If you are a high school student looking to extend your familiarity and experience in a subject outside the classroom well before the summer, sign up for a fall program!
Typically running in the months of September, October, and November, these programs often include educational opportunities, internships, and research opportunities.
Why should I sign up for a fall program as a high school student?
As a participant, you will end up with strong transferable skills, solid networking opportunities, and a potential completed project/paper. The mentorship and support you will receive can help open up future experiences in the field!
Fall programs are also a solid, bite-sized introduction to research or work experience - if you’re a high school senior, you might want to use your experience at a fall program to boost your resume for a winter program, right before college applications are due!
To get started, take a look at our list of 12 fall programs for high school students.
Subject Area: STEM, business, communications, and more
Location: Any NASA center in the country / virtual
Eligibility: Students aged at least 16 with a 3.0 CGPA and U.S. citizenship
Application Deadline: May 16, 2025 (fall)
Dates: September-December (exact dates will depend on the position)
Stipend: Paid (amount not specified)
NASA’s Office of Stem Engagement (OSTEM) gives high school students a chance to directly contribute to one of NASA’s ongoing projects in space exploration, science, technology, and aeronautics. You will work in NASA’s state-of-the-art laboratories alongside researchers, scientists, and engineers who will act as your mentors.
You can pick from internship/project options like biophysics, microbiology, business, communications, journalism, aviation, simulating spacecraft, robotics, materials science, and more. Through such hands-on work, you will be able to hone transferable skills, and collaborate with peers and professionals. You can find opportunities here and here.
2. Horizon’s Academic Research Program (HARP)
Location: Virtual
Application Date: May 21, 2024, for the summer cohort, and September 25, 2024, for the fall cohort
Program Dates:
- Fall seminar - October 23, 2024 - February 19, 2025
- Lab dates are flexible, but you must apply 4 weeks in advance.
Eligibility: High school students with good academic standing (>3.67/4.0 GPA) can apply. Most accepted students are 10th/11th graders! Only a couple of tracks require formal prerequisites, more details of which can be found here.
Horizon offers trimester-long research programs for high school students across subject areas such as data science, machine learning, political theory, biology, chemistry, neuroscience, psychology, and more! It is one of the very few research programs for high school students that offers a choice between quantitative and qualitative research!
Once you select a particular subject track and type of research you’ll be paired with a professor or Ph.D. scholar (from a top university) who will mentor you throughout your research journey. You’ll work to create a 20-page, university-level research paper that you can send to prestigious journals for publication as a high school student.
This program is a solid opportunity for you to pursue a research program in highly specialized fields, under the guidance of a top scholar. The program also provides a letter of recommendation for each student, as well as detailed project feedback that you can use to work on future projects and college applications. Apply here!
Subject Area: Economics, public policy, international affairs, law, communications, business, finance, STEM
Location: Washington, D.C.
Eligibility: High school students (and undergraduates and graduates) who are U.S. citizens
Application Deadline: June (for fall internships)
Dates: September-December (fall)
Stipend: This is an unpaid internship.
The Headquarters Student Internship Program by the U.S. Department of the Treasury allows students to experience federal careers. Opportunities are offered by departments and offices like Domestic Finance, Tax Policy, International Affairs, Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Management, Public Affairs, Legislative Affairs, and General Counsel.
While duties will vary according to the department and project, you can expect tasks like collecting, analyzing, and presenting data, drafting reports, researching and summarizing academic literature, attending and reporting on meetings, conferences, and Congressional hearings, organizing meetings, and contributing to initiatives.
You can browse through internships here.
Subject Area: Journalism
Location: Virtual + on-site field trips in NYC
Eligibility: High school sophomores, juniors, or seniors studying and living in one of the five boroughs of NYC
Application Deadline: September 9, 2024 (for fall 2024)
Dates: 8 weeks starting October 15, 2024
Stipend: $500
The City Limits Accountability Reporting Initiative for Youth (CLARIFY) is an internship program that accepts 12-15 students per cohort. This program is a chance to work for NYC’s oldest nonprofit investigative news agency. You will learn about public service journalism, civic engagement, and news and media literacy while improving your research, writing, and interviewing skills. You will also receive training in investigative techniques, story structure, media ethics, photojournalism, editing, and more.
You will work with City Limits’ reporters on local news stories and strive to publish them on City Limits and a student-produced newsletter.
Subject Area: STEM, humanities, and social sciences
Location: Virtual
Eligibility: High school students with a minimum 3.3 GPA
Application Deadline: August 25, 2024 (fall cohort deadline)
Dates: September-December (fall). Summer, winter, and spring cohorts are also available.
Cost: $2,800 (12 weeks) | $5,400 (16-20 weeks). Financial aid is available.
The Lumiere Research Scholar Program, founded by Harvard and Oxford researchers, assists students in working one-on-one with PhD mentors in fields like history, sociology, gender studies, mathematics, biology, data science, computer science, chemistry, physics, environmental studies, and more. You will learn about the inner workings of your field while receiving support to produce an independent research project.
You will attend individual sessions with both your PhD mentor and a writing coach from Lumiere. By the end of the program, you will complete a college-level academic paper. A publication program is also available if you wish to publish your research paper.
Subject Area: Public service, law, government, administration, economics, communications
Location: New York, NY
Eligibility: NYC high school students who are at least 16 years old
Application Deadline: August 23, 2024
Dates: October 2024 - April 2025 (fall + spring)
Stipend: $16 per hour
The NYC Office of the Mayor hosts an internship program in which you can apply to the department of your interest. If selected, you will work with the staff, conduct and complete projects, conduct research, analyze data, draft briefings, attend meetings, manage inquiries, and assist with outreach and other projects whenever needed.
Moreover, you will receive access to facility tours and a biweekly Speaker Series at City Hall to learn about the workings of the government. Importantly, you will develop a service project that will positively impact and uplift NYC communities.
7. Veritas AI
Subject Area: Artificial intelligence and machine learning
Location: Remote
Eligibility: High school students. Students applying to the AI Fellowship program need to complete the AI Scholars program or have previous experience in AI and Python.
Application Deadline: August 14, 2024 (for fall)
Dates: September-December
Cost: $1,790 (AI Scholars) | $4,900 (AI Fellowship) | $5,900 (both)
Veritas AI is a program founded by Harvard graduates. You can choose between two main program offerings:
- AI Scholars: Here, you will learn about key AI concepts from AI experts. Section lectures (15 students), group sessions, and mentor meetings (5:1 student-mentor ratio) are included. You will also build and complete a guided project in groups of 3-5.
- AI Fellowship: Under the AI Fellowship, you will develop an individual AI project under 1-1 mentorship of an AI expert. You will attend regular mentor meetings and receive a personalized mentor evaluation.
Subject Area: Political science, law, government, administration, public affairs, communication
Location: Miami, FL
Eligibility: High school, college, and graduate students
Application Deadline: July 31, 2024
Dates: 14 weeks, starting from September 3, 2024 (approximately)
Stipend: Both paid and unpaid opportunities are available.
The Miami-Dade County Mayor’s Internship Program involves students in public service and government administration. If selected, you will work alongside experienced County employees at different levels to learn about various departmental tasks and operations.
You can work in departments like Audit and Management Services, Public Housing and Community Development, Emergency Management, Communications and Customer Experience, Economic Resources, Transportation and Public Works, Water and Sewer, Seaport, and others. Some responsibilities may include conducting research, working on projects, improving writing and networking skills, and boosting communication.
Note that this internship involves working in a fast-paced in-person environment.
Subject Area: Tech, AI, media and journalism, finance, mental health and health tech, non-profit, environmental science, consulting, and software engineering
Location: Virtual
Eligibility: High school students (and undergraduates and gap year students) who can contribute 5-15 work hours per week for 8-16 weeks
Application Deadline: August 4, 2024
Dates: September-December
Cost: $1,990. Full and partial need-based financial aid is available.
Ladder Internships, founded by Harvard entrepreneurs, offers high school students the chance to build impactful projects for leading startups like IPMD, Billion Dollar Startup Ideas, Fair Opportunity Project, JuneBrain, and many more all over the world. You will participate in weekly sessions with the host company, brainstorm and execute your project, present deliverables at regular intervals, and present the final project to the company at the end. You can also opt for a longer research internship for writing and publication support.
This program is selective, with the summer 2023 cohort accepting only 70 students from over 700 applicants.
Subject Area: Field biology
Location: Alley Pond Park + other locations in Queens, NY
Eligibility: High school students who are at least 14 years old
Application Deadline: September 1, 2024
Dates: October 5, 2024 - November 9, 2024 (Saturdays)
Cost: There is a $150 fee to participate in the internship. Financial aid can be provided at request without documentation.
The Field Biology Internship at the Alley Pond Environmental Center allows students to build a foundation in research and experiment design through immersion in local ecosystems. You will visit several ecosystems co-existing in Alley Pond Park and other locations in Queens.
Through this experience, you will learn about local flora and fauna and urban environments and participate in field data collection, water and soil quality sampling, coastal seining, identification and observation, record keeping, meeting with local environmental professionals, and developing research and communication skills.
11. NYU Precollege
Subject Area: Humanities and social sciences, arts and media, business, STEM, and college 101
Location: New York University, New York, NY
Eligibility: Rising/current 11th and 12th grade students
Application Deadline: January (spring) | March/June (summer) | August (fall)
Dates: July 2, 2024 - August 15, 2024 (summer) | September 2, 2024 - December 20, 2024 (fall). Spring sessions are also offered every year.
Cost: Varies based on credits
NYU Precollege is a chance to experience college life and earn college credit. You will be able to take an undergraduate-level course and attend lectures and workshops alongside undergraduate students and fellow high schoolers. You will also receive personal academic advice and access to resources, library services, events, and activities.
You can choose from courses like Internet Design, Cultural Capital, The Language of Film, Media Studies, Calculus I, Introduction to Computer Programming, Cell and Molecular Biology Laboratory, Engineering and Design, Sociology, Archaeology, Psychology, Politics, and others.
12. MITES Semester
Subject Area: STEM
Location: Virtual / Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA
Eligibility: U.S. high school juniors with strong academic records
Application Deadline: Applications typically close in February.
Dates: June-December (summer and fall)
Cost: Free
MITES Semester is a six-month-long STEM and college preparation program that immerses you in live online courses and weekly virtual webinars, social events, workshops, college admissions counseling, and peer meetings.
You will take two intensive courses during this program—one project-based course in disciplines like machine learning, thermodynamics, or astrophysics and one supplemental core course in physics, calculus, computer science, or science writing and communication.
You will spend the summer in the STEM Immersion Phase, which will conclude with team project presentations at the MITES Summer Conference. In the fall, you will write blogs, interact with researchers and faculty, and receive college preparation guidance.
David Wilkinson is a freelance writer for Horizon and currently resides in the United States.