and building an investment portfolio. In Part 3, you focus on interviewing, negotiating, workplace presentation, and building a financial safety net. The program is useful if you want finance exposure before applying for internships, especially because it includes mentorship, career access, and opportunities to keep building skills through the Invest in Girls network.

15. Startable Youth Entrepreneurship Program

Location: Southwestern Pennsylvania; offered through schools and community organizations

Cost/Stipend: Free; participants keep profits from their products and may pitch for prize money

Acceptance Rate/Cohort Size: Typically small groups; one program model notes up to 12 participants

Program Dates: Offered as after-school, community-based, and school-based programming; timing varies

Application Deadline: Varies by school or community partner

Eligibility: Students in the nine-county Southwestern Pennsylvania region served by Innovation Works, including Allegheny County; access depends on whether your school or community organization offers Startable

Startable teaches you entrepreneurial and business skills through the design and commercialization of hardware products. You work through the process of creating a product, developing prototypes, building marketing materials, planning sales pitches, and presenting your idea in a pitch competition. The finance connection comes through budgeting, pricing, revenue planning, profit tracking, and understanding how a product becomes a viable business. You also receive mentorship, supplies, tools, networking support, and potential cash investment. Returning students may access internship or junior instructor opportunities, making this a good long-term option if you want to move from business learning into leadership or work experience.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Are there paid finance internships for high school students in Pittsburgh?

Yes. Learn & Earn Summer Youth Employment Program, SMART Start, and Summer High School U all offer paid positions, typically requiring Pittsburgh or Allegheny County residency.

2. Is there an option that lets me build finance skills through my own venture instead of interning somewhere?

Young Founders Lab lets you do exactly that, guiding you through pricing, costs, and revenue strategy as you build a real, revenue-generating startup, fully virtually with need-based financial aid available.

3. Which programs are focused on academic pathways rather than workplace internships?

The BNY Early College Program and Accelerated Career Awareness Program both give you college-level accounting and finance coursework or campus exposure rather than a hands-on internship, useful if you want a foundation before applying to internships later.